Soundtrack Staples: Wham!'s 'Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go'
Amy Flower
STACK Senior Editor
Some songs are used frequently in movies to set the mood, and these are what we like to call 'Soundtrack Staples'. It's time to get our 'Jitterbug!" on, as we look at Wham!'s 'Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go'.
It all started with a hastily scribbled note that Andrew Ridgeley - who was still living at his parents' home, despite Wham!'s burgeoning success - left for his mum. He inadvertently wrote "Wake me up up," so upon adding "Before you go" he decided that another "go" was in order. George found the note and inspiration struck.
The result was the smash hit that we know today, one of the most '80s songs of all time, even if it did hark back to the upbeat pop of the 1950s and '60s – and even earlier. This included the opening, with a four-time repeated "Jitterbug!" complete with finger clicks, the jitterbug being a dance that dates back to the 1930s. Still, at least it had the true sound of the '80s in that the beat was carried by a drum machine, although apparently that was only as the drummer was late to the session, and they grew to love the scratch track that they'd constructed so kept it even after he showed up. The moral of the story? If you're a session muso, be on time!
In what was an impressive feat at the relatively tender age of 20, not only did George pen the song, but he also produced it.
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go went to number one all over the place. The UK, the USA, Belgium, Canada, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and, of course, Australia (where it earned double platinum sales). It only just missed the top spot in Germany, New Zealand, and Switzerland, where it hit number two.
It was the first track recorded for the pair's Make it Big album, which was a prophetic title, as Wham! went supernova with this song. They also started a questionable '80s fashion trend (still, were there any '80s fashion trends that weren't questionable?) with the Katharine Hamnett-designed "Choose Life" T-shirts that they wore in the video clip, which was filmed at live music venue the Brixton Academy.
Speaking of that video, here it is, with the 14 movie appearances over the years (so far) listed underneath...
The Big Picture (1989)
Charlie's Angels (2000)
Zoolander (2001)
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2007)
El pasado (2007)
Heartbreaker (2010)
Kath & Kimderella (2012)
Zoolander 2 (2016)
Sausage Party (2016)
The LEGO Batman Movie (2017)
Sing (2016)
The Emoji Movie (2017)
Last Christmas (2019)
Good Night Oppy (2022)
Jitterbug!
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