The Human League "Don't You Want Me (Single & Video)"

"Don't You Want Me" is a song by British synth-pop group the Human League (credited on the cover as the Human League 100). It was released on 27 November 1981 as the fourth single from their third studio album, Dare (1981). The band's best known and most commercially successful song, it was the best selling UK single of 1981, that year's Christmas number one, and has since sold over 1,560,000 copies in the UK, making it the 23rd-most successful single in UK Singles Chart history. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 in the US on 3 July 1982, where it stayed for three weeks.

In November 1983, Rolling Stone named it the "breakthrough song" of the Second British Invasion of the US. In 2015, the song was voted by the British public as the nation's seventh-favourite 1980s number one in a poll for ITV. And in 2022, Rolling Stone ranked it as one of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".

The lyrics were inspired after the Human League lead singer Philip Oakey read a photo-story in a teen-girl's magazine. Though the song had been conceived and recorded in the studio as a male solo, Oakey was inspired by the 1976 film A Star Is Born and decided to turn the song into a conflicting duet with one of the band's two teenage female vocalists. Susan Ann Sulley was then asked to take on the role. Until then, she and the other female vocalist, Joanne Catherall, had only been assigned backing vocals; Sulley says she was chosen only through "luck of the draw".

Musicians Jo Callis and Philip Adrian Wright created a synthesizer score to accompany the lyrics that was much harsher than the version that was actually released. Initial versions of the song were recorded but Virgin Records-appointed producer Martin Rushent was unhappy with them. He and Callis remixed the track, giving it a softer, and in Oakey's opinion, "poppy" sound. Oakey hated the new version and thought it would be the weakest track on Dare, resulting in one of his infamous rows with Rushent. Oakey disliked it so much that it was relegated to the last track on side two of the album.

Before the release of the 1981 album Dare, three of its tracks—"The Sound of the Crowd", "Love Action (I Believe in Love)", and "Open Your Heart"—had already been released as successful singles. With a hit album and three hit singles in a row, Virgin's chief executive Simon Draper decided to release one more single from the album before the end of 1981. His choice, "Don't You Want Me", instantly caused a row with Oakey, who did not want another single to be released because he was convinced that "the public were now sick of hearing" the band and the choice of the "poor quality filler track" would almost certainly be a disaster, wrecking the group's new-found popularity. The band felt the track was "our sort of Des O'Connor song". Virgin were adamant that a fourth single would be released and Oakey finally agreed on the condition that a large colour poster accompany the 7" single, because he felt fans would "feel ripped off" by the "substandard" single alone.

The Human League often added cryptic references to their productions and the record sleeve of "Don't You Want Me" featured the suffix of "100". This was a reference to The 100 Club, a restaurant/bar in Sheffield.

In a contemporary review, Record World praised its "throbbing synthesized beat and sharp hook."

Today, the song is widely considered a classic of its era. In a retrospective review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine, senior editor for AllMusic, described the song as "a devastating chronicle of a frayed romance wrapped in the greatest pop hooks and production of its year." Fellow new wave musician Graham Parker praised the song, saying, "I just love that catchy chorus." Oakey still describes it as overrated, but acknowledges his initial dismissal was misguided and claims pride in the track. Oakey has also pointed out another misconception: that it is not a love song, but "a nasty song about sexual power politics."

"Don't You Want Me" was released in the UK on 27 November 1981. The B-side was "Seconds", another track lifted straight from the Dare album. As with previous singles, a 12" version was also issued featuring the original version of "Don't You Want Me" and "Seconds" on the A-side and an "extended dance mix" lasting seven and a half minutes on the B-side. This mix is also featured on the Love and Dancing album that was released under the name of the League Unlimited Orchestra in 1982.

To the amazement of the band (and especially Oakey), the song entered the UK Singles Chart at number nine and rose to number one the following week, remaining there over the Christmas period for five weeks. It ultimately became the biggest-selling single to be released in 1981, and the fifth biggest-selling single of the entire decade. Its success was repeated six months later in the US, with "Don't You Want Me" peaking at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks. Billboard magazine ranked it as the sixth-biggest hit of 1982. The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) the same year for sales of a million copies.

After the band scored a number of hits for Warner's East West label, the song was remixed and issued by Virgin as a CD, cassette and 12-inch single on 16 October 1995. This version featured new remixes by Hooj Choons' Red Jerry and German Eurodance duo Snap!, and would peak at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart. The release coincided with the issue of the group's second Greatest Hits compilation album shortly afterwards (which featured the Snap! 7 inch remix).

As of November 2012, "Don't You Want Me" was the 23rd best-selling single in the UK, with 1.55 million copies sold. On 23 March 2014, the song re-entered the UK Singles Chart at number 19 thanks to a social media campaign by fans of Aberdeen Football Club. In 2017 it was reported to be the 43rd most successful single in UK chart history with sales and streams combined.

In 2021, Viacom International Studios put into production a music chart programme called The 80s Greatest Hits 1980-1989 for Channel 5 and asked the Official Charts Company (OCC) to provide the countdowns for the series, based on the best-selling singles for each year. When the 1981 episode was broadcast (now under the title of Britain's Favourite 80's Songs) "Don't You Want Me" was placed at number one, with the OCC now confirming it was the official best-selling song of 1981 with an estimated 1.15 million sales (previously the title had gone to "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, which now has been put in second place with 1.05 million sales).

In 1981, record company Virgin were becoming aware that the music video was evolving into an important marketing tool, with MTV being launched that year. Virgin commissioned a promotional video for "Don't You Want Me".

The video for the song was filmed near Slough, Berkshire, during November 1981. The video's theme is the filming and editing of a murder-mystery film, featuring the band members as characters and production staff. Because it is a "making-of" video, both crew and camera apparatus appear throughout.

The video was said by Susan Ann Sulley to be "a take on The French Lieutenant’s Woman, which was a film about making a film". But director Steve Barron said he was influenced by the 1973 François Truffaut film Day for Night and had 'wanted to go one step further and try and make a film within a film within a film".

The video was conceived and directed by the Irish filmmaker Steve Barron, and has at its core the interaction between a successful actress (also an assistant editor) played by Susan Ann Sulley walking out on "film director" Philip Oakey on a film set.

In a 1995 interview, Catherall mentioned that the car Jo Callis was driving had to be pushed into shot as he could not drive at the time, to which Sulley added "he still can't!"

The video was released in December 1981.

Track listing

1981 release

7-inch vinyl (Virgin VS466)

1. "Don't You Want Me" – 3:57
2. "Seconds" – 4:59

12-inch vinyl (Virgin VS466-12)

1. "Don't You Want Me" – 3:57
2. "Seconds" – 4:59
3. "Don't You Want Me (dance mix)" – 7:30

1995 release

CD (Virgin VSCDT1557)

1. "Don't You Want Me (Red Jerry 7" Remix)" - 3:43
2. "Don't You Want Me (Snap! 7" Remix)" - 3:58
3. "Don't You Want Me (Red Jerry 12" Remix)" - 6:11
4. "Don't You Want Me (Snap! 12" Extended Remix)" - 6:14
5. "Don't You Want Me (Red Jerry Dub Mix)" - 7:01
6. "Don't You Want Me (Original Version)" - 3:57

12-inch vinyl (Virgin VST1557)

1. "Don't You Want Me (Snap! 12" Extended Remix)" - 6:12
2. "Don't You Want Me (Red Jerry 12" Remix)" - 6:09

Cassette (Virgin VSC 1557)

1. "Don't You Want Me (Red Jerry 7" Remix)" - 3:43
2. "Don't You Want Me (Snap! 7" Remix)" - 3:58
3. "Don't You Want Me (Red Jerry 12" Remix)" - 6:11
4. "Don't You Want Me (Original Version)" - 3:57

℗ 1981 Virgin Records Ltd.

The Human League "Human (Single & Video)"

"Human" is a song recorded by British synth-pop band The Human League, and released as the first single from their 1986 album Crash. The track, which deals with the subject of infidelity, was written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The song topped the charts of the United States, becoming the second single by the band to top the Billboard Hot 100 after 1981 single "Don't You Want Me". It also went to number one in Canada, while also reaching number five in Germany and number eight in the band's native United Kingdom.

In 1985, the recording sessions for the Human League's fifth album were not going well, and the band did not like the results, which was causing internal conflict. Virgin Records executives, worried by the lack of progress from their at-the-time most profitable signing, suggested the band accept an offer to work with producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who already had material to work with; and had expressed an interest in the band from their U.S. releases. Jam and Lewis had recently emerged as in-demand talent due to their success with Janet Jackson and her Control album.

Of the ten songs on Crash, Jam and Lewis wrote three, "Human" being one of them. It is a mid-tempo ballad which lyrically is an exchange between a man and a woman in a relationship who have reunited after a separation. In the first two verses Philip Oakey is apologising to his partner for being unfaithful during her absence, and in the song's breakdown Joanne Catherall's spoken-word confession reveals that she too was unfaithful. The song's title is derived from the chorus, in which both parties in the relationship explain that they are "only human" and "born to make mistakes". The song is a composition in common time with a tempo of 102 beats per minute. It is set in a key of A♭ major, with a chord progression from D♭-E♭-f.

"Human" became the second million-selling and final number-one single for The Human League on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (after "Don't You Want Me") and their second chart-topper on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart (after "(Keep Feeling) Fascination"). Jam and Lewis' R&B-based production was also popular on American urban radio, bringing the Human League into the top ten of the U.S. R&B chart for the first time. The song also reached number one in Canada, giving the band their second and last number one there as well. In the United Kingdom, where R&B was less popular, "Human" peaked at number eight in the UK singles chart.

On its release, "Human" was met with mixed reviews. In Smash Hits, reviewer Simon Mills described it as a "perfect pop record" which was however let down by Oakey's vocals, writing "The vocals on this single sound, as on all League records, fragile and unconfident". Billboard wrote: "Trio that helped define British techno-pop has lost its do-it-yourself edge but gained Jam and Lewis; resulting dance ballad is lush, plush, even soulful." However, John Leland of Spin criticised the record, saying: "The Human League tackle the schmaltzy pop soul ballad and emerge with no idea how silly they look." He added: "'Human', a whiny claim to sensitivity, undercuts the band's essential irony; the joke about Human League was that they weren't human but digital chips. And besides, this embarrassing confession is an unbearably weak defense of infidelity."

"Human" has had some positive retrospective reviews, with AllMusic journalist Dave Thompson describing it as a "lovely romantic ballad. The lyrics make much of human mistakes and the need for human forgiveness in a thoroughly romantic context."

The music video for "Human" (which uses the shorter single version) was filmed in London during June 1986, in a studio using Chroma key overlay. It is heavily stylised to give a "water reflective" effect and blue hue throughout. In the first time that the band had been presented as a "Phil and the girls" trio, images of Oakey, Catherall and Sulley are constantly layered and blended. The video was conceived and directed by Andy Morahan.

In 2003, a new video was created and released to promote the Chinese Whispers mix. This music video used the original footage of Oakey, Sulley and Catherall from 1986 and interlaced it with traditional Chinese imagery of silhouetted water grass, water lilies and Chinese characters. It was subject of a U.S. MTV featurette which was introduced by Oakey and featured Ian Widgery talking about the creative process in the reworking of the original Human.

Various Artists "Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits of the '80s Vol.10"

Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits of the '80s is a series of compilations issued by Rhino Records, on both CD and audio cassette, featuring various artists from the new wave era 1977–1985.

The series contained 15 volumes. The first five were released on 21 June 1994, volumes 6–10 on 18 October 1994, and the last five volumes on 20 June 1995. Additional themed volumes—New Wave Dance Hits, New Wave Women, New Wave Halloween, and New Wave Christmas—came out in subsequent years. Rhino Records discontinued the series, due to rights issues and with no plans to re-release them. Many of the songs in the series are mastered from the 7" single masters. The series includes some songs making their first CD appearance (in some rare cases, their only CD appearance).

The tenth volume was released on both CD [R2 71703] and audio cassette on October 18, 1994. It contains the rarely heard The Little Girls' "Earthquake Song." The CD included Rank and File's "Amanda Ruth" as a bonus track. Booklet includes liner notes by Roy Trakin (liner notes for each song are in order by the track listing, unlike the previous volumes).

1. "Desperate But Not Serious" Adam Ant 3:56
2. "Do You Wanna Hold Me?" Bow Wow Wow 3:14
3. "China" Red Rockers 4:02
4. "(Keep Feeling) Fascination" The Human League 3:46
5. "Beat Surrender" The Jam 3:31
6. "The Walls Came Down" The Call 3:47
7. "Amanda Ruth" Rank and File 3:12
8. "A Million Miles Away" The Plimsouls 3:34
9. "Our House" Madness 3:26
10. "Shy Boy (Don't It Make You Feel Good)" Bananarama 3:17
11. "Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)" A Flock of Seagulls 4:14
12. "Promises, Promises" Naked Eyes 3:48
13. "Stand By" Roman Holliday 2:49
14. "Whistle Down the Wind" Nick Heyward 3:44
15. "Earthquake Song" The Little Girls 2:40
16. "Puttin' on the Ritz" Taco 3:25