 "George Michael's Underated Masterpeice" | 2008-08-03 |
| - Reviewed By saintjohnsriver3 |
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. |
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| "Sheer Brillance" | 2008-06-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A11DMR1MZWSDJ1 |
| 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. |
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| "Fantastic!" | 2007-08-29 |
| - Reviewed By User: AS2LE5L0TXNYG |
| 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. |
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| "Beyond what anyone would think possible." | 2006-12-26 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3Q61D70HTS361 |
| 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!". |
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| "The best George Michael album - ever!" | 2006-11-29 |
| - Reviewed By tpr6576 |
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. |
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| "Probably his best album ever...." | 2006-10-21 |
| - Reviewed By sternsba |
George Michael shows a realy maturity and mastery of lyrics on this album.
From the poignant opening track when he saings of " he cant come back because there's no one to come back for" to the very sad but timely song
about the young man who dies just like his father; a hero in a war.
This albumevokes pure, honest and raw emotion.
George Michael's best album ever, in my opinion. |
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| "The Album Title Couldn't Make More Sense!" | 2006-01-26 |
| - Reviewed By josephll |
"Listen Without Prejudice" was George Michaels second solo album after disbanding Wham!. His first one "Faith" had been a catchy soul influenced pop album that had taken off where Wham left, but his second album was diffrent. It was a far more moody album with slow paced songs that often were more personal, socially concious and religious then ever before. The album managed to sell over 1 million copies but it was still not regarded as a "hit". Many old fans were dissapointed at the way George had frastically changed his music in the matter of only a few years. However, There were a plan to make a "Listen Without Prejudice PART 2" that was going to be more cathcy with uptempo songs, but cause of his legal battle with Columbia, it was never released, One song in particular "Too Funky" was later used for HIV/AIDS charities and became a hit single.
Listen Without Prejudice is a exellent title for a more mature album then ever before and the album itself is indeed underrated. "Praying for Time" is a socially concious ballad about the injustice in the world, the songs peaked at #6 in the UK and then reached #1 in the Billboard Hot 100. It's lyrics are very good too. "And it's hard to love, There's so much to hate, Hanging on to hope, When there is no hope to speak of, and the wounded skies above ,say it's much too late, Well maybe we should all be Praying for time"
"Freedom" was one of a few uptempo songs on this album, it was also a major hit and hit #8 in the US. The song is refering to George's past success with Wham but also showes a new side of himelf as a new man, who is more cynical about the music business then he had been before. Not so strange considering his legal battles with Columbia either. George refused to appear in the video and let a bunch of sexy supermodels appear instead. It got heavy MTV play anyway, perhaps cause of his lyrics "Got a brand new face, for the boys on MTV"
"They Won't Go When I Go" was a Stevie Wonder song, it's also a very slow paced ballad. "Something to Save" a guitar song, is simular to the opener, both lyrically and the way it's performed. While it wasn't a typical hit single it's a strong number nonetheless. "Cowboys and Angels" shows a brand new site of Michael, it's a jazz number. "Waiting for that Day" is a decent midtempo guitar song, it grows with time and has become one of my favorites here. "Mother's Pride" is a emotional piano balled that sums up this album perfectly. "Heal the Pain" is a midtempo that got those Afro-Latin feeling with it's drums. "Soul Free" is exellent, it's one of two uptempo's here, when I listen to it reminds me of a mix of soul, pop and caribean music. The last song "Waiting" is a slow paced guitar ballad.
Overall, A very diffrent album compared to the catchy uptempo of "Faith" but it didn't neccesary mean something bad. George Michael proved that he could really make great music "with a brand new face", some fans may have abandoned him but "Listen Without Prejudice" stands as a 90's classic full of intelligent songs in a mostly very slow pace.
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| "ONE OF THE BEST ADULT POP ALBUMS OF THE 90'S" | 2006-01-11 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1KR8OZ23W5AIT |
| There is no dought that George Michael is an excelent performer and songwriter. Although he continues to write wonderfull songs, I believe that his best period was from 1984 'till 1991. Through those years he wrote and performed uncountable major hits which at the same time were top quality pop songs (and I am not talking about Madonna style disguisting pop songs). The "Listen without Prejudice" album was released after the huge success of the "FAITH" album which sold more than 20 million copies worldwide (and its still selling!!). For the "Listen without Prejudice" album that was a unfortunate fact. I mean that "FAITH" was definitely a much more mature album than the Wham ones but it sold tremendousely to the teen audience because of songs like "FAITH", "Father figure" and others. After that success the fans expected that the second solo album of Michael will follow the trails of "FAITH" (from the saling point of view that would've been a good move). But George Michael suprised them all by releasing "Listen without Prejudice" which can be easily characterized as an adult pop album. The maturity of the album is obvious in its entirity. The lyrics are in fact poems and the musical arrangements are in their majority acoustic. Songs like "Praying for time", "They wont when I go" and "Mothers Pride" are a critical statement against the leaders of this world which choose to spend money on wars instead of helping the poor. Songs like "Freedom", "Something to say","Heal the pain", "Cowboys and Angels" , "Soul free" and "Waiting for that day" are probably inspired by Michaels own experiences. I believe that every song in this album is a diamond. This is not an easy task since 99% of the albums released have the most two or three good songs. That is why I believe that "Listen without Prejudice" is the peak of George Michaels career. This album is a classic and definitely ahead of its time. A must have for everyone who listens pop/rock music. |
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| "The best album he has written!" | 2005-07-02 |
| - Reviewed By mckenna22 |
| I believe this to be his most honest and vulnerable album. George Michael is a legend. |
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| "Dare I say, as good as Faith?" | 2005-06-27 |
| - Reviewed By User: AT1JC8XLWYCWD |
| If you're a big George Michael fan like I am you should already own this album. I'm writing this review for the casual fan who doesn't own this album already. If you're that person purchase "Listen Without Prejudice" immediately. It's that good and I promise you won't be disappointed. Unfortunately I made the mistake of waiting way too long to purchase it. I only regret now that I didn't buy it sooner. Yes, the album is a bit less funky and up-tempo than it's predecessor "Faith" but it's no lesser a piece of work I assure you. It's a more mature album than "Faith" and I would say holds up fifteen years later as well or better. "They Won't Go When I Go" is an excellent cover of the Stevie Wonder song which incredibly is sung live according to the liner notes. "Soul Free" is as funky as any George Michael song so you can't say the album doesn't has it's more upbeat moments, of course along with "Freedom" as well. Seriously there's not a weak moment on the album. I only wish that George wouldn't have pulled his disapearing act at the time because it deprived a lot more people from purchasing this album and making it as succesfull as it should have been. Just remember you're not going to hear "Faith II" and you'll surely love this album as much as I do. |
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