Fantastic is the debut studio album by the English pop duo Wham!, released on 1 July 1983 by Innervision Records. It reached number one on the UK Albums Chart. It included the previously released singles "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)", "Young Guns (Go for It)", and "Bad Boys". "Club Tropicana" was released as a single to coincide with the album's release. Although not on the album, "Club Fantastic Megamix" (a medley of songs from the album) was released against the band's wishes by Innervision soon after Fantastic, and whilst they were in proceedings to leave the label.
Contents
Background
In 1975, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley met as pre-teens at Bushey Meads School in Bushey, Hertfordshire. Upon realising they shared a common interest in music, the two became close friends. During 1979 and 1980, Michael and Ridgeley performed in a ska revival band called the Executive, alongside Ridgeley's brother Paul, David Mortimer, Andrew Leaver, Jamie Gould and Tony Bywaters. The group was relatively short-lived, and following its break-up, Michael and Ridgeley formed Wham!.
Prior to the recording of their first demo tape, Michael and Ridgeley had already written some songs together. The genesis of "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" involved Ridgeley shouting the words "Wham! Bam! I am the man!" to the beat of "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang while dancing at Bogart's club in South Harrow, London. On "Club Tropicana", the duo had taken inspiration from their experience of dancing in nightclubs (such as the Le Beat Route) and "the hedonism of London's New Romantic hangouts, like the Blitz," while "Careless Whisper" – a pop ballad touching on the subject of infidelity – would later be recorded by Michael as a solo single and included on Wham!'s second studio album, Make It Big (1984).
Production
According to Ridgeley in his 2019 book Wham! George & Me, it was during the early stages of writing and recording of this album that the pair agreed that Michael should take sole responsibility for writing the group's material. When work started in the studio, Michael—according to Ridgeley—started working "at lightning speed", and it quickly became clear that he was by far the better songwriter. Ridgeley would later say that it was not something that he particularly wanted, but there was no doubt it was the way to go to achieve the success they both wanted. Two new songs, "Golden Soul" and "Soul Boy", were written for the album but both were shelved as "neither of them were any good".
The album features a hidden track (played on a honky-tonk-style piano) after the final 20 seconds of "Young Guns (Go for It!)".
In the US, the album was originally released as the group "WHAM! U.K.", due to a conflict with a US group with the same name (Columbia BFC-38911).
Track listing
Reissue
The track listing of the first edition of the CD and the original cassette tape feature three bonus tracks interspersed within the original track listing, consisting of instrumental remixes. This track listing was again used for the 1998 reissue of the CD.
Personnel
Wham!
George Michael – lead vocals (1–4, 7, 8), backing vocals (1–3), arrangements (4–7), all vocals (5, 6), horn arrangements (5), instruments (6)
Andrew Ridgeley – guitars (1–5, 7, 8), arrangements (4)
Additional musicians
Shouting on "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)"
Bob Carter, George Michael, David Mortimer, Andrew Ridgeley and Paul Ridgeley
Handclaps on "Club Tropicana"
Deon Estus, Steve Evans, George Michael, Andrew Ridgeley and Phil Wilcox
Production
George Michael – producer (1–3, 5–8)
Steve Brown – producer (1–3, 5–8)
Bob Carter – producer (4)
Tony Taverner – engineer
Wham! – cover design
Shoot That Tiger! – cover design
Chris Craymer – front cover photography, inner sleeve photography
Janusz Guttner – inner sleeve photography
Club Fantastic Tour
Michael and Ridgeley embarked on a UK tour to promote the album in October 1983, opening at Aberdeen's Capitol Theatre, before going on to dates in Scotland, England and Wales, and ending in November at the Centre in Brighton.