Sat 11 Jun 1988

George performs on the "Nelson Mandela Birthday concert FREE MANDELA" at Wembley Stadium, London, England

Sat 11 Jun 1988

later on the night after the Mandela gig George played his second of 6 nights at Earls Court, London, England

Mon 11 Jun 2007

Upstaged by a superstar stadium

Georg Michael was engaging, entertaining and occasionally terrific... but the new Wembley stole the show, finds David Cheal

So, wembley is back in business, though not quite with the big bang that it deserved. Long before the completion of this troubled project, George Michael had pestered the stadium's management to allow him the honour of being the first artist to perform at the rebuilt venue and, having been granted his wish, he launched the new Wembley with a sparkling show featuring hits from his 25-year career, sung with his customary elegance and conviction.

But time and again I found myself looking not at the lonely-looking figure of Michael but at the remarkable stage setting behind him, with its giant rolling screen that curled from ceiling to floor. Even more compelling, though, was the sight of this extraordinary stadium with its own elegant curves; it looked sensational, and sounded terrific, too.

Michael began the show, visible only on the video screens, singing an a cappella version of Tim Buckley's Song to the Siren. Then, to enormous cheers from the fans, a doorway lit up like a gateway into another dimension opened, and the man himself swaggered on.

He shouted "Wembley" like a man who'd been waiting a lifetime to say it, the band launched into the chunky groove of Fast Love, the crowd, a sea of blonde highlights, began to jiggle, and we were away.

What followed was entertaining, engaging, and occasionally - as in the fabulous Freedom and the timeless Careless Whisper - terrific. But there were times, too, when the momentum was lost: his choice of material was a little peculiar (why test the crowd's patience with Elton John's maudlin ballad Idol?) and there were a few too many anonymous-sounding groove-based numbers.

Also, with the band more or less hidden from view, it was left to Michael to carry the show. It takes a man with a big, big presence to reach out and grab a stadium and, to be frank, though he may have a gigantic ego, his personality just wasn't compelling enough. He is not Freddie Mercury or, for that matter, Robbie Williams.

But there was always the stage to look at, a stunning piece of visual engineering which, as evening moved into night time, became a thing unto itself, a feast of colour and pattern. And the crowd, clapping, swaying and waving their arms like a forest of sea anemones, played their part in making this a memorable show.

But for me, above all, the night belonged to Wembley: warm, resonant, friendly, the stadium was the star.

Mon 11 Jun 2007

Wembley kicks off with a Wham!

By John Aizlewood, Evening Standard  11.06.07

It's only eight miles from George Michael's Bushey roots to Wembley's gleaming new stadium. Yet, on Saturday when he became the first act to play there since its £793 million refurbishment met its construction deadline at the fourth time of asking, he had made the journey of his lifetime.

"Just think," he gushed, "I'm the first person to say 'good evening Wembley.'" And just to make sure he was undeniably the first, Michael eschewed support acts, thus keeping what he rightly anointed as "the most patient fans in the world" waiting for three hours with only the prospect of a £4.50 pie of indeterminate filling as distraction from the sun-kissed torpor.

So while the local megastar was the man for the occasion, for the first half of Michael's two-and-a-half-hour show the occasion was rather flat once he had crooned Tim Buckley's Song To The Siren backstage before lurching into Fast Love, and not merely because new Wembley's sound problems were much the same as the old's.

Michael hardly helped himself. As if fearful of creating a spectacle, his band was cast into darkness to lurk guiltily on some rigging and, instead of dancers Michael left himself to entertain a stadium on his own. Obvious charisma notwithstanding, the task proved too much whether he was attempting to re-create a mid-Eighties gay disco (an insurmountable task in daylight before an overwhelmingly heterosexual audience of 75,000) on Too Funky, or supper club intimacy while perched on a stool to deliver Father Figure.

Ultimately, this was an arena show (and one almost identical to Michael's pre-Christmas Earls Court dates) rather than a stadium experience. There were effects, but they were either cheap or, as during the disastrous Shoot The Dog, which featured a British bulldog orally pleasuring a blow-up George Bush, toe-curlingly crude.

Mercifully, the second half was better the moment it began with Michael dressed as an American policeman for a turbo-charged Outside and an audience including ex-Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, famous divorcée Ivana Trump, plus television presenter Claire Sweeney began to revel in the nostalgia trip.

For an hour, the concert was broadcast live on Channel 4 and, tellingly, Michael was so galvanised he cheerily invited the press to "kiss my hairy Greek arse", a somewhat ungrateful response to 25 years of indulgence on and off stage.

By the end, he had, for reasons never explained, played Freedom 90 twice, dedicated Amazing to "the man I love", current beau Kenny Goss, embraced his Wham! legacy with a spirited I'm Your Man and Edge Of Heaven and melted even the flintiest of hearts with a mighty Careless Whisper to complete Michael's journey and christen new Wembley in the manner it warranted.

Wed 11 Jun 2008

George Michael announces today that he is to play 2 special concerts at Earls Court on 24th and 25th August to mark the end of his 25 Live Tour that started in Barcelona in September 2006!

Having spent the last 20 months entertaining over 1.3 million fans across Europe with a 49 date 25 Live Tour, followed by a 30 date 25 Live Stadium tour — which incorporated a spectacular opening of the newly built Wembley Stadium - Michael will continue to thrill audiences as he ventures to North America to perform his extraordinary show this summer!

But, not one to overlook his dedicated British fans, and as his way of saying thank you, Michael will return to London to end his tour with two exclusive, filmed, concerts at Earls Court entitled THE FINAL TWO which is a nod to his sell out Wembley Stadium show, 'THE FINAL' with Andrew Ridgeley in 1986 when he brought the curtain down on Wham! These very special shows will naturally feature Michael's hits, some tracks not previously performed in Britain, and a stunning new stage set. These shows are truly not to be missed by any George Michael fan.

25 Live stunned fans and critics alike when Michael took to the stage after a noticeable 15 year absence, generating praise across Europe, and being referred to as "a masterclass in pop genius" by The Observer. The Sun said, "George proved he is simply one of the best vocalists this country has ever produced. A stunning performance."

Tickets for both 25 Live European Tours in 2006 and 2007 were snapped up in mere minutes as fans clamoured to see Michael perform songs from a career that has spanned over quarter of a century to date, and which has seen the star perform at some of the music industries biggest and most important concerts in history, including Live Aid and the Nelson Mandela concerts both in 1988, the Freddie Mercury tribute concert in 1992, Net Aid in 1999 and Live 8 in 2006.

George Michael has enjoyed one of the most successful and enduring careers in the history of pop music, having sold over 100 million records world wide and achieved seven US number one singles, 11 number one British singles and six number one album.

George Michael Fanclub members have access to an special pre-sale that starts on Wednesday 11th June @ 7pm GBT. Tickets for both dates will go on sale to the public on Friday 13th June 2008 at 8am and can be purchased by calling the venue box office on 0870 903 9033 or the 24hr ticket hotline on 0844 847 1525. Tickets can be purchased online at www.seetickets.com and www.ticketmaster.co.uk

source: George Michael.com: