George Michael to release sixth album in March

Washington: George Michael has announced that his sixth solo album ` Symphonica` will be released on March 17.

The ` Careless Whisper ` hitmaker sparked retirement rumours last month after shutting down his website. The 50-year-old singer teased fans by removing all content from georgemichael.com, leaving just a closed red curtain and the message: "Exciting news coming in 2014." He`s now planning to release his latest record, which is named after his 2011-12 orchestral concert tour of the same name, Contact music reported. The album includes highlights from George`s back catalogue as well as covers of songs, such as Nina Simone`s `My Baby Just Cares For Me`, and the lead single `Let Her Down Easy`, a cover of the Terence Trent D`Arby song, which will be accompanied by a new video. A song from the new record, `Praying For Time`, will soon be available for free download.