40th anniversary of George Michael’s “Careless Whisper” celebrated with new EP

George Michael Entertainment/GME/Sony Music

Tuesday marks the 40th anniversary of the release of “Careless Whisper” by Wham! featuring George Michael — it was released on July 23, 1984. To mark the occasion, a special EP dedicated to the song will be released Oct. 18.

The EP will feature a previously unreleased live recording of the song, captured on July 23, 2008, during a George Michael concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Also included are a newly mastered version of the original sing, the extended mix and an instrumental version. It’ll be available in both digital and physical versions; a ruby marble vinyl is available for preorder now.

“Careless Whisper” has been RIAA-certified seven-times Platinum in the  U.S. alone. Released as a “solo” single because the style was so different from Wham!’s music at the time, it led to George, at age 21, becoming the youngest recipient of the U.K.’s prestigious Ivor Novello Award for songwriting.

The song has gone on to earn more than 1 billion streams on both YouTube and Spotify.

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