| "Too Funky" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by George Michael | ||||
| from the album Red Hot + Dance | ||||
| B-side | "Crazyman Dance" | |||
| Released | 12 July 1992 | |||
| Format | CD single | |||
| Recorded | 1990 | |||
| Genre | Dance-pop, funk | |||
| Length | 5:37 (album version) 3:45 (single edit) 3:58 (video edit) |
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| Label | Columbia | |||
| Writer(s) | George Michael | |||
| Producer | George Michael | |||
| George Michael singles chronology | ||||
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"Too Funky" is a song written and performed by English singer George Michael and released by Columbia Records in the United States and Epic Records elsewhere in 1992.
Contents |
"Too Funky" was Michael's final single for his recording contract with Sony Music before he started legal action to extricate himself from his contract. "Too Funky" had been initially earmarked for a follow-up to the album Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 2 but Michael shelved the idea, instead donating it, along with three other songs, to the project Red Hot + Dance, which raised money for AIDS awareness. Michael subsequently donated the royalties to the same cause. The song didn't appear on any of Michael's studio albums, although later it was included on his solo collection Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael.
Lyrically, the song is a basic, animalistic plea for sexual activity.
It features a clip from The Graduate; Anne Bancroft's line of "Would you like me to seduce you? Is that what you're trying to tell me?" is repeated during the final crescendo. The song then ends with a sample ("Will you stop playing with that radio of yours. I'm trying to get to sleep") from an episode of the Tony Hancock Show called 'The Radio Ham'. The line was spoken by actress Annie Leake.
Directed by fashion designer Thierry Mugler, the video features Michael (sporadically) as a director filming a number of supermodels, similarly to the video for his 1990 single "Freedom! '90". The models featured in this video are Linda Evangelista, Nadja Auermann, Emma Sjöberg, Estelle Hallyday, Shana Zadrick and Tyra Banks. Actresses Julie Newmar and Rossy de Palma also make an appearance. The costumes worn by the models were designed by Mugler.
The video's concept was written by Jeff Beasley after attending a benefit fashion show held by Mugler several months before in Los Angeles. Beasley worked at Propaganda Films, the production company where David Fincher directed "Freedom '90" - the supermodel video on which "Too Funky" is based. Originally the same models from Fincher's video were going to be used, namely Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, Cindy Crawford, and Tatjana Patitz. Mugler decided, however, that he wanted new models and only kept Evangelista for the project. The video was produced by Beasley and filmed by Mike Southon.
An alternate edit of the video includes several male models, including eventual Grey's Anatomy star Justin Chambers and Oscar-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou, who was discovered by Mugler in Paris.
"Too Funky" reached number 4 in the UK Singles Chart in 1992 and became that year's most played record in Europe.
In the U.S., the single debuted at number 84 on Billboard Hot 100, reaching number 10 - its peak position - by its fourth week. It sold over 500,000 copies, being certified Gold by the RIAA.
In Australia, it became the biggest gainer song ever in the top 50 of the Australian ARIA Singles Chart when it jumped from number 50 to number 8 (42 places), before reaching its peak position at number 3. "Too Funky" held this record until 2009, when "3" by Britney Spears rose from number 50 to number 7 (43 places).
In Canada, "Too Funky" peaked at number 6 on the RPM singles chart.[1]
"Too Funky" reached number 3 on the Dutch Top 40.[2]
Charts |
Certifications
|
| End of year chart (1992) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[14] | 58 |