| "Michael" | |||||
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| Single by Franz Ferdinand from the album Franz Ferdinand |
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| Released | August 16 2004 | ||||
| Format | CD, 7", 12" | ||||
| Recorded | 2003-2004 | ||||
| Genre | Post-punk revival Indie Rock |
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| Length | 3:21 (CD) | ||||
| Label | Domino | ||||
| Producer | Tore Johansson | ||||
| Franz Ferdinand singles chronology | |||||
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"Michael" is a song by Franz Ferdinand and was the fourth single released from their debut self-titled album. The song was notable for its homoerotic lyrics such as "stubble on my sticky lips" and "beautiful boys on a beautiful dancefloor". The singer, Alex Kapranos, stated in an interview that the song was written about two friends of his — "It was one night when me and the band were out with friends from Glasgow, and we went to this warehouse dance party thing called Disco X. It was a very debauched night and these two friends got it together in a very sexy way."[1] The song was released as a single in the UK on August 16 2004. Due to a breach of UK chart rules by generously providing three tracks on the CD1 format instead of two (in what the band described in a press statement as a "silly schoolboy error") sales of the CD1 format were disqualified. Despite this, the single still reached a respectable #17. The band usually performs a slightly different version of the song at concerts, most notably with the final "Come and dance with me" replaced by the more risqué "Come all over me" (this alternative lyric is in the liner notes, but crossed out and with the recorded lyric written beside it.) Also, "stubble on my sticky lips" is occasionally replaced with "stubble on my sticky hips." Michael was also included as part of the soundtrack for the Playstation 2 game, Gran Turismo 4.
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Secret Message
The song contains a secret mesage from 1:35 to 1:39 saying, "She's worried about you, call your mother", if played backwards. According to "franzferdinand.net," bassist Bob Hardy was getting a bit worried about calling his mother back home, so the band added the backwards lyrics in as an homage. But Bob Hardy has said that he has no knowledge of the lyrics being there and he thought it was just a positive message to put on the track. Media:MichaelHiddenMessage.ogg
Track listing
UK release
Lead vocals performed by Alex Kapranos, except where noted.
CD1
- "Michael" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Love and Destroy" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Missing You" (Alex Kapranos)
CD2 (deleted on day of release)
- "Michael" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Don't Start" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Tell Her Tonight" (Paul Sings) (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- Lead vocals performed by Paul Thomson
CD3
- "Michael" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Don't Start" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
7"
- "Michael" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Michael" (Simon Bookish Remix) (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- Lead vocals performed by Simon Bookish
12"
- "Michael" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Love And Destroy" (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- "Don't Start" (Alex Kapranos)
US release
12"
- "Michael" (Album Version) (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- Lead vocals: Alex Kapranos
- "Dark of the Matinée" (Headman Remix) (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy/Bob Hardy)
- Lead vocals: Alex Kapranos
- "This Fire" (Playgroup Remix) (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- Lead vocals: Alex Kapranos
- "Michael" (Thomas Eriksen Mix) (Alex Kapranos/Nick McCarthy)
- Lead vocals: Alex Kapranos
External links
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| Alex Kapranos · Robert Hardy · Nicholas McCarthy · Paul Thomson | |
| Studio albums | Franz Ferdinand · You Could Have It So Much Better |
| Singles | "Darts of Pleasure" · "Take Me Out" · "The Dark of the Matinée" · "Michael" · "This Fire" · "Do You Want To" · "Walk Away" · "The Fallen / L. Wells" · "Eleanor Put Your Boots On" |
| Other releases | Darts of Pleasure (EP) · Franz Ferdinand (DVD) |
| Related articles | Discography · Upcoming third album · Domino Records · Tore Johansson · Rich Costey · Sound Bites: Eating on Tour with Franz Ferdinand · The Karelia · Yummy Fur |
