The Human League Dare

32 years ago this week saw the release of one of the most significant synthpop albums. This was the bands third album released and a lot was riding on it considering there two previous works had not performed well and the band shifted in personnel to come up with this classic 80s gem.

The group saw the creative influences of Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh leave the band and Phil Oakey was the new driving force behind the change to get the band more commercially accepted. The band reinvented itself mainly due to Oakey directional change and the addition of the two young backing singers Jo Catherall and Susan Sulley and the musical influence and writing of Jo Callis.
They set to work and the first release was Love Action which was a top 3 in the UK and vindicated the moves the band had made to become more commercially accepted.

The album was completed and as the norm a single was released to promote the album. This saw Open your Heart released and again a top 10 hit. The record label decided to release 'Don't you want me' as a Christmas release. Oakey was much against this as he thought it was the weakest track on the album hence the last track on side 2 but he was overruled and the decision paid off for the record label when it went to number one, selling over 1 million copies and the 1981 Christmas number one! It still remains one of the top 30 best selling singles of all time in the UK!

The album went to number one in the UK in November 1981 and they also held a number one album and single at the same time. This was no mean feat in the 1980s. Such was the popularity of the album it remained in the charts for 71 weeks.

The album and the number one single is widely reported to have saved Virgin records from bankruptcy, The label had no success since Mike Oldfield Tubular Bells in 1977 and this helped prevent the company from going under. Such was Richard Branson relief that he bought Oakey a Motorbike but unfortunately Oakey was unable to ride one!

Tracks on album

The things that dreams are made of
Open your heart
The sound of the crowd
Darkness
Do or Die
Get Carter
I am the law
Seconds
Love Action
Don't you want me