Remembering George Michael’s Best Song

It’s hard to believe that it’s been five years since George Michael died, Christmas Day 2016. And it’s this time of year that we all gravitate toward “Last Christmas,” his holiday classic that it turns out was merely the ‘B’ side of Wham!’s “Everything She Wants.”

But when I think of George Michael’s music, I think of one song that for me stands tall above the rest.

It was a No. 1 hit 31 years ago. “Praying For Time.”

And it’s not merely the music I liked, the layered production, the different sort of vibe for the Wham! star. It was the lyrics, super powerful and substantive. This song was a “Gulp” moment for music fans who had become accustomed to Michael’s typical songs. It was the recognition that we were hearing a masterpiece. An important work.

The rich declare themselves poor
And most of us are not sure
If we have too much but we’ll take our chances
‘Cause God’s stopped keeping score
I guess somewhere along the way
He must have let us all out to play
Turned His back and all God’s children
Crept out the back door

This song is worth a listen, a close listen.

The featured photo comes from a Flickr account belonging to Erno Hannink. Here’s a link to the photo. And here’s a link to his Flickr account.