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George Michael: Freedom: The Ultimate Tribute 1963 - 2016
This lavishly illustrated volume pays tribute to George Michael, the brilliant songwriter who went from teen idol to activist.
When George Michael’s death was announced on Christmas Day in 2016, the world mourned the loss of a huge talent who left us far too soon. Blessed with a dramatic, soulful voice, Michael was a charismatic pop star . . . and far more. With his keen social conscience, he worked tirelessly for charity, became a gay icon who fought for sexual rights and education, and took on the record industry and media. George Freedom tells his story, from the fun and sunshiny tunes of Wham! to the dark lyricism of his solo work. Featuring informative and insightful text from a prominent music journalist and a variety of photographs from many of the best contemporary photographers—including rarely seen images and some taken during his final appearances—this beautiful tribute paints an intimate portrait of the world-famous musician.
When George Michael’s death was announced on Christmas Day in 2016, the world mourned the loss of a huge talent who left us far too soon. Blessed with a dramatic, soulful voice, Michael was a charismatic pop star . . . and far more. With his keen social conscience, he worked tirelessly for charity, became a gay icon who fought for sexual rights and education, and took on the record industry and media. George Freedom tells his story, from the fun and sunshiny tunes of Wham! to the dark lyricism of his solo work. Featuring informative and insightful text from a prominent music journalist and a variety of photographs from many of the best contemporary photographers—including rarely seen images and some taken during his final appearances—this beautiful tribute paints an intimate portrait of the world-famous musician.
- GenresBiographyNonfiction
144 pages, Hardcover
Published January 2, 2018
About the author
David Nolan
49 books14 followersDavid Nolan is a British award-winning journalist who's authored biographies on subjects ranging from Simon Cowell to the Sex Pistols. He's also written for newspapers, magazines, radio and television.
Librarians note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarians note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 1, 2019
3.43 BEAUTIFUL STARS...
(Not quite 4 stars worthy).
Let's keep it real...George Michael: Freedom: The Ultimate Tribute 1963-2016 does not add much to the conversation when it comes to the life and times of George Michael. David Nolan's writing comes off as a great summary of all the information that has already been written or stated. But, to give credit where credit is due, Nolan has selected some wonderful images to share his vision of the man and artist who we know as George Michael. Thus, I definitely do not think you will be disappointed in adding this book to your coffee table book collection.
Notwithstanding, I will close with one question that George Michael was quoted as asking, later in life, but not aloud: "What would have happened had I come out when Wham was just taking off?"
(Not quite 4 stars worthy).
Let's keep it real...George Michael: Freedom: The Ultimate Tribute 1963-2016 does not add much to the conversation when it comes to the life and times of George Michael. David Nolan's writing comes off as a great summary of all the information that has already been written or stated. But, to give credit where credit is due, Nolan has selected some wonderful images to share his vision of the man and artist who we know as George Michael. Thus, I definitely do not think you will be disappointed in adding this book to your coffee table book collection.
Notwithstanding, I will close with one question that George Michael was quoted as asking, later in life, but not aloud: "What would have happened had I come out when Wham was just taking off?"
November 20, 2024
“His story feels personal to us in a way that most musicians lives rarely do - so too do his songs, his image, his life and his times. In his early years he gave us the freedom to have a good time - later, the freedom to think about things differently. But he always gave us the freedom to feel.”
If you appreciate George Michael at all, you will enjoy this loving tribute which is filled with great photos spanning his life and career. The narrative isn’t deep, but it doesn’t pull any punches either. It paints a pretty honest portrait of the son of an immigrant who became a pop icon and lived out some deeply personal moments in the spotlight of the world.
“To be part of people’s lives, as an artist, that’s obviously what I dreamed of, but my God, I wish I could cope with the other stuff the way other people do. I wish I’d been born with that particular suit of armour. Because I wasn’t.”-George Michael
I found it interesting to learn that George Michael was actually puzzled by the lasting impression of “Careless Whisper”, a song that he wrote at the age of 17…really before, according to him, he knew much about anything, especially relationships. I enjoyed reading about some of his smaller and more secretive philanthropies…like to a waitress at a diner who was making ends meet as a nursing student and to a couple for IVF therapy after seeing the husband on a game show. I think some of those more anonymous things kind of gave a better glimpse as to who he was as a person.
This tribute gave me the desire to not only dust off some of my favorite music from the 80’s and 90’s, but to seek out and listen to a few that I missed…like his Symphonica Tour and the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert (also the political song, which must not have made it to the US called “Shoot the Dog”).
My favorite quote from the author…
“After 12 months of relentless and shocking celebrity deaths (2016), George Michael’s seemed to be felt by the public in a very different way. David Bowie was adored, admired and revered. George Michael, on the other hand, was loved.”
On a personal note, I can honestly say he is the only artist from my youth that I might have worn out a cassette tape of…to my chagrin and my family’s annoyance…of course dancing to “Last Christmas” at Christmas time has gone beyond a family joke to a family practice…so who’s having the last laugh now?
If you appreciate George Michael at all, you will enjoy this loving tribute which is filled with great photos spanning his life and career. The narrative isn’t deep, but it doesn’t pull any punches either. It paints a pretty honest portrait of the son of an immigrant who became a pop icon and lived out some deeply personal moments in the spotlight of the world.
“To be part of people’s lives, as an artist, that’s obviously what I dreamed of, but my God, I wish I could cope with the other stuff the way other people do. I wish I’d been born with that particular suit of armour. Because I wasn’t.”-George Michael
I found it interesting to learn that George Michael was actually puzzled by the lasting impression of “Careless Whisper”, a song that he wrote at the age of 17…really before, according to him, he knew much about anything, especially relationships. I enjoyed reading about some of his smaller and more secretive philanthropies…like to a waitress at a diner who was making ends meet as a nursing student and to a couple for IVF therapy after seeing the husband on a game show. I think some of those more anonymous things kind of gave a better glimpse as to who he was as a person.
This tribute gave me the desire to not only dust off some of my favorite music from the 80’s and 90’s, but to seek out and listen to a few that I missed…like his Symphonica Tour and the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert (also the political song, which must not have made it to the US called “Shoot the Dog”).
My favorite quote from the author…
“After 12 months of relentless and shocking celebrity deaths (2016), George Michael’s seemed to be felt by the public in a very different way. David Bowie was adored, admired and revered. George Michael, on the other hand, was loved.”
On a personal note, I can honestly say he is the only artist from my youth that I might have worn out a cassette tape of…to my chagrin and my family’s annoyance…of course dancing to “Last Christmas” at Christmas time has gone beyond a family joke to a family practice…so who’s having the last laugh now?
September 7, 2018
Pretty concise, this is not at all an in-depth book. It's very much a coffee table book, but a very attractive one.
July 25, 2020
This is a five star book for me. I have just "discovered" George Michael as a spinoff of just "discovering" Queen. I saw the video of George Michael performing at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert and was super impressed by his rendition of "Somebody to Love." So I explored Wham! and then George Michael's solo career and watched many interviews with him. And in doing this research, I found a beautiful brand new copy of this "Freedom: The Ultimate Tribute" book at my library.
This is a large format book with wonderful large photographs of George M. at all stages of his career. But the narrative is also very worthwhile. I read it all in a couple of hours and found it to be well-written and thoughtful. It strikes a very nice tone that reveals admiration for the talent and the man himself without sycophancy and without sensationalizing the scandals that plagued George's later years. It is sophisticated music journalism and I enjoyed it even though I already knew most of the facts. It helped me to put George Michael's career in perspective.
George Michael was not a run-of-the-mill pop star. He was a talented songwriter and arranger from a very early age. He was able to transition successfully from the teen heart-throb role into a mature singer without losing popularity. He collaborated with many other major talents, including Queen, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, and many others. His voice was unique yet versatile--sometimes a crooner, sometimes R and B, sometimes a rocker, but always fascinating to listen to. He was a natural talent and a free spirit following his musical instincts to good effect.
However, he was psychologically vulnerable, easily hurt, longing for meaningful relationships, and devoted to his Mom and his two (older) sisters. He also developed a keen interest in philanthropy (small and large) and in political issues. He was vocal in his opposition to Tony Blair's decision to support the U.S. confrontation (invasion) of Iraq in the wake of 9/11. He also made many mistakes along the way, including being arrested by a California police officer for lewd behavior in a restroom, driving under the influence of drugs, and falling out of a moving car while impaired by drugs. Then he died under mysterious circumstances at his country house by himself on Christmas Day 2016. He was only 53.
"George Michael: Freedom: a Tribute" is a very worthy contribution to the legacy of this talented and interesting person. I recommend it to both die hard fans and people just learning about him as I was. It may look like a frothy "coffee table book" but it merits reading and savoring.
This is a large format book with wonderful large photographs of George M. at all stages of his career. But the narrative is also very worthwhile. I read it all in a couple of hours and found it to be well-written and thoughtful. It strikes a very nice tone that reveals admiration for the talent and the man himself without sycophancy and without sensationalizing the scandals that plagued George's later years. It is sophisticated music journalism and I enjoyed it even though I already knew most of the facts. It helped me to put George Michael's career in perspective.
George Michael was not a run-of-the-mill pop star. He was a talented songwriter and arranger from a very early age. He was able to transition successfully from the teen heart-throb role into a mature singer without losing popularity. He collaborated with many other major talents, including Queen, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, and many others. His voice was unique yet versatile--sometimes a crooner, sometimes R and B, sometimes a rocker, but always fascinating to listen to. He was a natural talent and a free spirit following his musical instincts to good effect.
However, he was psychologically vulnerable, easily hurt, longing for meaningful relationships, and devoted to his Mom and his two (older) sisters. He also developed a keen interest in philanthropy (small and large) and in political issues. He was vocal in his opposition to Tony Blair's decision to support the U.S. confrontation (invasion) of Iraq in the wake of 9/11. He also made many mistakes along the way, including being arrested by a California police officer for lewd behavior in a restroom, driving under the influence of drugs, and falling out of a moving car while impaired by drugs. Then he died under mysterious circumstances at his country house by himself on Christmas Day 2016. He was only 53.
"George Michael: Freedom: a Tribute" is a very worthy contribution to the legacy of this talented and interesting person. I recommend it to both die hard fans and people just learning about him as I was. It may look like a frothy "coffee table book" but it merits reading and savoring.
December 27, 2019
I'm giving this four stars for a few reasons.
It's a great book if you know nothing about George Michael at all. It has great photographs from his younger years (including the start of WHAM!) up until his final years. Really great biography that doesn't go into too much detail but doesn't lack it either.
If you are a George Michael fan, however, and have also seen his film 'Freedom,' then you're basically hearing everything you've already heard in the film. I didn't realize this until I brought the book home. I also read it in over an hour one night so for fans of biographies, this is a short one compared to most.
This isn't to say I didn't love it because I did and I would tell newer fans of George Michael to go and buy this book to learn about the great musician, but if you've been a fan for many years already then you really don't need to read this book (for me, it's a great one to show off around the house and maybe use as a coffee table book).
It's a great book if you know nothing about George Michael at all. It has great photographs from his younger years (including the start of WHAM!) up until his final years. Really great biography that doesn't go into too much detail but doesn't lack it either.
If you are a George Michael fan, however, and have also seen his film 'Freedom,' then you're basically hearing everything you've already heard in the film. I didn't realize this until I brought the book home. I also read it in over an hour one night so for fans of biographies, this is a short one compared to most.
This isn't to say I didn't love it because I did and I would tell newer fans of George Michael to go and buy this book to learn about the great musician, but if you've been a fan for many years already then you really don't need to read this book (for me, it's a great one to show off around the house and maybe use as a coffee table book).
October 3, 2025
Another comprehensive tribute to George Michael but not a lot different from the other books about him.
Some great photos to bring back the memories of a fabulous singer, songwriter and producer.
You have been loved George!
Some great photos to bring back the memories of a fabulous singer, songwriter and producer.
You have been loved George!
December 24, 2017
Beautiful coffee table book. Fans will buy it more for the photos rather than the content, as most fans will already be familiar with what is written.
January 13, 2018
This book was a Christmas present and I couldn’t have asked for a better way to remember my childhood hero on his first anniversary. “Freedom” beautifully illustrates George’s life and career without being over sentimental. Although most of George Michael’s fans will already be familiar with the content, it is an aesthetically pleasing coffee table book to browse through, when listening to his music.
November 18, 2017
Love it but it's more of a coffee table book than the biography I'd expected.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews