They look like a Gleem ad; George Michael's music is an unabashed rehash of Motown; and no one seems to know what exactly Andrew Ridgely does. No matter: Make It Big is an almost flawless pop record, a record that does exactly what it wants to and has a great deal of fun doing it. Sure, it's slight stuff and too thinly orchestrated at times, but George Michael can write and sing rings around fellow teen dream Simon Le Bon. He may be less soulful than Boy George (remember, we're talking British white boys only) but he's got a much wider range, from rumbly bass to keening falsetto, which he uses to first-rate effect on "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go."
As a songwriter and performer, Michael has learned his lessons well. Gripe all you want about the cops from Holland-Dozier-Holland's "It's the Same Old Song," but "Freedom" is truly irresistible: snappily written, perfectly arranged, superbly sung. His moodier side gets an airing on "Careless Whisper." While his voice may be technically accomplished, it also has a prissy side that sinks the song.
So much for the hits (each was Number One in the U.K.); otherwise, Make It Big is mighty short on material. What should be zingy three-minute pop songs are dragged out to four or five minutes to fill up vinyl. Though that's a minor failure in the pleasantly daffy "Credit Card Baby" or the Spectorish "Heartbeat," there's really no excuse for the minute forty seconds of instrumental lounge music with which "Like a Baby" bumbles to a start. Still, George Michael is a glossy-faced talent who can't be written off. Everyone has a guilty pleasure. Why not let Wham! be yours?
1. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
2. Everything She Wants
3. Heartbeat
4. Like A Baby
5. Freedom
6. If You Were There
7. Credit Card Baby
8. Careless Whisper
As sample, I post Wake me Up before you go-go video, a symbol for '80.
