Songs From the Last Century

by

George Michael

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Whatever you want to say about the ubiquitous George Michael, you can't brand him as lacking in the confidence department. It somehow isn't surprising that he would take it upon himself to capture the legacy of the past hundred years on SONGS FROM THE LAST CENTURY. What is surprising are the unique choices--this isn't a standard set of standards. George has managed to span and reflect the last hundred years with 10 tracks, few of which come close to belonging to that fraternity of the century's hackneyed covers.

The songs are all presented, whether they be Depression-era ballads ("Brother Can You Spare a Dime") or punk/new wave anthems ("Roxanne"), in a blowsy, bluesy, super-laid-back style. With all his pop-dance leanings and overblown hits, it's almost easy to overlook a key facet of George Michael's success; the man can sing. On tracks like Rodgers & Hart's "Where or When" and the breathy, breathtaking cover of that U2/Eno side project the Passengers' "Miss Sarajevo," George's lilting tenor smooths its wayright into the heart. The perfect time capsule for upcoming generations regarding the 1900s it's not, but it does stand as a fine collection of timeless tunes from timed eras.

Although I love some of the tracks on this CD I cannot help but be a bit disappointed with others. Ever since George Michael's sexy rendition of 'Kissing a Fool' I've been looking out for a whole album of similar songs and I guess this is it ... well sort of.

Favourites on this album are Roxanne, You've Changed, The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and Secret Love (the big band backing is superb!) These he does exceedingly well. As for the rest, Brother Can You Spare A Dime is over-dramatic, My Baby Just Cares For Me is not bad, but too short and badly scored (the instruments sound very synthetic) and the harp backing on I Remember You destroys an otherwise listenable song - a fuller backing would have been a great improvement.

The other choices are OK, but quite unmemorable, which brings me to my next gripe about this album - the selection can hardly be called representative of the century's music, with some pretty obscure songs on this album. It would have been helpful to have the rationale behind the choice of each song included in the CD cover notes.

And finally, why so short? I was just getting into the mood of the album when it ended far too abruptly.

My overall impression of this album is that George Michael wanted to get out an album before the century ended and left it a bit late, resulting in a mediocre offering that does not live up to expectation, at least from this fan.