Saturday 9: Careless Whisper

Saturday 9: Careless Whisper (1985)

    

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

 

1) In this week's song, George Michael sings that, when it comes to relationships, "there's no comfort in the truth." Have you ever learned something about a friend, lover or relative that you wish you didn't know?

A. OMG yes. I learned something about my dearest friend not less than a month after she died that I wish I had never, ever learned. Because I loved her, I will not repeat it. But I sure wish I didn't know it.

2) Though this was the top song of 1985, George wrote it years before, when he was still working as a dj at a restaurant outside London. He recalled the moment the sax solo popped into his head. It was while he was on the bus on his way to work. If you go to work, how do you get there (car, bus, train, etc.)? If you don't work outside the home, tell us about a trip you make regularly.

A. I regularly go to the grocery store. I drive by car, in my Toyota Camry, and it takes me as long to drive to the store as it does to get the groceries, then I drive back and put them away. It's exciting!

 

3) The video for this song was very expensive. It was filmed on location all around Miami, including the luxury Grove Towers Condominiums, but then much of it had to be reshot because George didn't like his hair. Are you having a good hair day today?

A. I could use a cut but I've been sick for two weeks and still am sick, so I don't look for that to be happening soon.

4) 1985 was a big year for George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. As Wham! they had three songs on the charts and became the first Western pop music act to tour China. Have you ever visited China? Would you like to go?

A. I have not visited China. It would be an interesting place to visit, if I had a good tour guide and/or group to go with. I would prefer to have gone when I was younger, though.

 

5) When he wasn't working, George was a creature of habit. For example, he never tired of Cocoa Puffs for breakfast and roast chicken for Sunday dinner. Is there a menu item you find yourself eating again and again?

A. I eat a mix of plain Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast almost every day. The calories are the same, but the carbs are lower that way. I do not eat my cereal with milk or anything; I eat it dry. We also eat a lot of "chicken and a vegetable" for dinner.

6) George enjoyed living quietly in Highgate, North London. It wasn't until after his death that his neighbors learned he was the "anonymous resident" who had been funding Highgate's Fair in the Square for years. Held in June each year, The Fair is known for its dog show, arts and crafts booths, music and food. Tell us about one of your community's annual events.

A. They have a festival in Fincastle in September every year. It used to be a huge affair - the streets so clogged with vendors and buyers that you could scarcely move. Thousands of people. Then it started dwindling, died off for a few years, and was resurrected into a much smaller venue than it used to be. It's actually kind of pitiful now, but maybe that's only because I had to go to it every year for years to take photos for the newspaper and have the memories of what it used to be lodged into my eye.

 

7) According to Car and Driver, when "Careless Whisper" was popular, so was the Chevy Cavalier, a compact car. Nearly 40 years later, the vehicle landscape is very different. There are fewer compacts sold and last year, the most popular Chevy was the Silverado, a light duty truck. Do you drive a car, a truck, or an SUV?

A. I drive a car. My husband has a truck.

8) Also in 1985, Bill Shoemaker's earnings reached $100 million, making him the world's most successful jockey. Do you follow horse racing?

A. I watch the Triple Crown races sometimes, but it is not something I make a point of doing. I liked the movie Secretariat.

9) Random question -- In which race would you do better: the Iditarod, with sled dogs in Nome, or speeding in a race car at the Indy 500?

A. When I was younger, my husband (and other members of my family) used to call me "AJ" as in AJ Foyt, so I guess the Indy 500. I used to have a very heavy foot where the gas was concerned, but I am older now and don't drive quite so fast and recklessly as I once did.

Sometimes when I write the answers to these questions, I wonder where that woman has gone.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.