Released 1 June 1987 Recorded 1987 | Format 7"
12"
CD Genre Dance-pop
funk | |
B-side "I Want Your Sex" ("Rhythm Two: Brass in Love") Length 4:44 (Part one)
4:38 (Part two)
3:48 (Part three)
13:10 (Monogamy Mix) | ||
"I Want Your Sex" is a song by the English singer-songwriter George Michael. Released as a single in June 1987, it was the third hit from the soundtrack to Beverly Hills Cop II and the first single from Michael's debut solo album Faith.
Contents
The song has three separate parts dubbed "Rhythms." The first one, titled "Rhythm One: Lust", is the version released as a single and banned by the BBC. It appears by itself on the Beverly Hills Cop II soundtrack, and mixed with the second version, titled "Rhythm Two: Brass in Love", on Faith. The second version also appears by itself as the B-side of the single. A third part, "Rhythm Three: A Last Request", appears as a B-side to the "Hard Day" 7" and "Kissing a Fool" 12" singles, and on the CD version of Faith as a bonus track. All three versions were mixed together into one 13 minute song, dubbed the "Monogamy Mix", for the 12" and CD single releases.
Although it was one of Michael's biggest hits, he ignored the song following its release; he never performed it after the Faith World Tour and although the Rhythm Two version appears on Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael, it does not appear on the 2006 retrospective TwentyFive; furthermore, the "Monogamy Mix" doesn't appear on the 2011 remastered release of Faith.
The song is on the Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The single was certified platinum by the RIAA, for sales in excess of two million in the United States.
Music video
The music video, directed by Andy Morahan, featured Michael's then-girlfriend Kathy Jeung to emphasize that he was in a monogamous relationship; at one point, he is shown using lipstick to write the words "explore" and "monogamy" on her back. A Spanish model was also used for naked scenes in a way that allowed the audience to assume they were the same woman; these shots are interspersed with intentionally blurred footage of George Michael dancing and singing the song.
The video generated controversy over its sexual themes. In 2002, MTV2's countdown of MTV's Most Controversial Videos Ever to Air on MTV included the video for "I Want Your Sex" at number 3. The original video cut appears on the TwentyFive compilation 2-DVD set.
Chart performance
"I Want Your Sex" became George Michael's second solo hit single after the song "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)", his duet with Aretha Franklin from earlier that same year.
Despite censorship and airplay issues, an edited version of the song's music video received ample airplay on North American music channels, fueling its popularity there. The single eventually reached number 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, the week of 8 August 1987, behind "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2. Moreover, the single remained in the top 10 for six weeks and the top 40 for a total of 14 weeks, becoming one of the most popular dance-pop singles of the summer of 1987. It also climbed to number 2 in Canada, where it ended up becoming the 13th most popular single of the year.
The song reached number 3 in the UK Singles Chart, where the song's reprise maintained an audience for many years thanks to BBC Radio 1 breakfast show host Simon Mayo using a looped version as backing music for his daily feature On This Day in History. It also sold 327,160 there.
Track listing
- "Rhythm One: Lust"
- "Rhythm Two: Brass in Love"
- "Rhythm Three: A Last Request"
- "I Want Your Sex" (Parts one and two) – 9:13
- "A Different Corner" – 3:59
- "Careless Whisper" (Extended mix) – 6:30