After the huge success of Faith (1987), George Michael became uncomfortable with being marketed as a sex symbol. For Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1, he deliberately stepped away from celebrity imagery and wanted listeners to focus on the music rather than his appearance. The album title itself reflected his wish to be judged without preconceived ideas about his image.
One of the most striking decisions was that Michael did not appear on the album cover. Instead, the sleeve used a cropped section of “Crowd at Coney Island,” a famous 1940 photograph by Weegee. This was highly unusual for a superstar whose face had previously been central to his marketing.
The promotional photographs from the era reflected the same philosophy. Many were understated portraits, often emphasizing introspection rather than glamour. Michael favored a more mature, artistic presentation, with simple clothing, natural lighting, and serious expressions that contrasted sharply with the leather-jacket, jukebox, and stubble-heavy imagery of the Faith period.
The Listen Without Prejudice photoshoot era therefore represents George Michael at his most deliberate and self-reflective: less interested in being a pin-up star and more determined to be recognized as a serious songwriter and artist.
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