"Freedom" is a 1984 song by English pop duo

Wham! Wham! were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981 consisting of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s, selling more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to ...

from their album '' Make It Big'', released on 1 October 1984. It became the group's second number one hit on the UK Singles Chart and reached number three in America. It was written and produced by

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. Regarded as a pop culture icon, he is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling rec ...

, one half of the duo.

History

Wham! had already enjoyed a successful 1984 by the time "Freedom" was released in October of the year. " Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" had given them their first UK number one and had then reached the top of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United States. Michael had then gone to number one with a solo single, "

Careless Whisper "Careless Whisper" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter George Michael. Released as the second single from Wham!'s second studio album ''Make It Big'' (1984), it was written by Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, with Michael producing the ...

". "Freedom" was number one in the UK for three weeks, and featured on the album '' Make It Big'', which was issued at the same time. "Freedom" was the 10th biggest-selling single of 1984. This song also reached number 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the US in September 1985. The melody of the song's chorus was used by Michael as an introduction to his song, "

Faith Faith is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. In the context of religion, faith is " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, faith has multiple definitions, inc ...

", played on a church organ. A reworked version of the song with altered lyrics (but still performed by the duo) was used to promote Maxell's line of audio cassettes in 1984. When the single was released in the United States, the song was remixed and extended an extra 20 seconds. The remix involved the vocals being given more reverb and the organ sounds being higher up in the mix. The extension involved a new trumpet section and added vocals. The section had first been heard in The Big Tour to close the number. The music video, coinciding with the 1985 US release, features the band touring around Beijing, China. Their visit to the nation was significant because they were the first Western pop band to play in China. The American remix was later included on '' The Final'' and later, the greatest hits compilation album '' The Best of Wham!: If You Were There...''. However, the original version was included on the US release of ''Make It Big''.

Critical reception

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that "George Michael's R&B tinged vocals soar with the tune's catchy

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeated in poetry or in music">poetry.html" ;"title="Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeat ...

." ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' described the song as a "

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

tribute".

Track listings

* Incorrectly labelled as 5:00 in length. * The "long version" is mislabeled as the "long mix".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Cover versions

British country singer Tommy Atkins released a cover version of "Freedom" in 2020. His version featured an "openly gay" lyric edit, swapping in "boy, all I really want is you." The recording reached the top 5 on download charts across the UK, Canada and New Zealand. The recording made history, becoming the first country hit in the UK and Europe to feature overtly gay lyrics. Atkins' version was playlisted by hundreds of major country radio and pop stations. The cultural significance of this was acknowledged in the BBC 6 Music documentary ''Loud and Proud''.

References

{{Authority control UK singles chart number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Wham! songs 1984 singles Number-one singles in Iceland Number-one singles in Norway Songs about casual sex Songs written by George Michael Song recordings produced by George Michael 1984 songs CBS Records singles