I Don't Depend on You

Last updated

"I Don't Depend on You"
Iddoycover.jpg
Single by "The Men" aka the Human League
B-side "Cruel"
ReleasedJuly 1979
RecordedMonumental Studios, Sheffield, UK
Genre
Length4:36
Label Virgin Records
Songwriter(s) Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh
Producer(s) Colin Thurston
The Human League singles chronology
"Being Boiled"
(1978)
"I Don't Depend on You"
(1979)
"Empire State Human"
(1979)
Audio sample

"I Don't Depend on You" is a disco-influenced song by the British synth-pop group the Human League released under the pseudonym The Men. It was released as a single in the UK in July 1979, but failed to chart. It was written by Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh; was produced by Colin Thurston and featured guest backing vocalists Katie Kissoon and Lisa Strike (who later worked with Pink Floyd).

Contents

After hastily signing the Human League in 1978 it became apparent to Virgin Records that the band were not very profitable, with none of their releases under Fast Records making any impact on the charts. Virgin began putting pressure on the group to justify their large advance signing fee. Pressure was put on Ware, Oakey and Marsh to abandon their no traditional instruments rule and use conventional instruments in an attempt to be more commercial and sell more records. [3] Ware reluctantly agreed but insisted that any material recorded this way should be released under a pseudonym to ensure that it wasn't confused with the pure electronic sound of the Human League. "I Don't Depend on You" was the only product of this compromise with Virgin. It was recorded with the addition of session musicians and was released under the name The Men. The song also features the synth riff from debut single Being Boiled towards the end of the track. Afterwards the band were able to record tracks in their original style for Virgin. Before any further conventional style records could be recorded, the original Human League had split; Oakey then took the new reformed band down a different commercial and pop route. [4]

Later, it would be commented on that in recording "I Don’t Depend on You" – two years prior to the arrival of schoolgirl vocalists Susan Ann Sulley and Joanne Catherall – Oakey, Ware and Marsh had already produced a Human League Mk 2-style track complete with commercial pop sound: Oakey's vocal with female backing (with Katie Kissoon and Lisa Strike providing the backing vocals).

NME commented on this in 1990:

Utterly commercial, the irritating bleep-content is all but lost under lashings of catchy Euro-Pop sheen (with prophetic female backing to boot). The HL were quite clearly ahead of their own time, never mind anyone else’s." [1]

The B-side, titled "Cruel", is simply a remix of "I Don’t Depend on You" without Oakey's vocals. "I Don’t Depend on You" received little promotion or airplay and did not chart. Re-releases on albums now credit the track as The Human League aka 'The Men'.

Hot Gossip version

British dance troupe Hot Gossip released a cover this song in February 1982 as a single from their album Geisha Boys and Temple Girls which was produced by Martyn Ware. The album and single were commercial failures. [5] The single was Dindisc DIN-39 and was the last Dindisc release.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heaven 17</span> English new wave and synth-pop band

Heaven 17 are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1980. The band were a trio for most of their career, composed of former Human League members Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh (keyboards) with vocalist Glenn Gregory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Human League</span> English synth-pop band

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".

<i>Travelogue</i> (The Human League album) 1980 The Human League album

Travelogue is the second full-length studio album released by British synthpop group The Human League, released in May 1980. It was the last album with founding members Ian Craig Marsh and Martyn Ware, as they would leave to form Heaven 17 later that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philip Oakey</span> English singer-songwriter and producer

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.

<i>Dare</i> (album) 1981 studio album by the Human League

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don't You Want Me</span> 1981 single by the Human League

"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.

<i>Penthouse and Pavement</i> 1981 studio album by Heaven 17

Penthouse and Pavement is the debut studio album by English new wave and synth-pop band Heaven 17, released in September 1981 by Virgin Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joanne Catherall</span> English singer

Joanne Catherall is an English singer who is one of two female vocalists in the English synth-pop band The Human League.

<i>Greatest Hits</i> (The Human League album) 1988 greatest hits album by The Human League

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 to their most recent album at the time, 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Ann Sulley</span> English singer (born 1963)

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.

<i>Reproduction</i> (album) 1979 studio album by The Human League

Reproduction is the debut studio album released by British synthpop group The Human League. The album was released in 1979 through Virgin Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Being Boiled</span> 1978 single by The Human League

"Being Boiled" is the debut single by the British synthpop band the Human League. Composed by Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh, with lyrics by Philip Oakey, it has been released several times since 1978, finally becoming a UK top ten hit in 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Open Your Heart (The Human League song)</span> 1981 single by The Human League

"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.

<i>Holiday 80</i> 1980 EP by The Human League

Holiday '80 is an EP released by the original line-up of the British synthpop band The Human League. The EP was issued in the UK by Virgin Records in April 1980, a month before the release of the band's second album Travelogue. The EP peaked at no. 56 in the UK Singles Chart in May 1980, but was later reissued and returned to the chart, peaking at no. 46 in February 1982.

<i>The Golden Hour of the Future</i> 2002 compilation album by the Future and the Human League

The Golden Hour of the Future is a compilation album of recordings made by the electronic band the Future and early recordings by the original line-up of the Human League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Empire State Human</span> 1979 single by The Human League

"Empire State Human" is a song by the British synthpop group The Human League. The song was written by Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh. It was co-produced by The Human League and Colin Thurston, and recorded at Monumental Studios in Sheffield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louise (The Human League song)</span> 1984 single by the Human League

"Louise" is a song by English synth-pop band the Human League. It was released as a single in the UK on 5 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.

<i>Before After</i> 2005 studio album by Heaven 17

Before After is the seventh studio album by the English synth-pop band Heaven 17. It was originally released in September 2005, on the label Ninthwave, nine years after their previous album, Bigger Than America.

<i>Music for Stowaways</i> 1981 studio album by British Electric Foundation

Music for Stowaways is the debut album by English electronic act British Electric Foundation (B.E.F.), formed by musicians Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh. The album released in the United Kingdom as a limited edition cassette in March 1981 by Virgin Records, who also released an LP version of the album titled Music for Listening To later in the year with a different track list and cover art, aiming its release for export markets. The Stowaways version was originally released concurrently with Ware and Marsh's first single with Heaven 17, "(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang", itself a developed version of the Music for Stowaways track "Groove Thang".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I'm Your Money</span> 1981 song by Heaven 17

"I'm Your Money" is a song by English new wave and synth-pop band Heaven 17, released in 1981 by Virgin as a non-album single. The song was written by band members Ian Craig Marsh, Martyn Ware and Glenn Gregory, and produced by B.E.F..

References

  1. 1 2 Made In Sheffield
  2. Breihan, Tom (15 November 2022). "The Human League - "Don't You Want Me". The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music. New York: Hachette Book Group. p. 132.
  3. THE HUMAN LEAGUE Blind Youth - the complete guide to The Human League 1977-1980
  4. HUMAN LEAGUE BIOG 1977 – 1979 Archived 20 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Arlene Phillips' Hot Gossip* - Geisha Boys And Temple Girls (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 23 February 2012.