Fastlove

Release

"Fastlove" is an energetic tune about the need for gratification and fulfillment without concern for commitment. The song was the second single taken from Michael's third studio album Older, which was his first studio album in six years and only the third of his solo career. For the single's B-side, a remake of the Wham! classic "I'm Your Man" was used. Entitled "I'm Your Man '96", it was an update of one of their last singles, a decade earlier.

A re-sung but otherwise identical chorus of the Patrice Rushen hit "Forget Me Nots" was used about 70% of the way through, although no co-writing credit was initially given. This problem was rectified in the liner notes of Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael.

Jon Kutner from 1000 UK Number One Hits said the line "Stupid Cupid keeps on calling me and I see lovin' in his eyes" was a dual interpretation.

Critical reception

Entertainment Weekly's Jim Farber gave the song an "A", he stated: "It took real guts to release a salute to a one-night stand in this, the era of abstinence," also praising its "devilishly seductive bass" and "sleekly probing horns". Ferber concluded his review by calling the track "best slow-groove dance record since Lisa Stansfield's 'All Around the World.'"

While reviewing Older, Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic said although "Fastlove" is the album's only dance track, but it still "lacks the carefree spark of his earlier work." He later still chose the song as his one of his "track picks." Writing about the album for Rolling Stones, Al Weisel called the track a "bouncy disco concoction" and "flavored with Dr. Dre-style whistling synths."

In 2014, Brendon Veevers from British webzine Renowned for Sound ranked the song at number 4 on his "Top 10 George Michael Hits" list, stating: "[The song] is a slick, ultra-modern dance-pop track that sits quite contrasting to the rest of the Older tracks but has held up exceptionally well over the past almost-20 years since it was offered to us."

Commercial performance

The song reached the number one spot in United Kingdom, where it stayed for three weeks. It also reached number one in Australia and Italy.

In the US, "Fastlove" peaked at number 8, and has since become a classic in George Michael's catalogue, and finished at number 62 on the year-end chart. To date, this is the final George Michael single to enter the American Billboard Hot 100, as well as peaking at number 44 in the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

"Fastlove" later became Michael's seventh most downloaded track in the United Kingdom, according to Official Charts Company in 2014.

Music video

Directed by Vaughan Arnell and Anthea Benton, the music video begins with a flickering virtual reality image of a woman on a bed followed by a man sitting in a black chair using a high-tech remote control device to "flip" through a variety of sexually virtual reality characters. Michael appears in the black chair, which is equipped with speakers. At one point, one of the dancers is shown wearing headphones displaying the word 'FONY' in the style of the Sony corporate logo, a reference to the contractual dispute Michael was having at the time with Sony Music Entertainment (formerly CBS Records). Throughout the video, there is a variety of men and women, who display a spectrum of characteristics, including one who is shy, another who is lustful, and another who is a complete emotional wreck (played by Rachel Williams) sitting in the chair and using the remote control to summon more sexual characters. As the video ends, Michael is seen dancing while water rains down on him. The video ends with the same flickering virtual reality image that introduces to the video.

The music video was nominated for three 1996 MTV Video Music Awards, including: Best Dance Video, Best Choreography in a Video and International Viewer's Choice Award—MTV Europe — which it won.

Live performances

Michael performed the song on his MTV Unplugged segment on 11 October 1996 in London, the taping later premiered on the network on 11 December. Barry Walters in a review for The Advocate, describing the performance: "During 'Fastlove' he changes the melody considerably, and a huge mass of background singers drops all sorts of gospel-influenced vocal doodads." The live audio of the song was then uploaded onto Michael's official SoundCloud.

"Fastlove" was the opening song for his first leg for 25 Live with graphics flowed behind and beneath him on a curved, cascading screen.

British singer Adele performed the song during the 59th Annual Grammy Awards, in tribute to Michael. She restarted her slow, mournful arrangement of it at one point because she was not satisfied with how it was going and saying that Michael was too important to her for her to not get it right.