Twenty Five (album)

For the other albums, see 25 (disambiguation).

Twenty Five
Greatest hits album by
George Michael
Released13 November 2006 (2006-11-13)
Recorded1984–2006
GenrePop
Length
  • 78:21 (disc 1)
  • 77:41 (disc 2)
  • 71:05 (disc 3)
LabelSony BMG
ProducerGeorge Michael
George Michael chronology
Patience
(2004) 		Twenty Five
(2006) 		Symphonica
(2014)
Singles from Twenty Five
  1. "An Easier Affair"
    Released: 3 July 2006
  2. "This Is Not Real Love"
    Released: 6 November 2006
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
PopMatters(8/10)[2]
The Times[3]

Twenty Five is the second compilation album by English singer-songwriter George Michael released in the UK on 13 November 2006,[4] celebrating the 25th anniversary of his music career.[5] It was released on 13 November 2006 by Sony BMG.[6] It debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart[7] and number 23 on the Billboard 200,[8] and it reached the top 20 on most other album charts. After Michael's death in December 2016, the album re-entered the Billboard 200 at a new peak position of number 12.[9]

The album mostly contains songs from Michael's solo career but also from his earlier days with Wham!. The album is sold in two formats: a 2-CD set and a limited edition 3-CD set. The 2-CD set contains 29 tracks, including four recorded with Wham! and three new songs: "An Easier Affair", "This Is Not Real Love" (a duet with the English singer Mutya Buena) and a new version of "Heal the Pain", recorded with Paul McCartney. The limited edition 3-CD version contains an additional 14 lesser-known tracks, including one with Wham! and another new song called "Understand".

The 2-CD version was released in the United States on 1 April 2008,[10] with two changes: "Feeling Good" replaced the Wham! track "Freedom", and "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" (from Songs from the Last Century) replaced "Round Here", a track from Patience that was not released as a single in the US.

A 3-CD limited deluxe version was released in the United States exclusively by Best Buy. The track listing for the third CD is the same as the international version, but unlike the 2-CD US version, it includes "Freedom" instead of "Feeling Good". The 3-CD version is packaged in a digipak. It includes a 36-page colour booklet with lyrics for every track, along with screen shots from the videos for most of the tracks on the first two CDs.

In 2010, a special tour edition of the album was released in Australia to coincide with Michael's short three date George Michael Live in Australia tour. The track listing itself contained the same tracks as the international version alongside a bonus third disc. A Twenty Five DVD was also released.

  1. ^ Monger, James Christopher. "TwentyFive – George Michael". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  2. ^ Wikane, Christian John (19 December 2006). "George Michael: Twenty Five". PopMatters. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  3. ^ Jelbert, Steve (10 November 2006). "George Michael: Twenty Five". The Times. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  4. ^ "Sony Music UK: George Michael". Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
  5. ^ "GeorgeMichael.com". GeorgeMichael.com. Archived from the original on 13 September 2008. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  6. ^ [1] Archived 2 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference ukocc was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Music Albums, Top 200 Albums & Music Album Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  9. ^ "Top 200 Albums". Billboard.
  10. ^ "GeorgeMichael.com". GeorgeMichael.com. Retrieved 12 March 2012.