Jesus to a Child

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"Jesus to a Child"
Single by George Michael
from the album Older
B-side "One More Try" (live gospel version)
Released 13 January 1996
Format Cassette, CD single
Recorded 1993–1995
Genre Soft rock, adult contemporary,
Length 6:51
Label Virgin Records
Writer(s) George Michael
Producer George Michael
George Michael singles chronology
"Killer"/"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone"
(1993)		 "Jesus to a Child"
(1995)		 "Fastlove"
(1996)

"Jesus to a Child" is a song by British musician George Michael. The song peaked at number 1 in Britain and Australia, and at number 2 in the mainland European charts. The song has also become George Michael's highest direct entry in the American charts. The song is one of George Michael's best-known songs and was included on the 1996 album Older. It was a melancholy tribute to his lover Anselmo Feleppa.

Contents

[edit] History

The song was Michael's first self-penned hit in his homeland for almost four years and entered the UK Singles Chart straight at #1 in January 1996. It became his first solo single to enter the UK charts at the top, his first solo #1 from a studio album (all his previous solo #1s had been one-off projects, either during the Wham! years or as a guest or co-vocalist) and, on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA, it became the highest new entry (#7) by a British artist for more than 25 years. It was also Michael's longest UK Top 40 single at almost seven minutes long.

The song was a melancholy tribute to Michael's Brazilian lover Anselmo Feleppa, whom he met when performing in Rio de Janeiro in 1991. Feleppa died two years later from an AIDS-related brain haemorrhage. Michael had been unable to write for the next 18 months as a consequence of his grief, but then penned the words to "Jesus to a Child" in little more than an hour, indicating that the time was right to move on with his life. The song is written with a rhythm and harmony that is clearly influenced by the Brazilian bossa nova style.

The exact identity of the song's subject—and the nature of their relationship—was cause for a certain amount of innuendo at the time, as Michael had not confirmed his homosexuality and did not do so until 1998. Nowadays, Michael consistently dedicates the song to Feleppa before performing it live.

"Jesus to a Child" was the first of six singles from the album Older. It was Michael's sixth UK #1 under his solo name, although only the third as an entirely solo performer. Toše Proeski covered this song during his concerts and in his 2011 album So Ljubav ot Tose.

[edit] Track listings

UK CD 1 (VSCDT 1571)
  1. "Jesus to a Child" – 6:50
  2. "One More Try" (live gospel version) – 5:21
  3. "Older" (instrumental version) – 5:18
UK CD 2 (VSCDX 1571)
  1. "Jesus to a Child" – 6:50
  2. "Freedom '94" (live version) – 6:04
  3. "One More Try" (live gospel version) – 5:21
  4. "Older" (instrumental version) – 5:18
Cassette single
  1. "Jesus to a Child" – 6:50
  2. "One More Try" (live gospel version) – 5:21
  3. "Older" (instrumental version) – 5:18

[edit] Charts and certifications

[edit] Charts

Chart (1996) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart[1] 1
Austrian Singles Chart[1] 11
Belgian Flanders Singles Chart[1] 3
Belgian Wallonia Singles Chart[1] 2
Canadian RPM Top Singles[2] 10
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary[3] 1
Dutch Singles Chart[4] 3
Finnish Singles Chart[1] 1
French Singles Chart[1] 7
German Singles Chart[5] 12
Irish Singles Chart[6] 1
Japanese Oricon Singles Chart[7] 62
New Zealand Singles Chart[1] 5
Norwegian Singles Chart[1] 1
Spanish Singles Chart[8] 1
Swedish Singles Chart[1] 2
Swiss Singles Chart[1] 4
UK Singles Chart[9] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[10] 7
US Billboard Adult Contemporary[10] 5
US Billboard Adult Pop Songs[10] 20
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[10] 22
US Billboard Pop Songs[10] 20

[edit] Certifications

Country Certification
France Silver[11]
Norway Gold[12]
Spain Gold[13]
United Kingdom Silver[14]
United States Gold[15]

[edit] Chart procession and succession

Preceded by
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
14 January 1996		 Succeeded by
"Spaceman" by Babylon Zoo

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j George Michael - Jesus to a Child (song). Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  2. ^ Top Singles - Volume 63, No. 7, 1 April 1996. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  3. ^ Adult Contemporary - Volume 63, No. 4, 11 March 1996. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  4. ^ Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  5. ^ Single-Chartverfolgung. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  6. ^ The Irish Charts. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  7. ^ George Michael singles sales ranking. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  8. ^ Listas de Afyve. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  9. ^ Top 75 Releases. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  10. ^ a b c d e Jesus to a Child - George Michael. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  11. ^ Certifications Singles Argent - année 1996. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  12. ^ Søk i troféer. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  13. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 8480486392. 
  14. ^ Certified awards search. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  15. ^ Gold & Platinum: Searchable Database. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
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