Greatest Hits | ||||
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Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | 31 October 1988 (original version) 30 October 1995 (updated version) | |||
Recorded | 1978–1995 | |||
Genre | ||||
Label | Virgin | |||
Producer | Various | |||
The Human League chronology | ||||
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The Human League chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic (1988) | [1] |
AllMusic (1996) | [2] |
Robert Christgau | B+ [3] |
Music Week | 4/5 [4] |
NME | 6/10 [5] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
Select | 2/5 [7] |
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the English synth-pop band The Human League,released on 31 October 1988 by Virgin Records. It contains 13 singles released by the band,spanning from their debut single (1978's "Being Boiled") to their most recent album at the time (1986's Crash ),as well as lead singer Philip Oakey's collaboration with Giorgio Moroder,"Together in Electric Dreams" (1984). The album reached No. 3 in the UK.
On 30 October 1995,to cash in on the band's renewed success at that time,Virgin released an updated Greatest Hits with a new cover and three post-1988 tracks added:"Tell Me When" (from the 1995 Octopus album),"Stay with Me Tonight" (a brand new track,later released as a single) and a new remix of "Don't You Want Me" by German group Snap!.
(Virgin HLCD1 - 259 355-222)
(Virgin CDV 2792 - 724384094621)
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [14] | 2×Platinum | 600,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
To accompany both the 1988 and 1995 versions of the album Virgin also released VHS video tape compilations.
The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album Dare in 1981 after restructuring their lineup. The album contained four hit singles, including the UK/US number one hit "Don't You Want Me". The band received the Brit Award for Best British Breakthrough Act in 1982. Further hits followed throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, including "Mirror Man", "(Keep Feeling) Fascination", "The Lebanon", "Human" and "Tell Me When".
Crash is the fifth studio album by English synth-pop band the Human League, released on 8 September 1986 by Virgin Records. The album would provide the band with their second US number-one single, "Human", the same year. It was produced by the American production team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who also wrote several tracks.
Philip Oakey is an English singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the lead singer, songwriter, and co-founder of the synth-pop band the Human League. Aside from the Human League, Oakey has enjoyed an extensive solo music career and has collaborated with numerous other artists and producers.
Dare is the third studio album by English synth-pop band the Human League, first released in the United Kingdom in October 1981 then subsequently in the US in mid-1982. The album was recorded between March and September 1981 following the departure of founding members Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh, and saw the band shift direction from their previous avant-garde electronic style toward a more pop-friendly, commercial sound led by frontman Philip Oakey.
"Don't You Want Me" is a song by British synth-pop group the Human League. 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.
Joanne Catherall is an English singer who is one of two female vocalists in the English synth-pop band The Human League.
Hysteria is the fourth studio album by the English synth-pop band the Human League, released on 7 May 1984 by Virgin Records. Following the worldwide success of their previous studio album Dare (1981), the band struggled to make a successful follow-up and the sessions for Hysteria were fraught with problems. The album title itself is taken from the problematic recording period. Producers Martin Rushent and Chris Thomas both left the project which would eventually be finished by producer Hugh Padgham.
Octopus is the seventh full-length studio album recorded by the British synthpop band The Human League. It was produced by the former Tears for Fears keyboard player Ian Stanley and released by EastWest Records in 1995. It was the first new album from The Human League in five years after the termination of their long-term contract with Virgin Records. Octopus was the first Human League album that presented the band as a trio consisting of the singers Philip Oakey, Joanne Catherall and Susan Ann Sulley. The former Human League member Jo Callis and keyboard player Neil Sutton also contributed to the writing of the album.
Love and Dancing is a remix album by English synth-pop band The Human League, released in July 1982 by Virgin Records. Issued under the band name "The League Unlimited Orchestra" as a nod to Barry White's disco-era Love Unlimited Orchestra, the album was principally the idea and work of producer Martin Rushent and contains dub-style, largely instrumental remixes of songs from the band's multi-platinum selling album Dare (1981), along with a version of the track "Hard Times", which had originally been the B-side of the single "Love Action ". Rushent was inspired by hip hop turntablist Grandmaster Flash and created Love and Dancing on a mixing board. He created vocal effects by cutting up portions of the Dare tape and manually gluing them together. In total, over 2,600 edits feature on the album.
Susan Ann Sulley, formerly known as Susanne Sulley and Susan Ann Gayle, is an English singer who is one of the two female vocalists in the synth-pop band The Human League.
"The Lebanon" is a song by English synth-pop band the Human League, released as a single in April 1984. Written jointly by lead singer Philip Oakey and keyboard player and guitarist Jo Callis, it was the first single from the band's fourth album Hysteria. It was recorded at AIR Studios during 1983–1984.
"Together in Electric Dreams" is a song by the British singer and composer Philip Oakey and Italian composer and producer Giorgio Moroder. It was written by Oakey and Moroder and recorded for the original soundtrack of the film Electric Dreams (1984). It later formed part of the joint album Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder, released in 1985.
"Life on Your Own" is a song by English synth-pop band the Human League. Written jointly by lead singer Philip Oakey, keyboard players Jo Callis and Adrian Wright, it was recorded at AIR Studios during 1983–1984. Originally an album track on the band's fourth studio album Hysteria, it was then released as the second single from the album in the UK.
"The Sound of the Crowd" is a song by the British synthpop group The Human League. It became the band's commercial breakthrough, reaching #12 on the UK Singles Chart in May 1981.
"Open Your Heart" is a song by the British synthpop group The Human League. It was released as a single in the UK in October 1981 and peaked at number six in the UK Singles Chart. It was written jointly by lead singer Philip Oakey and keyboard player Jo Callis. The song features a lead vocal by Oakey and female backing vocals by Susanne Sulley and Joanne Catherall, analogue synthesizers by Jo Callis, Philip Adrian Wright and Ian Burden. Drum machines, sequencing and programming were provided by producer Martin Rushent.
"Love Action (I Believe in Love)" is a song by the British synthpop group The Human League, released as a single in the UK in July 1981. It became the band's first Top 10 success, peaking at number three in the UK Singles Chart.
"Mirror Man" is a 1982 song by the British synthpop group The Human League. It was released as a single in the UK on 12 November 1982 and peaked at number two in the UK Singles Chart. It was written jointly by lead singer Philip Oakey with keyboard players Jo Callis and Ian Burden, and produced by Martin Rushent.
The Human League Greatest Hits is a compilation music video by the British Synthpop group The Human League released VHS and Laserdisc.
"Louise" is a song by English synth-pop band the Human League. It was released as a single in the UK on 11 November 1984 and peaked at number thirteen in the UK Singles Chart. It was written jointly by lead singer Philip Oakey with fellow band members Jo Callis and Philip Adrian Wright. The song features a lead vocal by Oakey and female vocals by Susan Ann Sulley and Joanne Catherall, analogue synthesizers by Philip Oakey, Jo Callis, Philip Adrian Wright and Ian Burden. The producers were Chris Thomas and Hugh Padgham. Although enjoying modest success when released as a single, it appeared on Melody Maker’s list of 50 top singles of 1984.
"Good-Bye Bad Times" is a song by British singer and songwriter Philip Oakey and Italian producer Giorgio Moroder. It was written by Oakey and Moroder and recorded for the album Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder. Released as a single in the UK in June 1985 as the follow-up to Oakey and Moroder's 1984 hit "Together in Electric Dreams", it reached number 44 on the singles charts and remained on the charts for 5 weeks. It was moderately successful in Australia, where it peaked at number 26.