The performance George Michael called the "funniest moment" of his career

19 January 2024, 12:23

It was a song that would transform his career.

When George Michael wrote 'A Different Corner', he was riding high in the charts alongside his best pal Andrew Ridgeley with Wham!.

Whilst the pair achieved huge global success, George's personal life was the polar opposite, admitting to being at his lowest ebb.

"I felt like shit. I went in and recorded exactly the way I felt, and that's the way it sounds. It was partly Wham! and partly the end of a relationship. It was the farthest I'd ever fallen, and in a very short period of time," he once revealed in a 1988 interview.

"I had to get rid of it somehow, I had to write about it. That's a really perverse side that I'm sure a lot of writers have—'I feel like shit, but maybe I'll get a good song out of it.'

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The result of his low point was 'A Different Corner', which not only helped George exorcise personal demons, but also proved he was a songwriter capable of the greater depths he expressed in Wham!.

Having already achieved a major number one single with 'Careless Whisper', the perception of George was changing from a one-dimensional pop star to a soulful singer with genuine talent.

His first-ever performance of the song showed the public a different side to George, yet years later, he admitted it was the "funniest moment" of his career because of one cringeworthy faux pas.

George Michael - A Different Corner - TOTP - 1986

On 17th April 1986, George appeared on television to perform his latest number one single as a solo artist, 'A Different Corner', which marked a new era for his career.

He and Andrew had already announced that Wham! was coming to its conclusion, with an epic concert at Wembley Stadium already in the diary.

Whilst his performance was pristine - as you'd expect - George admitted that his dress sense wasn't quite up to scratch.

Taking to the stage, George wore a leather jacket and blue jeans that would typify the 'Faith' era of his career that followed.

But whilst his hair was perfectly quaffed, the way he styled his footwear left George reeling when he looked back at the performance, as he tucked his jeans into his cowboy boots.

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"Probably the funniest moment in my career was a performance of 'A Different Corner' I did on Top Of The Pops," George later recalled.

"For some reason, I think the cowboy look was coming in, or whatever, the mid-80s. I was on my way up to the stage, and I realised these brand new cowboy boots that they had bought for me were sticking straight out, my jeans were sticking straight out on the end of them."

"In panic, I did something absolutely ridiculous, and I tucked them in. I tucked the trousers into the boots."

"Just by coincidence, the track starts with a long pan up my legs. It was they had rehearsed, this pan up my legs to the rest of me."

"It was just the most horrific moment, the most horrific fashion mistake," George giggled away in an interview reflecting on the performance.

Even years later he shuddered at the thought, and reminded his fans after tweeting about it in 2015.

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George's self-admitted fashion faux pas doesn't take away from his heartfelt performance however, one which celebrated his second number one single as a solo musician.

The song's success meant that George became the first solo act in the history of the UK charts to reach number one with their first two releases, though he'd already achieved that feat with Wham!.

But despite the dodgy look, he was reaping the rewards for being the most honest he'd been with his songwriting.

"That was about a very quick relationship, a here today gone tomorrow one. It's amazing how emotional you can get in a short period of time and how long it can last," he said in 1987.

"Someone can really shake you up and it takes you a long time to get yourself back on your feet; that was what that was about."