Songs from the Last Century

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Songs from the Last Century
Songs from the Last Century (George Michael album - cover art).jpg
Studio album by
George Michael
Released6 December 1999 (1999-12-06)
Recorded1999
Length43:11
Label
Producer
George Michael chronology
Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael
(1998)		Songs from the Last Century
(1999)		 Patience
(2004)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
BBC (mixed) [2]
NME Star full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]

Songs from the Last Century is the fourth solo studio album by English singer-songwriter George Michael, released on 6 December 1999 by Aegean Records and Virgin Records. Produced by Michael and Phil Ramone, it was his only album of cover versions. It consists mainly of old jazz standards plus new interpretations of more recent popular songs, such as "Roxanne" by the Police and "Miss Sarajevo" by U2 [a] and Brian Eno with Luciano Pavarotti. Both songs were released as promotional singles.

Contents

History

This album is the only album in Michael's entire solo catalogue to not reach number one on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number two instead. It was kept off the top spot by Shania Twain's Come On Over . [5]

A music video for "Roxanne" was shot in Amsterdam, in the so-called Red District, using ordinary people, not actors, who really live their lives on the street.

Another version exists of the album's opening track, "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?", sung by Michael with Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti at one of his famous "Pavarotti and Friends" live shows. This version is included on the limited edition of Michael's 2006 greatest hits album, Twenty Five .

Track listing

  1. "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" (E.Y. Harburg, Jay Gorney) – 4:22
  2. "Roxanne" (Sting) – 4:11
  3. "You've Changed" (Bill Carey, Carl Fischer) – 4:25
  4. "My Baby Just Cares for Me" (Gus Kahn, Walter Donaldson) – 1:45
  5. "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" (Ewan MacColl) – 5:19
  6. "Miss Sarajevo" (Adam Clayton, Brian Eno, Dave Evans, Larry Mullen, Paul Hewson) – 5:11
  7. "I Remember You" (Johnny Mercer, Victor Schertzinger) – 4:12
  8. "Secret Love" (Paul Francis Webster, Sammy Fain) – 2:39
  9. "Wild Is the Wind" (Dimitri Tiomkin, Ned Washington) – 4:02
  10. "Where or When" / "It's All Right with Me" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart / Cole Porter) (instrumental) (hidden track) – 7:00

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic. [6]

Charts

Certifications and sales

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [38] Gold35,000^
Belgium (BEA) [39] Platinum50,000*
Canada (Music Canada) [40] Gold50,000^
France (SNEP) [41] 2× Gold200,000*
Germany (BVMI) [42] Gold150,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ) [43] Platinum15,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [24] Platinum100,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [44] Gold25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [45] 2× Platinum600,000 [46]
United States—152,000 [47]
Summaries
Europe (IFPI) [48] 2× Platinum2,000,000*
Worldwide—3,600,000 [49]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes

  1. ↑ "Miss Sarajevo" was originally released under the name Passengers, a side project consisting of U2 and Brian Eno.

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References

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  2. ↑ Packer, Nigel (5 December 1999). "CD Review: George Michael". BBC News Online . Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  3. ↑ "Songs From The Last Century". NME . 12 September 2005. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  4. ↑ Cross, Charles R. (2004). "George Michael". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp.  540. ISBN   0-7432-0169-8.
  5. ↑ 1999 Top 40 Official Albums Chart UK Archive, 18 December 1999. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  6. ↑ "George Michael – Songs from the Last Century Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – George Michael – Songs from the Last Century". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
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  43. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – George Michael – Songs from the Last Century". Recorded Music NZ . Retrieved 20 November 2024.
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