He might never have cared for it that much, once saying that he was puzzled as to why people loved it so much, but Careless Whisper turned out to be the biggest hit of George Michael’s career.
Now, as the iconic song is reissued in celebration of its 40th anniversary, session guitarist Hugh Burns, who played on the track, has been discussing what made Michael so special.
“The thing about George that was exceptional - and I’ve worked with a lot of wonderful singers - is that he had all his ideas in his head,” Burns told The Independent. “Very often he would sing it to you, to give you an idea. He was very strict on detail, and he had a remarkable talent for getting the feel just right.”
Michael’s eye for detail is legendary. In 2022, former collaborator and MusicRadar contributor Dave Clews discussed his “obsessive perfectionism”, and how this could sometimes be infuriating.
“We’d often spend weeks on a backing track, crafting and tweaking to get it sounding epic, only for him to come in one day, change his mind and tear everything down to start again almost from scratch,” wrote Clews.
“Similarly, he would spend days working on a vocal, booting everybody out of the control room and dropping himself into record with the Otari RADAR controller next to him in the booth, building up a fantastic performance line by line,” he continued. “Then, just as we’d got to really love it, he’d go in and record new versions over the top, erasing forever the original parts we’d come to love.”
Alongside this, though, Michael also had what Hugh Burns describes as “a natural feel for music that you can’t teach - his first take was often perfect, and that’s extremely unusual.”
The story of Careless Whisper shows all sides of Michael’s music character: his hook-writing genius; the perfectionism (multiple versions were recorded and 11 saxophonists tried); and the drama (the video reportedly had to be reshot because George wasn’t happy with how his hair looked).
The new Careless Whisper EP contains not only the original song, but also an extended mix, instrumental, and a live performance from Madison Square Garden in 2008.
"As we celebrate 40 years of Careless Whisper, we are proud to share something truly special with George’s millions of fans around the world,” said George Michael Entertainment in a press release. “This EP is a heartfelt 'thank you' from us to you for your unwavering support and love. We are truly grateful. Thank you.”
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