One More Try (George Michael song)

"One More Try"
Single by George Michael
from the album Faith
Released 11 April 1988
Format CD, cassette
Recorded 1987
Genre R&B
Length 5:52
Label Epic
Writer(s) George Michael
Producer(s) George Michael
George Michael singles chronology
"Father Figure"
(1988)		 "One More Try"
(1988)		 "Monkey"
(1988)

"One More Try" is a million-selling, Gold-certified hit single written and performed by George Michael. It was released by Epic Records in 1988 as the fourth single from George's 12x Platinum album, Faith. The song hit #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Soul charts.

History

The song was the fourth of six singles to be released from George's debut solo album Faith. A ballad at six minutes in length, the song lyrically explores a young man's hesitancy to enter/revisit a new relationship because he had been emotionally hurt so many times previously. The song concludes with temptation taking over, and Michael ends by singing the title for the only time.

"One More Try" remained a live favourite at Michael's concerts in the years which followed, although its radio airplay tends to be restricted to specific "Love Songs"-esque features because of both the tempo and the length.

Track listing

"One More Try" Maxi CD

  1. "One More Try" (album version) – 5:50
  2. "Look at Your Hands" – 4:36

Official remixes and versions

Chart performance

It reached No. 8 in the UK Singles Chart but became his sixth No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA. Four of the six singles issued from Faith went to number one in America, while by comparison, none managed to do so in the UK.

"One More Try" was the third consecutive No. 1 single from the Faith album. "One More Try" debuted at an impressive No. 40 the week of 16 April 1988, and matching the speed of "Father Figure", reached No. 1 by its seventh week, 28 May 1988, this time staying there for three consecutive weeks. "One More Try" was the second-longest running No. 1 of 1988, tied with "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison, and behind the four-week run of Steve Winwood's "Roll with It". In total, "One More Try" spent 7 weeks in the Top 10 and 14 weeks in the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. It was a triple-chart No. 1, also topping the R&B and Adult Contemporary charts and becoming the last number-one single on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart by a white male artist until Robin Thicke's "Lost Without U" (2007).

Charts and certifications

Charts

Chart (1988) Peak
position
Austrian Singles Chart[1] 19
Canadian RPM Top Singles[2] 1
Dutch Singles Chart[3] 4
French Singles Chart[1] 5
German Singles Chart[4] 22
Irish Singles Chart[5] 1
New Zealand Singles Chart[1] 8
Norwegian Singles Chart[1] 7
Swedish Singles Chart[1] 4
Swiss Singles Chart[1] 4
UK Singles Chart[6] 8
US Billboard Hot 100[7] 1
US Billboard Adult Contemporary[7] 1

Certifications

Country Certification
France Silver[8]
United States Gold[9]

Preceded by
"Heart" by Pet Shop Boys		 Irish IRMA number-one single
30 April 1988 – 6 May 1988 (2 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Perfect" by Fairground Attraction
Preceded by
"Anything for You" by Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine		 Billboard Hot 100 number-one single
28 May 1988 – 11 June 1988 (3 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Together Forever" by Rick Astley
Preceded by
"Shattered Dreams" by Johnny Hates Jazz		 Billboard Adult Contemporary (chart) number-one single
28 May 1988 – 11 June 1988 (3 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"The Valley Road" by Bruce Hornsby and the Range
Preceded by
"Beds Are Burning" by Midnight Oil		 Canadian Singles Chart
11 June 1988 – 18 June 1988 (2 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Together Forever" by Rick Astley

Divine version

"One More Try"
Single by Divine
from the album Fairy Tales
Released 9 January 1999
Format CD
Recorded 1998
Genre R&B
Length 6:00
Label Pendulum Records
Writer(s) George Michael
Producer(s) John Howcott, Donald Parks
Divine singles chronology
"Lately"
(1999)		 "One More Try"
(1999)

In 1999, American teen trio Divine recorded the song as their second single off their debut album Fairy Tales.

Track listing

  1. "One More Try" – 6:00
  2. "One More Try" (extended version) – 9:00
  3. "One More Try" (a cappella version) – 4:50

Charts

Chart (1999) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 29
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs 13

Beverley Knight version

"One More Try"
Single by Beverley Knight
from the album Soul UK
Released 23 October 2011
Format Digital download
Recorded 2010
Genre R&B, Soul
Length 5:43
Label Hurricane Records
Producer(s) Martin Terefe
Beverley Knight singles chronology
"Cuddly Toy"
(2011)		 "One More Try"
(2011)		 "Round and Around"
(2012)

British singer-songwriter Beverley Knight covered "One More Try" and released it as the third single release from her seventh studio album, Soul UK, a tribute to UK soul artists. It was released in the UK on 23 October 2011. The b-sides are remixes of Freeez's single "Southern Freeez", the original of which also appears on Soul UK.

Background

In regards to her version of "One More Try", Knight said "Everyone knew who George Michael was, but this song is when he became the real thing in my mind. He channelled a gospel sound, black America, ate it up, Britain followed and then the whole world. I took that sound, and going back to my own church roots, I ran with it."[10] George Michael endorsed Knight's version of "One More Try" stating, "I'm always flattered by cover versions of my songs – especially when they are sung as beautifully as this. Thank You Beverley".[11]

Track listing

Digital download[12]
  1. "One More Try" (Album Version) - 5:43
  2. "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Club Mix) - 7:17
  3. "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Radio Edit) - 3:28
  4. "Southern Freeez" (MCM Funky Freeez Radio Edit) - 3:18
iTunes Digital download[13]
  1. "One More Try" (Album Version) - 5:43
  2. "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Club Mix) - 7:17
  3. "Southern Freeez" (Soulseekers Dub) - 7:17
  4. "Southern Freeez" (MCM Funky Freeez Radio Edit) - 3:18
Other versions
  1. "One More Try" (Radio Edit)

Release history

Region Date Format
United Kingdom 23 October 2011 Digital download

Other cover versions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 George Michael - One More Try (song). Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  2. ↑ Top Singles - Volume 48, No. 8, 11 June 1988. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  3. ↑ Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  4. ↑ Single-Chartverfolgung. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  5. ↑ The Irish Charts. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  6. ↑ Top 75 Releases. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 One More Try - George Michael. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
  8. ↑ Certifications Singles Argent - année 1988. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  9. ↑ Gold & Platinum: Searchable Database. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  10. ↑ BeverleyKnight.com (24 May 2011). "Biog – Beverley Knight". Hurricane Records. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
  11. ↑ Absolute Marketing (28 September 2011). "Beverley Knight - One More Try". Absolute.com. Retrieved 17 October 2011.
  12. ↑ Amazon.co.uk (23 October 2011). "One More Try: Beverley Knight: Amazon.co.uk: MP3 Downloads". Amazon. Retrieved 17 October 2011.
  13. ↑ iTunes UK (23 August 2011). "One More Try - EP by Beverley Knight - EP on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved 23 August 2011.

External links