The Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)

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"The Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)"
Heaven 17 Height of the Fighting 1982 Single Cover.jpg
Single by Heaven 17
from the album Penthouse and Pavement
B-side "Honeymoon in New York"
Released12 February 1982
Length2:55
Label Virgin
Songwriter(s) Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh, Glenn Gregory
Producer(s) Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh
Heaven 17 singles chronology
"Penthouse and Pavement"
(1981)		"The Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)"
(1982)		"Let Me Go"
(1982)

"The Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)" is a song by British synth-pop band Heaven 17, released on 12 February 1982 [1] as the fifth and final single from their debut album, Penthouse and Pavement . It was written by Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh and Glenn Gregory, and produced by Ware and Marsh.

Contents

"The Height of the Fighting" was remixed for its release as a single, with more aggressive drums plus brass both missing from the album track. The added horn section was performed by Beggar and Co. [2] The song failed to make a chart appearance in the UK Singles Chart, but did reach the unnumbered 'bubbling under' section for three consecutive weeks, which would have been equivalent to a position between 76 and 100 at a time when the main charts covered the top 75. [3] [4] [5]

Critical reception

Upon its release, Red Starr of Smash Hits considered the single a "pointless rehash of an album track in a truly dreadful cover". They added: "The sooner BEF give up this dead-end synthetic funk and turn their talents back to writing classic stuff like "Dreams of Leaving" and "Radio WXJL" from Travelogue the better." [6] Sunie of Record Mirror noted: "It doesn't quite match the magnificent "Penthouse and Pavement" single but it's pretty fab nonetheless." [7]

In a retrospective review of the album, Dan LeRoy of AllMusic considered the song one of the "standout combinations of witty lyrics and whiplash electro-grooves". [8] Tim O'Neil of PopMatters commented that the song "acts as both a satire of gung-ho militarism and a rallying cry for anti-capitalist insurgency". [9]

Track listing

7" single (UK release)

  1. "The Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)" - 2:55
  2. "Honeymoon in New York" - 2:12

7" single (European release)

  1. "The Height of the Fighting" - 2:59
  2. "Penthouse and Pavement" - 6:23

7" single (New Zealand release)

  1. "Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)" - 2:55
  2. "He-La-Lu" - 2:58
  3. "Honeymoon in New York" - 2:12

12" single

  1. "Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu)" - 2:55
  2. "He-La-Lu" - 2:58
  3. "Honeymoon in New York" - 2:12

Personnel

Heaven 17

Additional personnel

Other

Charts

Chart (1982)Peak
position
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [10] 20
UK Top 100 Singles ( Record Business ) [11] 41

References

  1. ↑ Simon Hills, ed. (6 February 1982). "News: Heaven 17 get Beggared". Record Mirror . p. 3. ISSN   0144-5804.
  2. ↑ Rimmer, Dave (18 February 1982). "Heaven can wait". Smash Hits .
  3. ↑ "Chartfile: UK Singles - Bubbling Under". Record Mirror . 27 February 1982. p. 27. ISSN   0144-5804.
  4. ↑ "Chartfile: UK Singles - Bubbling Under". Record Mirror . 6 March 1982. p. 27. ISSN   0144-5804.
  5. ↑ "Charts: Top UK Singles - Bubbling Under". Record Mirror . 13 March 1982. p. 35. ISSN   0144-5804.
  6. ↑ Starr, Red (18 February 1982). "Singles". Smash Hits.
  7. ↑ Sunie (13 February 1982). "Singles". Record Mirror. p. 9.
  8. ↑ Dan LeRoy. "Penthouse and Pavement - Heaven 17 | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-09-23.
  9. ↑ "Heaven 17: Penthouse and Pavement". PopMatters. 2006-11-30. Retrieved 2018-09-23.
  10. ↑ "Heaven 17 – The Height of the Fighting (He-La-Hu!)". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  11. ↑ "Top 100 Singles". Record Business . Vol. 4, no. 49. 8 March 1982. p. 6. ISSN   0144-0691.
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