The Final (album)
1986 greatest hits album by Wham!
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The Final is a greatest hits album released in 1986 to summarise the career of English pop duo Wham!. The album was not initially released in North America, where the studio album Music from the Edge of Heaven was released instead. Six songs from that album appear on this compilation. The Final coincided with the farewell concert of the same name on 28 June 1986, at Wembley Stadium.
71:07 (CD version)
| The Final | ||||
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| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | 7 July 1986[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1982 – March 1986 | |||
| Length | 80:24 (double LP and cassette version) 71:07 (CD version) | |||
| Label | Epic | |||
| Producer |
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| Wham! chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Final | ||||
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The CD edition omits "Blue (Armed with Love)" and the extended mixes of "Bad Boys", "Careless Whisper" and "I'm Your Man". A deluxe edition of the album was released on CD/DVD and download in November 2011, with the DVD featuring all of Wham!'s music videos, including the video for "Young Guns (Go for It!)", "Last Christmas", and a remix version of the video for "Everything She Wants". It follows the track listing of the CD, with the exception of "Battlestations", as it was a B-side and not an official single.
Background
When George Michael guested on the Aspel & Company talk show on 1 March 1986, he announced that Wham! were to split and perform one last concert, entitled the Final. He also announced that he planned to record the last Wham! single with Andrew Ridgeley the following week in Los Angeles.[6][7] In fact, as he revealed to journalist Paula Yates on The Tube, he was planning to record four tracks, two of which—"Where Did Your Heart Go?" and "The Edge of Heaven"—had been previously played on the Whamamerica! tour, with the other two being new tracks he was experimenting with. This was prior to the filming of the video for Michael's then-forthcoming solo single, "A Different Corner". Michael was planning to release three of the tracks as part of a Wham! EP, but was not sure which one of the songs was going to be the main single at that point. All of these would appear on The Final.[8] As of 12 March 1986, the album and single had been completed and ready for release under the Wham! name.[9]
Track listing
Double LP/cassette
All tracks are written by George Michael, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" (Special US Re-Mix) |
| Fantastic, 1983 | 6:43 |
| 2. | "Young Guns (Go for It)" (12" UK version) | Fantastic | 5:09 | |
| 3. | "Bad Boys" (12" version) | Fantastic | 4:52 | |
| 4. | "Club Tropicana" |
| Fantastic | 4:25 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" | Make It Big, 1984 | 3:51 | |
| 2. | "Careless Whisper" (12" UK version) |
| Make It Big | 6:31 |
| 3. | "Freedom" (7" version) | Make It Big | 5:20 | |
| 4. | "Last Christmas" (Pudding mix) | Music from the Edge of Heaven, 1986 | 6:47 |
| No. | Title | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Everything She Wants" (long remix) | Make It Big | 6:34 |
| 2. | "I'm Your Man" (Extended Stimulation) | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 6:50 |
| 3. | "Blue (Armed with Love)" | "Club Tropicana" single, 1983 | 3:50 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "A Different Corner" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 3:59 | |
| 2. | "Battlestations" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 5:27 | |
| 3. | "Where Did Your Heart Go?" (12" version) | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 5:45 | |
| 4. | "The Edge of Heaven" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 4:37 |
CD
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" (special US re-mix) |
| Fantastic | 6:43 |
| 2. | "Young Guns (Go for It)" (12" version) | Fantastic | 5:09 | |
| 3. | "Bad Boys" | Fantastic | 3:20 | |
| 4. | "Club Tropicana" |
| Fantastic | 4:25 |
| 5. | "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" | Make It Big | 3:51 | |
| 6. | "Careless Whisper" (7" version) |
| Make It Big | 5:02 |
| 7. | "Freedom" (7" version) | Make It Big | 5:20 | |
| 8. | "Last Christmas" (Pudding mix) | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 6:47 | |
| 9. | "Everything She Wants" (remix) | Make It Big | 6:30 | |
| 10. | "I'm Your Man" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 4:04 | |
| 11. | "A Different Corner" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 3:59 | |
| 12. | "Battlestations" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 5:27 | |
| 13. | "Where Did Your Heart Go?" (12" version) |
| Music from the Edge of Heaven | 5:45 |
| 14. | "The Edge of Heaven" | Music from the Edge of Heaven | 4:37 |
DVD
| Track listing | |
|---|---|
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VHS
| Track listing | |
|---|---|
(CBS Fox Video / 3846)
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Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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Certifications and sales
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | — | 50,000[29] |
| Belgium (BRMA)[30] | Platinum | 50,000* |
| France (SNEP)[31] | Platinum | 300,000* |
| Germany (BVMI)[32] | Gold | 250,000^ |
| Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[33] | Platinum | 20,000* |
| Japan (RIAJ)[34] | Platinum | 147,000[15] |
| Netherlands (NVPI)[35] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[36] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
| Spain (Promusicae)[37] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[38] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
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* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||