George Michael lands first number one since 1996 as Last Christmas gets top spot
George Michael has finally scored himself a number one with his band’s iconic track Last Christmas landing in the coveted top spot.
The late icon, who sadly passed away on Boxing Day in 2016, has bagged the first number one of 2021 with the popular Wham! track.
It is the first time in 24 years that George Michael’s music has ranked in the top spot, with the previous title going to his track Jesus To A Child in 1996.
Last Christmas had so far been trailing behind Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas as the festive tunes faced a surge in listeners over Christmas and New Year.
The iconic track has now finally achieved its number one spot for the first time since Wham! released the tune in 1984.
Martin Talbot from the Official Charts Company confirmed the exciting news that Wham! had finally got to number one.
“This is a fantastic record for Last Christmas. Just a few weeks after Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas is You reached Number 1 after a 26 year wait, for the Wham! tune to make its own impact after so long really shows how much the British public love their Christmas classics,” he said.
George had written and produced the tune Last Christmas after being inspired by a visit to his childhood home.
His band mate Andrew Ridgeley recently opened up about how the inspiring tune came about.
Writing for the MailOnline some years earlier, Andrew revealed that he was left in awe when George Micheal first played the tune.
(Image: Getty Images)
“We went to his old room, the room in which we had spent hours as kids recording pastiches of radio shows and jingles, the room where he kept a keyboard and something on which to record his sparks of inspiration, and he played me the introduction and the beguiling, wistful chorus melody to ‘Last Christmas.” Andrew wrote.
“It was a moment of wonder.”
He added: “George had performed musical alchemy, distilling the essence of Christmas into music.
(Image: Getty Images)
(Image: Getty Images)
“Adding a lyric which told the tale of betrayed love was a masterstroke and, as he did so often, he touched hearts.”
Up until today, Last Christmas by Wham! had been the biggest-selling UK chart single never to have made it to number one.
Andrew as well as George Michael’s fans will certainly welcome the exciting and long-awaited news.
In 2020, as expected, LadBaby bagged their third Christmas number one – a title only previously achieved by The Beatles and the Spice Girls.
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