Burning The Ground Exclusive 1998
After George Michael was outed by the media, he returned to music with “Outside”, satirizing his arrest for lewd conduct in an L.A. public restroom,
and sending a statement to anybody who thought he might retreat back into the closet.
Its video was set in a men’s bathroom complete with a disco ball and light-up floor, with Michael dressed as an LAPD police officer.
“Outside” is a song by English singer-songwriter George Michael, released on 19 October 1998 as the lead single from his first greatest hits album, Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael (1998). It was released through Epic Records and reached number two on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Michael’s most recent UK top-three hit. In Greece, Hungary, and Spain, the song peaked at number one.
The song was Michael’s first single since his arrest for engaging in a lewd act six months earlier by an undercover police officer in the public lavatory of the Will Rogers Memorial Park in Beverly Hills, California – an incident that prompted him to declare his homosexuality, which had been rumored for some years but never publicly confirmed.
Michael disparaged the incident in the lyrics, claiming he wanted an alfresco sex life because he was bored with lovemaking behind closed doors. Reference to the Beverly Hills affair came with the line “I’d service the community, but I already have, you see” (he was sentenced to 80 hours of community service for the offense) and direct samples of radio reports of his arrest.
In a 2004 interview with Adam Mattera for UK magazine Attitude, Michael reflected: “I felt that lightening the stigma around cruising was the most immediately beneficial thing I could do. I know for a fact that when I was 16, 17, when I started cruising, watching the Outside video would have taken some of the weight off my shoulders.”
The song was recorded at Sarm West in London with a string section and arrangement by Andrew Skeet.
“Outside” peaked at number one in Greece, Hungary, and Spain. In addition, it reached number two in the United Kingdom, number three in Italy, number four in Denmark, number five in Iceland, number seven in Ireland, and number eight in Finland. On the Eurochart Hot 100, “Outside” reached number three in November 1998. Outside Europe, the song reached number three on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, number 11 in New Zealand, and number 13 in Australia.
**This 12″ Promo contains vinyl-only U.S. remixes.
SIDE A:
Outside (Hex Hector 12″ Vocal Mix) 8:48
Engineer, Keyboards, Programmed By – Mac Quayle
Producer [Additional Production], Remix – Hex Hector
Outside (Sharp “Unlocked” Remix) 8:28
Engineer [Mix Engineer] – Kevin White
Producer [Additional Production], Remix – The Sharp Boys
Remix – Sharp*
SIDE B:
Outside (Razor-n-Guido Orange ‘e’ Dub) 9:56
Producer [Additional Production], Remix – Razor-n-Guido*
Outside (Album Version) 4:43
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Outside | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play | #3 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Epic Dance – EAS 41703
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1998
Genre: Electronic
Style: House
CREDITS:
- Arranged By, Producer, Written-By – George Michael
- Engineer [Mix] – Kevin White
- Producer – Jon Douglas
NOTES:
Album version from the LP “Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael”
Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black PnP MkII
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!
Password: burningtheground
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OMG, best post of recent times! (Which is saying a lot because all your posts are great) Thanks a ton for this DJPaul!
Thank you so much for George Michael! Happy pride month!
Thank you for sharing these rare Outside tracks. My understanding is that that is even a harder “Outside” remix to find. It is Outside “Hex Hector Bonus Beats”. I think it is only on the Promo UK 12″? Do you know anything about that remix? I’ve never even heard a clip.
lol … I remember the “drama” surrounding the outing of G.Michael and Ricky Martin… people are so dumb! Right-wing people were so appalled, they had to put on their favorite Liberace and Elton John records to soother their nerves!
Thanks, Paul! These mixes are indeed rare treasures!
You’re welcome, Jbird 🙂
I dig this track, but the subject is a little off-putting… Live your life, but public bathrooms ain’t cool, man…
RIP Geo.
Oh I don’t know… I’ve had fun in a tearoom or two… For a long time, public lavatories were the only outlet for a lot of gay men. There was even a ‘Rue de Vaseline’, a specific route of public lavs crossing the city, in Amsterdam during the 60s and 70s.
May not be cool, but it was definitely hot!
Anyway, have a great day.
Thank you Paul for this great post!
You’re welcome, Andy 🙂
Amazing remixes! I’ve not heard these promo mixes before. Thanks for posting this Paul!
Scott
You’re welcome, Scott 🙂
Hey Paul,
Great mixes. Thanks for posting. I have the UK & Japan CD singles.
Kent 🙂
Hi Kent,
Pretty sure the A2 and B1 mixes are exclusive to this US promo. Enjoy 🙂
Hey Paul,
You are correct. These mixes are a bonus to what I already have. BTW, sometime in the future could you re-post the Donna Summer promo medley. Thanks. 🙂
A nice surprise here as i was listening to the Hex Hector mix from this promo 12” earlier. Looking forward to your digital rip later from your copy.
Thanks Paul!
You’re welcome, Marco 🙂
Very excited to get these promo-only remixes from you, Paul. I miss George Michael ever so much. I wonder where his musical direction might have gone if he was still alive. I would have loved him returning to the effervescence sound of Wham! material. So very sad.
Jeff
I do miss the fun side of George Michael 🙂 I hope you enjoy these remixes, Jeff 🙂