Boy George—the comeback of the year

Press, 2 December 1987, Page 26

Boy George —the comeback of the year

‘I feel a responsibility to try to stop others from making the same mistakes’

By

TOM BARRET

It has to be the pop comeback of the year. And rarely can there have been a more dramatic return to the top of the charts than when Boy George hit number one with “Everything I Own.”

Boy George was the star so many had written off, not just as a spent musical force but as a human being. Drugs, it seemed, had not only robbed him of his talent, but had pushed him close to the point of no return. It had got to the stage where many

expected to wake up one morning and read Boy George’s obituary.

Instead, with immense courage, the Boy bounced back. Looking back he says: “When I put out my first record, ‘Everything I Own,’ I didn’t feel great. I didn’t feel like working but I knew I had to.

“But my fans were wonderful. They encouraged me constantly. And I couldn’t have done it without my family. They have stood by me throughout and helped me get better. After what I’ve been through I feel a re-

sponsibility to tiy to stop others from making the same mistakes as me.”

Boy George’s year started with him seemingly hell-bent on selfdestruction. But loyal fans and people he had never heard of sent him letters of encouragement and urged him to pull through. Now he is back making hit records and television appearances and penning the final chapters of a book about his life. Although many people have always recognised Culture Club as essentially Boy George, it was still something of a gamble for

him- to branch out and make a record on his own. And he got a bit of a shock when he presented his record company bosses with his debut solo effort.

"When I gave that album to Virgin they took just one listen and said it was rubbish! But I had wanted to change the direction I had been taking with Culture Club and maybe that’s why it sounded odd to them,” Boy George says. “I think the real problem was that they were taking too much notice of what had been written about Me— how my career was finished and I was all washed up. But when ‘Everything I Own’ was a hit they were very pleased.”

So too was the rock world. It has always needed colourful, charismatic characters like Boy George. And they do not come more colourful and charismatic than George O’Dowd, who once remarked provocatively but truthfully, “My initials spell God!”

Boy George has been pop’s chameleon, ever-changing his hair-styles, his clothes, and his make-up since he first burst upon the pop scene five years ago. He has always been different, a pure original, a one-off — and all the more exciting for it.

Born in South London on June 14, 1961, it was obvious from an early age that he was never going to conform — and he always craved attention. “I come from a large family,” he explains, “and when I was young I used to throw food on the floor so that my parents would notice me.”

He also wanted attention when he was at school, which was where he first started wearing make-up. “When I was in school, I found the whole environment very boring and I realised there wasn’t really any way you could say to people ‘Look at me’ unless you were violent or aggressive,” Boy George says. “There was no way of being heard and it was my way, I suppose, of getting attention in the beginning.” These days, Boy George admits to owning 4000 fabulous outfits, every one of \yhich would grab anyone’s attention. He owns nearly 100 hats and his house is crammed with clothes. There are four clothes rails in the hall of his London home groaning with outfits, and another six cupboards full of various garments and shoes. In fact, Boy George’s clothes are insured for more than any other items at his home because some of his stage outfits have cost a bomb.

“I still get sniggered at by some people when I’m really dressed up, but I have my own sense of wit and I can handle it,” Boy George says. He has always been able to ride the smirks because, as one of his best-loved songs, “Karma Chameleon,” illustrates, he believes in being true to himself. “That song was about this terrible fear people have of alienation, the fear of standing up for one thing. It’s about trying to suck up to everybody and saying ‘Oh yes, I agree with you.’ What I was saying in the song was that if you aren’t true, if you don’t act like you feel, then you get karma — justice. That’s nature’s way of paying you back,” Boy George says. Following the success of “Everything I Own,” Boy George was quick to hit the charts again with his next two singles, “Keep Me In Mind” and “Sold” — the title track from his album. The song focused on the troubles in South Africa but it had a personal message too. "It was a comment on me,” Boy George says, “on the fact that the press thought I was finished, sold, shut down. But now that I’m back I’m here to stay.” His sensational success has brought Boy George both the

good and the bad things in life. Home is now an opulent house in London which visitors find endlessly fascinating. On the wall of the upstairs landing are dozens of reminders of George’s stardom — framed front covers of magazines featuring pictures of himself in a variety of his eyecatching outfits. His bathroom is literally a work of art — pieces of broken china and mosaics on the walls. There is a four-poster in the bedroom and a small make-up room leading off it Those are just some of the good things. The bad things that came his way were heroin addiction and the subsequent loss of interest and momentum in his career. Gradually, he has been proving his recovery, and millions of pop fans around the world, not least George O’Dowd, will be grateful for that. After so many dark days, the future is bright, and the singer whom many believe to be the ■outstanding white soul star of the decade, is looking forward with renewed confidence.

"The nice thing about life,” Boy George says, “is that I can now do what I choose. I have a lot more freedom, I can be a bit more outrageous!” — DUO