Cowboys and Angels (George Michael song)

"Cowboys and Angels" is a song written and performed by British singer-songwriter George Michael, released on Epic Records in March 1991 as the fifth single from his second solo album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990). The song became the first single released by Michael to miss the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 45. The album was released in the UK on 3 September and in the US on 11 September; each single had finished lower than its predecessor and "Cowboys and Angels" continued the pattern, although the other four had all reached the threshold of the top 40. It was also Michael's longest single to date, at 7 minutes 14 seconds. The saxophone solo is by Andy Hamilton[2] and the song is notable for being written in waltz time.

"Cowboys and Angels"
Single by George Michael
from the album Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1
B-side"Something to Save"
Released18 March 1991 (1991-03-18)[1]
GenreJazz
Length7:14
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)George Michael
Producer(s)George Michael
George Michael singles chronology
"Heal the Pain"
(1991)		 "Cowboys and Angels"
(1991)		 "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
(1991)
Licensed audio
"Cowboys and Angels (Audio)" on YouTube

In a 2004 interview with Adam Mattera for UK magazine Attitude, Michael revealed the song was about a short-lived love triangle where he was in love with a man while a female friend was in love with him, but none knew of the others' feelings: "She was in love with me because she couldn't get me, and I was in love with him because I couldn't get him... It's a very personal lyric, but it's about the ridiculousness of wanting what you can't have."[3]

Critical reception

James Brown from NME wrote, "This song is George Michael's finest 45 for years. A soothing, moving croon in the company of some gentle jazz bass and percussion and a strong arrangement that shadows GM throughout. Reminiscent of a film noir soundtrack as opposed to all that late '80s matt black lifestyle schmaltz he'd decided to become king of. By far the most sophisticated song of the week without even trying, and it never becomes boor-ish."[4]

Track listing

The single included the track "Something to Save" as a B-side. Some releases of the single also included a 4 minute 34-second radio edit of the song, which omitted the 42-second piano intro and an entire verse from the album version.

  • CD single
  1. "Cowboys and Angels" – 7:14
  2. "Cowboys and Angels" (Radio Edit) – 4:34
  3. "Something to Save" – 3:18

Charts
Chart (1991) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[5] 164
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6] 26
France (SNEP)[7] 36
Ireland (IRMA)[8] 15
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[9] 15
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[10] 20
UK Singles (OCC)[11] 45

References
  1. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 16 March 1991. p. 19.
  2. "Exclusive Interview *Edward Barker*". george-michael-news. Retrieved 26 June 2016.
  3. "George Michael's candid 2004 interview with Attitude". Attitude. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  4. Brown, James (23 March 1991). "Singles". NME. p. 16. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  5. "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received May 29, 2015". imgur.com. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  6. "George Michael – Cowboys and Angels" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  7. "George Michael – Cowboys and Angels" (in French). Les classement single.
  8. The Irish Charts Archived 2009-06-02 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  9. "Nederlandse Top 40 – George Michael" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  10. "George Michael – Cowboys and Angels" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  11. Top 75 Releases. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
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