45RPM: #50 Empire State Human - The Human League (1979)

The Human League were an interesting bunch I thought back when they started. I remember being really impressed with their debut single in 1978 on Fast Records - Being Boiled / Circus of Death. Then they signed to Virgin, it was a time when there were quite a number of Synth-Pop bands springing up and I'm guessing Virgin wanted one of their own. The label immediately set about trying to change them by getting them to use more conventional instruments but the band stood it's ground saying that any music released would be under the name The Men as they fully intended to use "non-tradional instrumentation" on their records. Their debut single for Virgin was I Don't Depend On You, released as The Men. The single flopped.

Empire State Human was taken from their debut album Reproduction as the only single. Both single and album were deemed a commercial failure (but when the single was re-released in 1980 it did get to #62 in the charts and the album as well was re-issued in 1981 and spent 23 weeks on the chart eventually peaking in 1982 at #34).

It wasn't until 1981 that the group finally began to get some chart success (Sound of the Crowd #12, Love Action (I Believe in Love)  #3, Open Your Heart #6, and Don't You Want Me #1) and the following five years there would be a further 7 singles make the Top 20 (Being Boiled (re-issue) #6, Mirror Man #2, (Keep Feeling) Fascination #2, The Lebanon #11, Life On Your Own #16, Louise #13, and Human #8).

Whilst not been overly keen on everything that The Human League put out The Lebanon and Empire State Human are my absolute favourites of theirs.

Empire State Human / Introducing - The Human League

Virgin

Produced by Colin Thurston

Released October 1979 (Re-released in 1980)

UK Chart #62 (this was the re-release)

Live on TV 1979