Patience (George Michael album)

Patience
Studio album by George Michael
Released	18 March 2004
Recorded	2000–2004
Genre	Pop, dance, soul
Length	70:15 (UK) 63:09 (US)
Label	Sony Music Entertainment
Producer	George Michael
George Michael chronology
Songs from the Last Century (1999) Patience (2004) Twenty Five (2006)
Singles from Patience
"Freeek!" Released: 18 March 2002 "Shoot the Dog" Released: 29 July 2002 "Amazing" Released: 1 March 2004 "Flawless (Go to the City)" Released: 28 June 2004 "Round Here" Released: 1 November 2004 "John and Elvis Are Dead" Released: 3 October 2005

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	(60/100)[1]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
BBC Music	(positive)[3]
Blender	[4]
Entertainment Weekly	C[5]
The Guardian	[6]
Houston Chronicle	C[7]
Q	[8]
Slant Magazine	[9]
Stylus Magazine	D+[10]
Uncut	[1][11]
Yahoo! Music UK	[12]

Patience is the fifth studio album by the British singer-songwriter George Michael, released in 2004. The much delayed follow-up to Older is considered Michael's comeback album since it was Michael's first album composed of original material since 1996, and his first for Sony Music Entertainment since 1990's Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1. The album spanned six singles. The first two, "Freeek!" and "Shoot the Dog", were already released in 2002 by Polydor, when the album was originally due.

Return to Sony

On 17 November 2003, George Michael re-signed with Sony Music Entertainment, the company he had left after a legal battle in which Michael claimed that his contract was stifling him and was keeping him in "professional slavery". As a result, his contract was sold by Sony to rival record companies Virgin Records and DreamWorks Records on 14 July 1995.

Chart success

Patience went on sale in most of the world in late March 2004 and debuted at number 1 on the UK Albums Chart, and at number 2 in Australia on 22 March. It became one of the fastest selling albums in the UK, selling over 275,000 copies in the first week.^[13] The album went on sale in the US on 18 May 2004, however it did not contain "Patience Pt. 2" and "Shoot the Dog". It debuted in the US at 29 but after many TV appearances, such as on The Oprah Winfrey Show the following week, it reached its chart peak of number 12. As of 2006, the album sold 381,000 in the United States.^[14] It sold around four million copies worldwide,^[13] and contained six singles.

The first single "Freeek!" had already reached number 1 in Italy, Spain and Denmark in March 2002 and reaching the top ten in the UK and top five in Australia. The album features a remixed version called "Freeek! '04".

The second single, "Shoot the Dog", was released in July 2002. It was not released as a single in Canada or the US over sensitivity to the 11 September 2001 attacks, and was not included on the Patience album in those countries. While it reached the top five in Spain, Italy and Denmark, it failed to reach the top ten in the UK.

The third single from Patience, "Amazing", was released in March 2004 and went to number 1 in Italy and Spain, also reaching number 4 in the UK and number 6 in Australia.

The fourth single, "Flawless (Go to the City)", was released in June 2004 and reached the number 8 on the UK Singles Chart. It reached number 1 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Songs.

In November 2004, Sony released a fifth single from Patience, "Round Here". The single reached number 32 on the UK charts.

"John and Elvis Are Dead", the sixth and last single was released in October 2005 and only sold through the Internet as a download.

Samples

The album makes heavy use of samples. For example. "Freeek!" samples "Try Again" by Aaliyah, "Breathe and Stop" by Q-Tip, and "N.T." by Kool & the Gang. "Shoot the Dog" samples The Human League song "Love Action (I Believe in Love)" and features the same rap interlude. It also features the "Gotta get up!" line taken from George's 1996 hit, "Fastlove" but is not credited for the writing credit goes to Michael already. "Please Send Me Someone (Anselmo's Song)" samples "Moonraker" by John Barry and Hal David. "Flawless (Go to the City)" samples a dance track, originally recorded by The Ones, called "Flawless".

Anti-war

The album contains the anti-war song "Shoot the Dog". When released in July 2002 "Shoot the Dog" had already proved to be controversial. It was highly critical of George W. Bush and Tony Blair in the leadup to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The video showed a cartoon version of Michael astride a nuclear missile in the Middle East and Tony and Cherie Blair in bed with President Bush. The latter image was apparently intended as a homage to the 1986 video for "Land of Confusion" by Genesis. The cartoon was produced by the makers of 2DTV, a satirical animated television show broadcast weekly on ITV (independent television) in the UK.

In an interview with MTV, Michael said the song was primarily intended to highlight what he saw as a lack of consultation by Tony Blair about the decision of invading Iraq. "People are looking at the song in context of an attack on America, as opposed to an attack on Tony Blair. And really, my attack is that Tony Blair is not involving the British in this issue. He's perfectly happy staying up to watch the World Cup and enjoying the Jubilee, all things I'm perfectly guilty of, but there's a serious discussion about Iraq, which hasn't taken place. We don't know what Saddam Hussein is capable of, the British public has no idea."

Final album

Michael announced that Patience would be his last record on sale to the public. He told BBC Radio 1 on 10 March 2004 that future music that he puts out will be available for download with fans encouraged to make a donation to charity. He said: "I've been very well remunerated for my talents over the years so I really don't need the public's money. I'd like to have something on the Internet which is a charitable download site where anyone can download my music for free. I'll have my favourite charities up there and people will hopefully donate to that." He stated that the decision will put less pressure to produce a new album every so often and allow him to have more of a private life.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Patience"	Georgios Panayiotou (George Michael's real name)	2:53
2.	"Amazing"	Johnny Douglas, Panayiotou	4:25
3.	"John and Elvis Are Dead"	David Austin, Panayiotou	4:23
4.	"Cars and Trains"	Douglas, Panayiotou	5:51
5.	"Round Here"	Michael	5:56
6.	"Shoot the Dog"	Panayiotou , Philip Oakey, Ian Burden	5:07
7.	"My Mother Had a Brother"	Panayiotou	6:17
8.	"Flawless (Go to the City)" (vs. The Ones)	Panayiotou , Paul Alexander, Nashom Wooden, Gary Turnier, Eric Matthew, Olivier Stumm	6:51
9.	"American Angel"	Ruadhri Cushnan, Niall Flynn, James Jackman, Panayiotou	4:07
10.	"Precious Box"	Panayiotou	7:39
11.	"Please Send Me Someone (Anselmo's Song)"	Panayiotou	5:26
12.	"Freeek! '04"	Cushnan, Flynn, Jackman, Michael	4:28
13.	"Through"	Panayiotou	5:22
14.	"Patience (Reprise)"	Panayiotou	1:30
Total length:			70:15

• The US version features 12 tracks, removing "Shoot the Dog" and the reprise of "Patience".
• An alternative version of "Please Send Me Someone", the B-side to "Flawless (Go to the City)", appears only on Japanese pressings of the album.

Personnel

• Eugene Adebari - photography
• David Arnold - orchestration
• David Austin - composer, keyboards, main personnel, programming
• Joanna Bailey - direction
• Michael Brown - guitar, main personnel
• Jo Bryant - main personnel, vocals (background)
• Joel Bryant - vocals (background)
• Chris Cameron - main personnel, piano
• Tony Cousins - mastering
• Tom Coyne - mastering
• Ruadhri Cushnan - arranger, composer, keyboards, main personnel, producer, programming
• Hal David - composer
• Andy Davies - assistant engineer
• James Dimmock - photography
• Johnny Douglas - drum programming, keyboards, main personnel, producer
• Niall Flynn - arranger, audio engineer, composer, engineer, producer
• Dan Gautreau - Pro-Tools
• Pete Gleadall - keyboards, main personnel, programming
• James Jackman - arranger, composer, drum programming, keyboards, main personnel, photography, producer
• Greg Jakobek - design
• Abid Katib - photography
• Eric Matthew - composer
• George Michael - arranger, audio production, bass, composer, design, drum programming, guitar, guitar (bass), keyboards, main personnel, piano, primary artist, producer, vocals
• Adam Noble - assistant engineer
• Phil Palmer - guitar, main personnel
• Jack Panayiotou - photography
• Graham Silbiger - guitar (bass), main personnel
• Luke Smith - main personnel, Wurlitzer, Wurlitzer piano
• Ben Smithard - photography
• Oliver Stumm - composer
• Gary Turnier - composer
• Ellen Von Unwerth - photography

Credits adapted from AllMusic.^[15]

Charts and certifications

Charts Chart (2004) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[16] 2 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[17] 3 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[18] 5 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[19] 4 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[20] 4 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[21] 1 Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[22] 1 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[23] 3 French Albums (SNEP)[24] 4 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[25] 1 Greek Albums (Greece Albums Charts)[26] 2 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[27] 2 Irish Albums (IRMA)[28] 2 Italian Albums (FIMI)[29] 1 Japanese Albums (Oricon)[30] 26 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[31] 2 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[32] 11 Polish Albums (ZPAV)[33] 1 Portuguese Albums (AFP)[34] 5 Spanish Albums (Promusicae)[35] 4 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[36] 1 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[37] 2 UK Albums (OCC)[38] 1 US Billboard 200[39] 12

Certifications } } } Region Certification Certified units/Sales Argentina (CAPIF)[40] Gold 20,000^* Australia (ARIA)[41] Platinum 70,000^^ Austria (IFPI Austria)[42] Gold 15,000^* Belgium (BEA)[43] Gold 25,000^* Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[44] Gold 20,000^^ France (SNEP)[45] Gold 109,700[46]^* Germany (BVMI)[47] Platinum 200,000^^ Hungary (MAHASZ)[48] Gold 10,000^^ Italy (FIMI)[49] Platinum 100,000^* Netherlands (NVPI)[50] Gold 40,000^^ New Zealand (RMNZ)[51] Platinum 15,000^^ Poland (ZPAV)[52] Gold 20,000^* Spain (PROMUSICAE)[53] Platinum 100,000^^ Sweden (GLF)[54] Gold 30,000^^ Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[55] Gold 20,000^^ United Kingdom (BPI)[56] 2× Platinum 600,000^^ Summaries Europe (IFPI)[57] Platinum 1,000,000^* ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Chart procession and succession

References

1. Critic reviews at Metacritic
2. Allmusic review
3. BBC Music review
4. Blender review
5. Fonseca, Nicholas (2004-06-04). "Patience Review". Entertainment Weekly: 80. Retrieved 2012-11-12.
6. The Guardian review
7. Houston Chronicle review
8. Q Magazine, Apr 2004, p.104
9. Slant Magazine review
10. Stylus Magazine review
11. Uncut review
12. "Yahoo! Music UK review". Archived from the original on 16 August 2004. Retrieved 16 August 2004.
13. Moore, Jane. "George Michael: GQ Magazine Interview 2004". GQ Magazine. Retrieved 2013-04-27.
14. Caulfield, Keith. "Ask Billboard: George In The USA". Billboard Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
15. "Patience - George Michael Credits". AllMusic. All Media Network, LLC. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
16. "Australiancharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
17. "Austriancharts.at – George Michael – Patience" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
18. "Ultratop.be – George Michael – Patience" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
19. "Ultratop.be – George Michael – Patience" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
20. "George Michael – Chart history" Billboard Canadian Albums Chart for George Michael. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
21. "Danishcharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
22. "Dutchcharts.nl – George Michael – Patience" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
23. "George Michael: Patience" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
24. "Lescharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
25. "Offiziellecharts.de – George Michael – Patience" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
26. Top 50 Ξένων Άλμπουμ (Top 50 Albums). Retrieved 3 February 2016.
27. "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 2004. 14. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
28. "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 12, 2004". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
29. "Italiancharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
30. George Michael albums sales ranking. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
31. "Charts.org.nz – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
32. "Norwegiancharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
33. "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLIS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
34. "Portuguesecharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
35. Spanish Albums Chart. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
36. "Swedishcharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
37. "Swisscharts.com – George Michael – Patience". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
38. "George Michael | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved May 21, 2016.
39. "George Michael – Chart history" Billboard 200 for George Michael. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
40. "Argentinian album certifications – George Michael – Patience". Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers.
41. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2004 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
42. "Austrian album certifications – George Michael – Patience" (in German). IFPI Austria. Enter George Michael in the field Interpret. Enter Patience in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
43. "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – 2004". Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch.
44. "Danish album certifications – George Michael – Patience". IFPI Denmark. Click on næste to go to page if certification from official website
45. "French album certifications – George Michael – Patience" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
46. "Les Albums les plus Vendus de la Décennie (2000-2009)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
47. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (George Michael; 'Patience')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
48. "Adatbázis – Arany- és platinalemezek – 2004" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
49. "Italian album certifications – George Michael – Patience" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select Album e Compilation in the field Sezione. Enter George Michael in the field Filtra. The certification will load automatically
50. "Dutch album certifications – George Michael – Patience" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers.
51. "New Zealand album certifications – George Michael – Patience". Recorded Music NZ.
52. "Polish album certifications – George Michael – Patience" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry.
53. "Spanish album certifications – George Michael – Patience" (PDF) (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Select the "Chart", enter ' in the field "Year". Select ' in the field "Semana". Click on "Search Charts"
54. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2004" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden.
55. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (George Michael; 'Patience')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
56. "British album certifications – George Michael – Patience". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Patience in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
57. "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2004". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.

External links

• Patience at Metacritic