George Michael - Listen Without Prejudice, Vol. 1

George Michael's second post-Wham! outing, Listen Without Prejudice could not have been more appropriately titled. Following on the booty-shakin' heels of Faith, Listen found Michael being more serious than sassy. "Freedom 90" had a strong groove, a catchy melody, and of course, the sex-bomb video. The contemplative tone of the album is best illustrated by the other hit that it spawned, "Praying for Time." Michael's voice was as strong as ever, and he did indeed take several risks on the CD. "They Won't Go When I Go," (not a Michael composition) was almost cryptic, and "Cowboys and Angels" was a lament of a different kind. --Steve Gdula Amazon.com essential recording

George Michael's Underated Masterpeice

I've been listening to this CD since it was released. I may not play it for years but once it lands in my CD player, it stays there for a long time. Once it gets under your skin you'll hear it in your head all the time. A real grower, you need to listen to it and let it grow on you.

I think the poor initial reaction to Listen Without Prejudice, Vol. 1 was that the first song, "Praying For Time" was plodding upon first listen. Unlike the song "Faith" which invites you in with the Hammond B-3 Church like chords, "Praying for Time" sort of stands at the door, and you have to walk past it to get to "Freedom 90."

Once in the door, expect Beatlesque melodies (Heal the Pain sounds like a Rubber Soul outtake), impeccable ballads (Mother's Pride)and Philly Soul (Soul Free). Too bad the album was unappreciated the first time around. I sure would have liked to hear Vol. 2. August 3, 2008

Sheer Brillance

This is an amazing CD! From start to finish it echoes the depth and wonder within George Michael's soul. He is an amazing singer. The beginning starts out wonderful with praying for time and then it leads into a heart felt emotional roller coater. The CD to me can chronicle beautifully the beginning and demise of a relationship and the feelings and emotions that come from such an event. It is really sad that Volume II was never released.....Oh well maybe one day. Buy and listen to this CD you will not be disappointed- An utter masterpiece. June 22, 2008

Fantastic!

Loved all the songs on this CD, particularly Praying for Time, Mother's Pride, Cowboys and Angels, and Soul Free. George's songs and music go beautifully together - he is so talented. August 29, 2007

Beyond what anyone would think possible.

After years of owning this album and never taking the time to really listen to it (due in no doubt to the stupid media problems and George's absense from the vids and the vids absense from Mtv) I rebought this on cd and after a listen straight through I came to several conclusions. A. YES, this cd needs desperately to be remastered as it sounds so sonically dead and harmonically hollow. B. This has without a doubt got to be one of the most underrated albums of the past 20 years. and C. George Michael is also one of our generation's most talented, honest and gifted singer/songwriter/producers in the history of modern pop music. Whereas we've all heard Freedom 90' and Praying for time (pure brilliance) it's the little gems on this disc that blow your socks off. "Heal the pain" is a gorgeous acoustic guitar driven song with a chorus that sticks in your head like peanut butter, "Soul Free" and "Mother's pride" are beautiful in execution and production. BUT the truest gem on this disc is the last track "Waiting (Reprise)". Two minutes and twenty seconds of pure, unguarded emotion. If this song doesn't give you goosebumps your emotionally dead. The vocals, lyrics and sparse arrangement make this tiny, short song HUGE and powerful. This little slice of musical heaven was just a precursor to the forthcoming honesty and emotional depths George was on his way to mining on all his subsequent material. Less is more, and in this case..... less was more than plenty. This song will go down in my books as one of the greatest, PUREST songs ever committed to vinyl. No wonder he opens all his shows with it. When he sings "HERE I AM!" you can't help but think "YES! And thank god for that!". December 25, 2006

The best George Michael album - ever!

Hmmm... if it is 2006 and you are reading this review because you are considering buying this CD, all I can ask is who are you? I cannot believe that anyone who likes George Michael would not already own this CD, seeing as it has been out for over 16 years.

That said, this is one of my favorite CDs; definitely in my Top 10. This is actually the first CD that I found a way to "wear out" and had to buy a second copy (basically, repeated plays throughout the years resulted in the disc getting scratched, dinged and skipping during playback). This CD is consistent from start to finish, without a weak song. It is also a much better album than "Faith" and holds up better over repeated listens.

This CD was underrated back in 1990, basically because of its somewhat somber tone, and because it did not have as many radio-friendly tracks as "Faith". In fact, outside of "Freedom '90", it has no "radio friendly" material on it. However, this CD is a consistently rewarding listen. It is somber without being gloomy. It retains George Michael's brand of pop music, and his unique sound, without being "commercial". This was certainly not another "Faith" and in fact the only song from "Faith" that might sound at home on this release would be "Hand to Mouth". Otherwise, the album is a definite departure (albeit a very positive departure) for George.

Considering the time when this thing came out (i.e. the year of "Ice Ice Baby", "U Can't Touch This" and "Cherry Pie") this album was actually ahead of its time. It is one of the few releases from 1990 (along with Depeche Mode's "Violator") that have aged well.

My only complaint is that this CD (along with the rest of George's solo and Wham! output) is in dire need of remastering. As with most releases of the time, the CD sounds hollow (i.e. not deep enough bass, too much treble, very "tinny" sounding). There is a warmth and depth to these songs that only a good remastering job could really bring out. Considering George has patched up his relationship with Sony, and considering other than his back catalogue, George doesn't have much else to offer these days, I am surprised that this (and his other releases) have not yet been remastered.

That said, if you are considering buying this (again, where have you been the past 16 years?) you won't be disappointed. November 29, 2006

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