Wham! - Make It Big

This is the album that started it all for George and Andrew! Whether or not it will ever be "cool" to admit liking them, Make It Big sounds pretty good after all of these years. Granted, "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" is an impossible notion to begin with--who could possibly sleep after this sugar binge? But "Everything She Wants" has a sophisticated tension in its syncopation, and, wow, could the boy sing! "Careless Whisper" really showed that George Michael had a firm grasp on R&B and soul. --Steve Gdula Amazon.com essential recording

Sophomore Slump? What Sophomore Slump?

Somebody better call the people at Merriam-Webster and tell them to put a picture of "Make it Big" next to pop music, because that is what this album is: the definition of pop music. And here's why:

"Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" is one of those paradoxical songs where it is incredibly cheesy to listen to, but it is because of its cheesiness that the song is a hit. (Damn circular logic.) However, I love the transition from teeny-bopper pop to a soft-adult contemporary hit in "Everything She Wants". "Everything She Wants" not only has meaning, but conviction, as well. The album cools down a bit with "Heartbeat" and "Like a Baby", but this "filler" does not completely bring the album down. "Freedom" is similar to "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" (in regards to cheesiness) but is still a very decent song to bring the album back up to snuff. Wham!'s rendition of "If You Were There" proves that they (and by they, I mean George Michael) has the voice to cover any song and make it better than the original, and "Credit Card Baby" may be the best non-single song that the band ever produced. And, of course, everybody knows about "Careless Whisper": the slow tempo, the forlorn lyrics, the stereotypical components of a 1980s music video. I believe this is one of the few songs ever recorded to be absolutely flawless. It shows off human emotions and George Michael's talent as a musician. What an incredible way to conclude the album.

And nearly a quarter century later, it is no wonder that this album is seen as an example to other artists about how to create pop music. It can't be all heart but it can't be all head. It has to form a hybrid of the two and do so in perfect harmony. Wham!'s second album not only does this, but makes it look easy in the process. Without a doubt, this would be a perfect fit into anybody's music collection who loves pop music or (for that matter) music in general. Take it from a pop-music connoisseur: "Make it Big" does live up to its title and is definitely worth the money.

-RoMo37
--January 2, 2009 January 3, 2009

An 80's Classic !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do you guys remember the video for "Freedom"??? it was shot in China. It had chinese people dancing to the song, doing kung-fu and goofing off......it was SOOOOOOOOOOO darn cute [........]. I remember I could not get enough of that video. It made the song and the album just seem larger than life. December 5, 2008

Go Go 80s Music

I only initially bought this for the one song but my sister had it on vinyl. Yes, I'm that old. For those that can remember the 80s this is a transfer of what was on vinyl and cassette in the 80s to the CDs of the 90s. Nothing more and nothing less. George Michael fans will want this because this is where he got his start. It's typical 80s pop rock which is actually saying a lot. Personally I prefer this to what they try to pass off as music to the teeny boppers of today. August 2, 2008

Nothing else quite like it

I was a teen in the 80s that was into ROCK AND ROLL - the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton, CCR, etc. I never would've heard of Wham!, except that the girl I was dating loved the song "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go", so naturally I had to check it out.

I ended up buying her the album, then taking her to see Wham! in concert in Philadelphia, and then marrying her a couple months later! We just had our 23rd anniversary, and I popped Make It Big into the CD player, and wow, it really does sound good a couple decades later. I listened to it a lot back in the day, which is pretty amazing for me, considering there's very little guitar work on the album.

I guess this one will always have sentimental value for me! April 23, 2008

Wham

Wham!!!!! Bam!!!!!!!!!!!!....This CD hits me like a truck.....Careless Whisper is on my top 10 all time hit list..... April 19, 2008

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