Wham! (often written WHAM!) was a pop band formed in 1981 from Bushey, Engl… Read Full Bio ↴Wham! (often written WHAM!) was a pop band formed in 1981 from Bushey, England. They were briefly known in the United States as Wham! UK due to a naming conflict with another band.
George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley met at Bushey Meads School in Watford, England. At first, they performed in a short-lived rock and roll band called The Executive. They then changed their name and signed with Innervision Records. Soon after a legal victory over Innervision, the duo was signed to CBS, Columbia Records in the United States and Canada and Epic Records for the rest of the world.
Further information: Artist development deal
Michael took on the majority of roles and responsibilities within the band— composer, singer, producer, and occasional instrumentalist— but the contribution of Ridgeley as the group's image specialist and spokesman was crucial to the band's initial success. Ridgeley convinced a reluctant George that Wham! needed to change their image and sound frequently, from the leather-clad moody singers of "Bad Boys" and "Young Guns (Go For It!)" to the more fashionable pop superstars of "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go."
Still teenagers, they promoted themselves as hedonistic youngsters, proud to live a carefree life without work or commitment. This was reflected in their earliest singles. Such works as "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)" have been seen as sarcasm advocating the other point of view.
The first record to be released by the band was "Wham Rap!". It was a double-A side with a Social Mix and Anti-social Mix. The record was banned for general release in the UK due to the profanity in the Anti-social Mix. In October 1982, their song "Young Guns (Go For It!)" was issued. The song was an appeal from one youthful lad to his friend to not throw his life away so early on marriage. It stalled outside the UK Top 40 but then Wham! got lucky when Top Of The Pops scheduled them. An important weekly BBC chart show on television, it had to look outside the Top 40 to fill a gap created by an act which had pulled out of recording. Nearest to the 40 mark and still climbing, Wham! was summoned, and a phenomenon immediately began.
The impact of Wham! on the public, especially teenage girls, was felt from the moment they finished their debut performance of "Young Guns (Go For It!)" on Top Of The Pops. Michael's appearance may have helped. He wore espadrilles, a suede jacket slit open, and rolled-up denim jeans. Ridgeley stood behind him, flanked by backing dancers D.C. Lee and Shirlie Holliman.
The performance was as much one of acting as it was of singing, with Michael playing the part of the pleading goodtime lad, and Ridgeley the guy who had been drawn into commitment. Afterwards, the song shot into the Top 40 at #24 and peaked at #3 in December. The following year (1983), D.C. Lee began her work with Paul Weller of The Style Council, and was replaced by Pepsi DeMacque. Holliman and DeMacque would later record music as Pepsi and Shirlie.
Wham! followed up "Young Guns (Go For It!)" with the reissue "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)", a song about the joys of a leisurely life (the full version of which clocked in at almost seven minutes long); "Bad Boys", about a strained relationship between a rebellious teenage lad and his worried parents; and "Club Tropicana", a satire of the Club 18-30 scene. Each song came with a memorable music video.
By the end of 1983, Wham! was rivaling Duran Duran and Culture Club as Britain's biggest pop act. Notoriety and column inches were duly achieved with their antics of placing a shuttlecock down their shorts, and their first album Fantastic reached #1.
Around this time, Ridgeley become conscious of legal problems with their initial contract at Innervision. He mounted a legal challenge against the record company and its founder Mark Dean, who had initially signed them to the label, and George publicly stated they were financially mistreated [citation needed]. While the legal battle raged (perhaps to raise much-needed funds for the fight), Innervision released a medley of non-single album tracks from Fantastic, entitled Club Fantastic Megamix. Wham! publicly denounced the move, and urged fans not to buy it. After all the legal wrangling, Innervision admitted there were royalty discrepancies with Wham!'s contract, leading to the bankruptcy and dissolution of Innervision.
Driven by Ridgeley, the duo changed their image, and Wham! returned in May 1984 with an updated, cutting-edge pop image quickly copied by other pop bands. Andrew changed the band's look from "moody in leather jackets" to smiles and fashionable clothing, with an aim to promote themselves more as sex symbols rather than spokespeople for a disaffected generation.
Fittingly enough, these changes propelled the next single (a pop standard) to the top of the charts around the world. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, a song Michael wrote from a note left to him in his hotel room one night by Ridgeley. The note was mistakenly written by Ridgeley as "don't forget to wake me up up before you go go, George". Since he accidentally wrote the word "up" twice, Ridgeley decided to compound the error and write "go" twice. It became their first UK #1 and rose to the top in the USA), capped by a memorable video of the duo, plus the ubiquitous Pepsi and Shirlie, wearing Katharine Hamnett T-shirts with the slogans CHOOSE LIFE and GO GO.
These t-shirts became essential fashion items as Hamnett wrote herself into the pop culture lexicon, having simultaneously designed the FRANKIE SAY t-shirts for Frankie Goes to Hollywood.
Although some critics felt that Wham! represented bubblegum pop[citation needed], many were starting to appreciate Michael's proven ability as a songwriter and capable vocalist. (The following year, he would win the Ivor Novello Award for songwriting.) However, at the same time they bemoaned the status of Ridgeley, who had started to "play" a guitar during live shows (never on any recordings) but whose overall contribution was deemed to be lightweight[citation needed].
With some bizarre contradiction, the next single "Careless Whisper" was issued as a George Michael solo piece, yet unlike any Wham! single since "Wham Rap!," it was co-written by Ridgeley. The song quickly reached #1. In the autumn of 1984, Wham! came back as a duo with "Freedom", another chart-topper. In November, they released their second album, Make It Big, which coasted to #1 on the album charts. The band set off on another arena tour at the end of '84, and George told Smash Hits magazine at the time that he had written a song called "Stephen." The song had been composed for a friend who was struggling to cope with bereavment. While this song is still unreleased, those that were at the recording sessions decsribe it as a heartfelt story of the loss of a loved one[citation needed].
George contributed to the Band Aid project, with Michael providing vocals as the song usurped their own Christmas release, "Last Christmas"/"Everything She Wants", the former of which featured a video set in a ski resort.
The single became the highest-selling single ever to peak at #2 in the UK charts. As such, Wham! donated all their royalties to the Ethiopian famine appeal to coincide with the fundraising intentions of Band Aid, the song which beat them to the top spot. Band Aid's success meant that Michael had been at #1 within three different entities in 1984—as a solo artist, half of a duo, and part of a charity ensemble.
Michael desired to create music targeted to a more sophisticated audience than the duo's primarily teenage fanbase. Therefore, Michael and Ridgeley announced the breakup of Wham! in the spring of 1986, destined to take place after a farewell single and album, along with a historic grand finale concert at Wembley Stadium on June 28, 1986, called The Final. British pop group Five Star declined George's invitation to be the supporting act, saying they needed to concentrate on their own career at the time.
George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley met at Bushey Meads School in Watford, England. At first, they performed in a short-lived rock and roll band called The Executive. They then changed their name and signed with Innervision Records. Soon after a legal victory over Innervision, the duo was signed to CBS, Columbia Records in the United States and Canada and Epic Records for the rest of the world.
Further information: Artist development deal
Michael took on the majority of roles and responsibilities within the band— composer, singer, producer, and occasional instrumentalist— but the contribution of Ridgeley as the group's image specialist and spokesman was crucial to the band's initial success. Ridgeley convinced a reluctant George that Wham! needed to change their image and sound frequently, from the leather-clad moody singers of "Bad Boys" and "Young Guns (Go For It!)" to the more fashionable pop superstars of "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go."
Still teenagers, they promoted themselves as hedonistic youngsters, proud to live a carefree life without work or commitment. This was reflected in their earliest singles. Such works as "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)" have been seen as sarcasm advocating the other point of view.
The first record to be released by the band was "Wham Rap!". It was a double-A side with a Social Mix and Anti-social Mix. The record was banned for general release in the UK due to the profanity in the Anti-social Mix. In October 1982, their song "Young Guns (Go For It!)" was issued. The song was an appeal from one youthful lad to his friend to not throw his life away so early on marriage. It stalled outside the UK Top 40 but then Wham! got lucky when Top Of The Pops scheduled them. An important weekly BBC chart show on television, it had to look outside the Top 40 to fill a gap created by an act which had pulled out of recording. Nearest to the 40 mark and still climbing, Wham! was summoned, and a phenomenon immediately began.
The impact of Wham! on the public, especially teenage girls, was felt from the moment they finished their debut performance of "Young Guns (Go For It!)" on Top Of The Pops. Michael's appearance may have helped. He wore espadrilles, a suede jacket slit open, and rolled-up denim jeans. Ridgeley stood behind him, flanked by backing dancers D.C. Lee and Shirlie Holliman.
The performance was as much one of acting as it was of singing, with Michael playing the part of the pleading goodtime lad, and Ridgeley the guy who had been drawn into commitment. Afterwards, the song shot into the Top 40 at #24 and peaked at #3 in December. The following year (1983), D.C. Lee began her work with Paul Weller of The Style Council, and was replaced by Pepsi DeMacque. Holliman and DeMacque would later record music as Pepsi and Shirlie.
Wham! followed up "Young Guns (Go For It!)" with the reissue "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)", a song about the joys of a leisurely life (the full version of which clocked in at almost seven minutes long); "Bad Boys", about a strained relationship between a rebellious teenage lad and his worried parents; and "Club Tropicana", a satire of the Club 18-30 scene. Each song came with a memorable music video.
By the end of 1983, Wham! was rivaling Duran Duran and Culture Club as Britain's biggest pop act. Notoriety and column inches were duly achieved with their antics of placing a shuttlecock down their shorts, and their first album Fantastic reached #1.
Around this time, Ridgeley become conscious of legal problems with their initial contract at Innervision. He mounted a legal challenge against the record company and its founder Mark Dean, who had initially signed them to the label, and George publicly stated they were financially mistreated [citation needed]. While the legal battle raged (perhaps to raise much-needed funds for the fight), Innervision released a medley of non-single album tracks from Fantastic, entitled Club Fantastic Megamix. Wham! publicly denounced the move, and urged fans not to buy it. After all the legal wrangling, Innervision admitted there were royalty discrepancies with Wham!'s contract, leading to the bankruptcy and dissolution of Innervision.
Driven by Ridgeley, the duo changed their image, and Wham! returned in May 1984 with an updated, cutting-edge pop image quickly copied by other pop bands. Andrew changed the band's look from "moody in leather jackets" to smiles and fashionable clothing, with an aim to promote themselves more as sex symbols rather than spokespeople for a disaffected generation.
Fittingly enough, these changes propelled the next single (a pop standard) to the top of the charts around the world. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, a song Michael wrote from a note left to him in his hotel room one night by Ridgeley. The note was mistakenly written by Ridgeley as "don't forget to wake me up up before you go go, George". Since he accidentally wrote the word "up" twice, Ridgeley decided to compound the error and write "go" twice. It became their first UK #1 and rose to the top in the USA), capped by a memorable video of the duo, plus the ubiquitous Pepsi and Shirlie, wearing Katharine Hamnett T-shirts with the slogans CHOOSE LIFE and GO GO.
These t-shirts became essential fashion items as Hamnett wrote herself into the pop culture lexicon, having simultaneously designed the FRANKIE SAY t-shirts for Frankie Goes to Hollywood.
Although some critics felt that Wham! represented bubblegum pop[citation needed], many were starting to appreciate Michael's proven ability as a songwriter and capable vocalist. (The following year, he would win the Ivor Novello Award for songwriting.) However, at the same time they bemoaned the status of Ridgeley, who had started to "play" a guitar during live shows (never on any recordings) but whose overall contribution was deemed to be lightweight[citation needed].
With some bizarre contradiction, the next single "Careless Whisper" was issued as a George Michael solo piece, yet unlike any Wham! single since "Wham Rap!," it was co-written by Ridgeley. The song quickly reached #1. In the autumn of 1984, Wham! came back as a duo with "Freedom", another chart-topper. In November, they released their second album, Make It Big, which coasted to #1 on the album charts. The band set off on another arena tour at the end of '84, and George told Smash Hits magazine at the time that he had written a song called "Stephen." The song had been composed for a friend who was struggling to cope with bereavment. While this song is still unreleased, those that were at the recording sessions decsribe it as a heartfelt story of the loss of a loved one[citation needed].
George contributed to the Band Aid project, with Michael providing vocals as the song usurped their own Christmas release, "Last Christmas"/"Everything She Wants", the former of which featured a video set in a ski resort.
The single became the highest-selling single ever to peak at #2 in the UK charts. As such, Wham! donated all their royalties to the Ethiopian famine appeal to coincide with the fundraising intentions of Band Aid, the song which beat them to the top spot. Band Aid's success meant that Michael had been at #1 within three different entities in 1984—as a solo artist, half of a duo, and part of a charity ensemble.
Michael desired to create music targeted to a more sophisticated audience than the duo's primarily teenage fanbase. Therefore, Michael and Ridgeley announced the breakup of Wham! in the spring of 1986, destined to take place after a farewell single and album, along with a historic grand finale concert at Wembley Stadium on June 28, 1986, called The Final. British pop group Five Star declined George's invitation to be the supporting act, saying they needed to concentrate on their own career at the time.
Club Tropicana
Wham! Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let me take you to the place
Where membership's a smiling face
Brush shoulders with the stars
Where strangers take you by the hand
And welcome you to wonderland
From beneath their panamas
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Castaways and Lovers meet
Then kiss in Tropicana's heat
Watch the waves break on the bay
Soft white sands, a blue lagoon
Cocktail time, a summer's tune
A whole night's holiday!
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Pack your bags
And leave tonight
Don't take your time
Gotta move your feet, don't you miss the flight!
Pack your bags
And leave tonight
Don't take your time
Gotta move your feet, don't you miss the flight!
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Where membership's a smiling face
Brush shoulders with the stars
Where strangers take you by the hand
And welcome you to wonderland
From beneath their panamas
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Castaways and Lovers meet
Then kiss in Tropicana's heat
Watch the waves break on the bay
Soft white sands, a blue lagoon
Cocktail time, a summer's tune
A whole night's holiday!
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Pack your bags
And leave tonight
Don't take your time
Gotta move your feet, don't you miss the flight!
Pack your bags
And leave tonight
Don't take your time
Gotta move your feet, don't you miss the flight!
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
All that's missing is the sea
But don't worry, you can suntan!
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Cool
Wham!'s Club Tropicana is a song that takes the listener to a carefree and paradise-like place where people can forget all their worries and indulge in the pleasures that life has to offer. The lyrics begin with an invitation to a place where everyone is welcomed with a smiling face, and they get to mingle with the stars. The perfume of the affluent fills the air, and strangers take you by the hand and welcome you to the wonderland. The song depicts Club Tropicana as a place where people go to enjoy free drinks, fun, and sunshine. The lyrics then go on to describe how people meet, kiss and have a great time in the heat of Tropicana as they watch the waves break on the bay. The song ends with an invitation to pack bags and leave to the tropics to experience the coolness.
Line by Line Meaning
Let me take you to the place
Come along with me to a special location
Where membership's a smiling face
Where the key to admission is a friendly smile
Brush shoulders with the stars
Rub elbows with famous people
Where strangers take you by the hand
Where people you don't know welcome you with open arms
And welcome you to wonderland
And introduce you to a magical place
From beneath their panamas
Wearing their fancy hats
Club Tropicana, drinks are free
This is Club Tropicana, where drinks are complimentary
Fun and sunshine, there's enough for everyone
It's a place filled with enjoyment and sunlight, with ample entertainment for all
All that's missing is the sea
The only thing missing is the ocean
But don't worry, you can suntan!
But don't fret, you can still get a tan!
Castaways and Lovers meet
This is where people looking for love and those lost meet
Then kiss in Tropicana's heat
They then share a kiss in the heat of Club Tropicana
Watch the waves break on the bay
Observe the waves crashing in the bay
Soft white sands, a blue lagoon
The soft, white sand meets a blue lagoon
Cocktail time, a summer's tune
It's time for drinks, a summer song is playing
A whole night's holiday!
It's like having a whole vacation in one night!
Pack your bags
Get ready to leave
And leave tonight
And depart tonight
Don't take your time
Don't delay!
Gotta move your feet, don't you miss the flight!
Start moving, don't miss your plane!
Cool
Awesome!
Cool
Incredible!
Cool
Breathtaking!
Cool
Amazing!
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ANDREW RIDGELEY, ANDREW J. RIDGELEY, GEORGE MICHAEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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@cocoonstate6386
RIP George your music was blissful and still gives me life.
@psychickitty1
Montel Elmore agree. The 80s were better for this
@mrice9824
Montel Elmore yes
@mrice9824
Montel Elmore 😢
@josefasuriel5254
Paul Stone My heart still broke
@charleybmw
Josefa Suriel mine to.......
@Gregatseasonalsteins
Man the 80s were good times; people were chill, knew how to have fun, and Wham sang tunes you just danced and partied to.
@scottking869
Yeah but wasnt all like that.
@chrissimpson6701
AIDS: Made COVID look like a joke. Besides this, it was the best decade ever. Movies, music, T.V. shows, Food. Everything was on point.
@louisepalm4792
The best times