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Waltz Away Dreaming

1997 single by Toby Bourke with George Michael

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
2 min read
Source updated October 24, 2025
Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

"Waltz Away Dreaming" is a song by Irish singer Toby Bourke and English singer George Michael. It was released as a single on 26 May 1997 in the United Kingdom, and later appeared on Bourke's 2000 album, Room 21. The song was a top ten hit, charting at number ten on the UK Singles Chart, and staying in the charts for four weeks. It remains as Bourke's only hit.

01Background and recording

"Waltz Away Dreaming" was written by Bourke in 1994, the year he and Michael first met. In 1996, Bourke was signed to Michael's newly launched record label, Aegean Records, and, at Michael's request, recorded a demo version of the song at a studio in Shepherd's Bush, London. The song was eventually recorded as a tribute to Michael's mother, Lesley Angold, who died on 26 February 1997. According to Bourke, "He [Michael] was utterly focused on this track. Lesley died on (Wednesday) and we were both in the studio on Saturday starting this."

The song was slightly remixed by Tim Hammill and released as "Waltz Away Dreaming '99" in Europe.

"Waltz Away Dreaming" has not appeared on any of Michael's studio albums. It did eventually appear in 1998 on his greatest hits album Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael, but only on the cassette version. A music video was also made for the single.

02Critical reception

British magazine Music Week rated the song three out of four, describing it as "a low-key, folksy ballad written by the pair in tribute to George Michael's late mother. With plenty of profile, it could be a hit."

03Track listing

  • UK CD (Aegean AECD01)
  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming", 4:44
  2. "Things I Said Tonight" (live demo version), 4:39
  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming" (new version), 4:44
  2. "House of Love"
  3. "Waltz Away Dreaming" (video clip)
  • UK cassette single (Aegean AEMC01)

A-side

  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming", 4:44
  2. "Things I Said Tonight" (live demo version), 4:39

B-side

  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming", 4:44
  2. "Things I Said Tonight" (live demo version), 4:39
  • Italian 12" The Remixes (Arcade LC-CODE 0160)

A-side

  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming '99" (Mauro Davide club remix), 5:50
  2. "Waltz Away Dreaming '99" (B&A remix), 6:40

B-side

  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming '99" (ATM club mix), 5:30
  2. "Waltz Away Dreaming '99" (Soul Sweet), 4:35
  • Dutch, German and Italian CD "Waltz Away Dreaming '99"

(CNR 5300347 / Arcade ARC311 (Netherlands) / CNR ARC 1007-8 (Germany) / ICE 991001 CDS)

  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming '99", 4:46
  2. "Waltz Away Dreaming" (original version), 4:42
  3. "Sunshine on Saturday", 3:54
  4. "Love Is Not Faith", 5:09
  • EU CD "Waltz Away Dreaming '99" (CNR 5300346)
  1. "Waltz Away Dreaming '99", 4:46
  2. "Waltz Away Dreaming" (original version), 4:42

04Charts

Chart (1997) Peak
position
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) 92
Scottish Singles Sales (Official Charts)19
UK Singles (Official Charts)10
Watch videos about Waltz Away DreamingExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Waltz Away Dreaming”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

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