“Last Christmas,” Wham’s Timeless Classic That Took 39 Years to Reach No. 1
“Last Christmas” is a song credited to the English duo Wham!, written and recorded by its member, the famous George Michael. The song was released on December 3, 1984. In a little-known fact, Andrew Ridgeley (the other half of Wham!) had no involvement in the recording or writing of the record. Michael wrote the track in February 1984 about a Christmastime breakup. “Last Christmas” initially spent five consecutive weeks at number two on the chart. It was beaten to Christmas number one by the charity single “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” Ironically, Michael also performed on that. In a nice and related fact, Wham! donated their royalties to relief efforts for the Ethiopian famine. Were you a George Michael fan?
“Last Christmas” by Wham!
Like many Christmas songs, “Last Christmas” re-entered the chart in later years, becoming the highest-selling UK single never to reach number one. It reached number one on New Year’s Day 2021, and became the Christmas number one in 2023, 39 years after its release. In the United Kingdom, “Last Christmas” was voted eighth on the 2012 ITV television special The Nation’s Favourite Christmas Song and voted the most popular 1980s song in Channel 5’s Christmas 2020 countdown, Britain’s Favourite ’80s Songs.
In a strange twist of irony, “Last Christmas” describes a Christmastime breakup. The engineer, Chris Porter, said the upbeat rhythm track contrasted against the sadness of unrequited love. The same chord progression and melody are used for both the verse and chorus, with no middle eight.
The Wham! member George Michael wrote “Last Christmas” in his childhood bedroom in February 1984, when he and the other member, Andrew Ridgeley, were visiting Michael’s parents. Wham! recorded “Last Christmas” in August 1984, with Michael having covered the studio in Christmas decorations “to set the mood.” Michael produced the song and wrote and performed every part.
“Last Christmas” has been subject to plagiarism concerns. Writers of the 1975 song “Can’t Smile Without You,” by Barry Manilow, the publishing company sued Michael for plagiarism in the mid-1980s, claiming that “Last Christmas” had taken its melody from “Can’t Smile Without You.” The case was dismissed when a musicologist presented numerous songs from the past century that had a comparable chord sequence and melody.
“Last Christmas” has been in movies recently. A sixty-minute television documentary about the story of the song aired on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer in December 2024 to mark the 40th anniversary of the Song’s release. It features Ridgeley and other close friends from the original music video, and revisits Saas-Fee in Switzerland, where the music video was made, as well as looking into the creation of the song. The film “Last Christmas” was made in 2019 and prominently features the music of George Michael, including this song.
Wham!
Wham! was a popular 1980s English pop duo formed in 1981. It had George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They sold more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to 1986. Associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the United States, the singles “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,” “Careless Whisper,” and “Everything She Wants” all topped the United States Billboard Hot 100. Their 1984 Christmas hit “Last Christmas” has become a staple of the holiday season.
Wham! was influenced by funk and soul music, and their 1983 debut album, “Fantastic,” addressed the United Kingdom’s unemployment problem and teen angst over adulthood. Their second studio album, “Make It Big,” in 1984 was a worldwide hit, reaching number one in both the United Kingdom and the United States.
In 1986, Wham! disbanded. Michael wanted to create music targeted at a more sophisticated adult market rather than the duo’s primarily teenage audience. Before going their separate ways, they released a farewell single, “The Edge of Heaven,” and a greatest-hits album titled “The Final.”
Conclusion
“Last Christmas” is a great Christmas song, and that the profits from it are being donated to charity is outstanding. People should still buy and listen to this song. In the early hours of Christmas Day 2016, ironically, Michael died in bed at his home in Goring-on-Thames. He was 53. He was found by his partner, Fadi Fawaz. In March 2017, a senior coroner in Oxfordshire attributed Michael’s death to natural causes
