On a London rooftop in the Thames wind, Riffs and Beats finds George Michael in a leather jacket, Walkman still warm, headphones around his neck.
Riffs and Beats
George, Careless Whisper or Faith first on a desert island?
George Michael
Careless Whisper if I need the sax. Faith if I need boots and a smirk. I wrote both. A quiet verse can hold the room if the rhythm sits right. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone.
Riffs and Beats
Wham! put you on the teen posters. When did the solo work feel real?
George Michael
When I produced myself and stopped asking permission for the bass line. Listen Without Prejudice was the album where I stopped asking. I remember the vocal booth more than the tabloids. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone. I trust a London rooftop more than a meeting that brings twelve opinions into the room.
Riffs and Beats
Freedom! ’90 felt like a breakup with the machine. Was it?
George Michael
With the costume, yes. Not with the songs. I wanted radio play without the cartoon image. The lawsuit years taught me that contracts counted for more than the choruses did. Faith had the dance steps and a clear point of view. I trust a London rooftop more than a meeting that brings twelve opinions into the room. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them.
Riffs and Beats
Father Figure hit hard live. What do you hear in it now?
George Michael
A son talking into the quiet. Studio lights low. I kept the vocal dry so the lyric stayed sharp and clear. I worked one soft consonant until it sat in the beat. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone.
Riffs and Beats
You gave away royalties for causes. Soft heart or strategy?
George Michael
It was both, in the same decision. If a check feeds someone, the song did a second job. The beard years were still about the song, not the disguise. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone. I trust a London rooftop more than a meeting that brings twelve opinions into the room.
Riffs and Beats
Streaming erased album sequences. Does Older still need its order?
George Michael
Yes. Older is a long evening. Shuffle drops the running order and the evening ends early. I still prefer a true falsetto to a fake scandal. I trust a London rooftop more than a meeting that brings twelve opinions into the room. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them.
Riffs and Beats
British tabloids chased you for years. Any advice for artists now?
George Michael
Own the timeline before they invent one. And keep a private room without phones. Careless Whisper keeps the sax because the track stays quiet around it. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone.
Riffs and Beats
One studio habit you refuse to drop?
George Michael
Double the vocal only when the emotion asks. Not for thickness. For truth. I kept the same pace when the press started to rush me. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone. I trust a London rooftop more than a meeting that brings twelve opinions into the room.
Riffs and Beats
Myth to kill?
George Michael
That the leather jacket was the whole man. It was a costume with good songs underneath. I wrote for the people in the room, not for the headline. I trust a London rooftop more than a meeting that brings twelve opinions into the room. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them.
Riffs and Beats
Heaven got a rooftop?
George Michael
This one. City hum, cheap instant coffee, and a cassette that never snaps. Leave the gossip; keep the melody. I wrote on headphones on night buses before the leather jacket was a public image. The songs came first; the costume came to protect them. When I produced myself I learned to say no to glossy extras. If the vocal already told the story, I left the track alone.
He slides the headphones on, hits play on nothing we can hear, and steps toward the Thames wind. Fiction, yes. The Walkman is still running.
