"One More Try" is a song recorded by the British singer
George Michael from his debut solo studio album, ''
Faith
Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion".
Religious people ofte ...
'' (1987). It was released on 11 April 1988 as the album's fourth single by
Columbia Records. The song hit number one on all of the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, the
Hot Black Singles and the
Hot Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...
charts.
Background
A
ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
at almost six minutes in length, the song
lyrically explores a young man's hesitancy to enter/revisit a new relationship because he had been emotionally hurt so many times previously. The song concludes with temptation taking over, and Michael ends by singing the title for the only time. In 1988, Michael told ''Countdown'' that the song was written, recorded and finished within 8 hours.
"One More Try" remained a live favourite at Michael's concerts in the years which followed including a live gospel version performed at Wembley Arena on 1 Dec 1993 as part of ''The Concert of Hope'', although its radio airplay tends to be restricted to specific "
Love Song
A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order ...
s"–esque features because of both the tempo and the length.
Music video
Filmmaker
Tony Scott
Anthony David Leighton Scott (21 June 1944 – 19 August 2012) was an English film director and producer. He was known for directing highly successful action and thriller films such as '' Top Gun'' (1986), '' Beverly Hills Cop II'' (1987), ''D ...
directed the simple music video for the song, which features George singing alone in an empty room. The first shot of the video alone lasts a little over two minutes, ending at the beginning of the second verse. Throughout, a grey-blue light can be seen shining into his window, a metaphor for loneliness. In another scene, he attempts to draw a heart on his bathroom cabinet's glass door, but cannot finish the heart, as at this point, sadness and grief have taken over. His furniture can also be seen with drapes over each piece, as well as the curtains drawn, another lonely metaphor.
The video was filmed at
The Carrington Hotel in New South Wales, Australia, which was empty and derelict at the time.
Chart performance
It reached number 8 on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
and became his sixth number one on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the
US. Four of the six singles issued from ''Faith'' went to number one in America, while by comparison, none managed to do so in the UK.
"One More Try" was the third consecutive number one single from the ''
Faith
Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion".
Religious people ofte ...
'' album. "One More Try" debuted at an impressive number 40 the week of 16 April 1988, and matching the speed of "
Father Figure
A father figure is usually an older man, normally one with power, authority, or strength, with whom one can identify on a deeply psychology, psychological level and who generates emotions generally felt towards one's father. Despite the literal te ...
", reached number one by its seventh week, 28 May 1988, this time staying there for three consecutive weeks. "One More Try" was the second-longest running number one of 1988, tied with "
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
"Every Rose Has Its Thorn" is a power ballad by American glam metal band Poison. It was released in October 1988 as the third single from Poison's second album '' Open Up and Say... Ahh!''. The band's signature song, it is also their only number- ...
" by
Poison, and behind the four-week run of
Steve Winwood's "
Roll with It". In total, "One More Try" spent seven weeks in the top 10 and 14 weeks in the top 40 of the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, out of a total of 18 weeks. It was a triple-chart number one, also topping the then-
Hot Black Singles chart and the
Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
charts, and becoming the last number-one single on the now-Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart by a white male artist until
Robin Thicke
Robin Alan Thicke (born March 10, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his 2013 hit single " Blurred Lines", which is one of the best-selling singles of all time. At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, h ...
's "
Lost Without U" (2007).
Track listing
"One More Try"
#"One More Try" (album version) – 5:50
#"Look at Your Hands" – 4:36
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
All-time charts
Certifications
Divine version
In 1999, American teen trio
Divine
Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.[divine< ...](_blank)
recorded the song as their second single off their debut album ''
Fairy Tales''.
Track listing
#"One More Try" – 6:00
#"One More Try" (extended version) – 9:00
#"One More Try" (a cappella version) – 4:50
Charts
Beverley Knight version
British singer and songwriter
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke an ...
covered "One More Try" and released it as the third single release from her seventh
studio album, ''
Soul UK'', a tribute to UK soul artists. It was released in the UK on 23 October 2011. The B-sides are remixes of Freeez's single "Southern Freeez", the original of which also appears on ''Soul UK''.
Background
In regards to her version of "One More Try", Knight said "Everyone knew who George Michael was, but this song is when he became the real thing in my mind. He channelled a gospel sound, black America, ate it up, Britain followed and then the whole world. I took that sound, and going back to my own church roots, I ran with it."
George Michael endorsed Knight's version of "One More Try" stating, "I'm always flattered by cover versions of my songs – especially when they are sung as beautifully as this. Thank You Beverley".
Track listing
;Digital download
# "One More Try" (Album Version) – 5:43
# "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Club Mix) – 7:17
# "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Radio Edit) – 3:28
# "Southern Freeez" (MCM Funky Freeez Radio Edit) – 3:18
;iTunes digital download
# "One More Try" (Album Version) – 5:43
# "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Club Mix) – 7:17
# "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Dub) – 7:17
# "Southern Freeez" (MCM Funky Freeez Radio Edit) – 3:18
;Other versions
# "One More Try" (Radio Edit)
Release history
Other cover versions
*1997:
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
*2000:
Divine
Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.[divine< ...](_blank)
*2003:
Hazel O'Connor
Hazel Thereasa O'Connor (born 16 May 1954) is a British singer-songwriter and actress. She became famous in the early 1980s with hit singles " Eighth Day", " D-Days" and " Will You?" She also starred in the 1980 film '' Breaking Glass''.
Care ...
for her first-ever official best of
compilation
Compilation may refer to:
*In computer programming, the translation of source code into object code by a compiler
**Compilation error
**Compilation unit
*Product bundling, a marketing strategy used to sell multiple products
*Compilation thesis
M ...
, ''A Singular Collection''
*2011:
Iron & Wine (for ''
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
''s "A.V. Undercover" series)
*2011:
Stacy Francis on
first season of ''
The X Factor USA
''The X Factor'' is an American reality television music competition show created by Simon Cowell and produced by FremantleMedia North America and SYCOtv, a partnership between Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment, which aired on Fox. Based on t ...
''
*2011:
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke an ...
*2014:
Mariah Carey recorded the song for her album ''
Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse''.
*2014:
Josh Kaufman
Josh Kaufman (born November 9, 1976) is an American soul singer and singer-songwriter. A native of the Tampa Bay area in Florida, Kaufman is based out of and resides in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is best known for winning the season 6 of NBC's ' ...
*2022:
Calum Scott
*2022:
Crosses
Crosses may refer to:
* Cross, the symbol
Geography
* Crosses, Cher, a French municipality
* Crosses, Arkansas, a small community located in the Ozarks of north west Arkansas
Language
* Crosses, a truce term used in East Anglia and Lincolnshire ...
References
External links
George Michael - official website
{{Mariah Carey songs
1987 songs
1988 singles
1999 singles
2011 singles
George Michael songs
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
1980s ballads
Pop ballads
Contemporary R&B ballads
Soul ballads
Blue-eyed soul songs
Songs written by George Michael
Song recordings produced by George Michael
RPM Top Singles number-one singles
Beverley Knight songs
Epic Records singles
Columbia Records singles
Mariah Carey songs