'''Dare''' (or '''Dare!''' in the U.S.) is the third studio album from the British
synthpop band
The Human League.
The album was recorded between March and September 1981 and first released in the UK on
20 October 1981, then subsequently in the U.S. in mid-1982. The album is one of the first to be recorded entirely
electronically, without the use of any traditional instruments. ''Dare'' is an album that is universally agreed to be technologically groundbreaking for its time.
[1]
The style of the album is the result of the rapid evolution of the Human League from experimental avant-garde electronic group into a commercial pop group under
Philip Oakey's creative direction, after the departure of fellow founding members
Martyn Ware and
Ian Craig Marsh. ''Dare'' quickly became critically acclaimed and has since proved to be a genre defining album, whose influence can be felt in many areas of pop music today.
[2] The album and its four pre-and-post released singles were extremely popular with the public and were hugely successful commercially, making international stars of the principal band members. It was responsible for turning The Human League into one of the highest profile pop bands of the early 1980s.
[3]
Track listing
The track list on the original album:
[4]
# "Things That Dreams Are Made Of" (Oakey, Wright) – 4:14
# "
Open Your Heart" (Callis, Oakey) – 3: 53
# "
The Sound of the Crowd" (Burden, Oakey) – 3:56
# "Darkness" (Callis, Wright)" – 3:56
# "Do or Die" (Burden, Oakey)" – 5:25
# "Get Carter" (Budd) – 1:02
# "I Am the Law" (Oakey, Wright)
# "Seconds” (Callis, Oakey, Wright)
# "
Love Action (I Believe in Love)” (Burden, Oakey) – 4:58
# "
Don't You Want Me” (Callis, Oakey, Wright) – 3:56
Released as a single pre album release
Released as a single post album release
Personnel and credits
★
Ian Burden: Synthesizer
★
Jo Callis: Synthesizer
★
Joanne Catherall: Vocals
★
Philip Oakey: Vocals & Synthesizer
★
Susanne Sulley: Vocals
★
Philip Adrian Wright: Synthesizer & Slides
★
Martin Rushent: Programming
★ Dave Allen: Programming, assistant engineer
★ Recorded at: Genetic Sound Studios,
Reading,
Berkshire, UK
★ Cover Design: by Philip Oakey, Philip Adrian Wright, Ken Ansell
[5]
★ Original Release: 20 October 1981, UK
[6]
Susanne Sulley is now known as Susan Ann Gayle and is referred to by her current prefered name throughout the article
Studio equipment used
The following studio equipment was used in the recording of the album:
[7]
★ Casio M10
★
Casio VL-1
★ Korg 770
★ Korg Delta
★
Linn LM-1
★
Roland Jupiter-4
★ Roland MC-8
★ Roland System 700
★ Yamaha CS-15
Track description and style
In 1981 the Human League considered themselves a "song based group"; this was a deliberate distinction differentiating the band from other electronic artists who specialized in principally instrumental work.
[7]
The writing style of the lyrics is deliberately obscure, Oakey says this is because he wanted the band's lyrics to provoke thought and get people talking about their songs. Often the meanings behind the songs have only been disclosed by Oakey in various interviews given since the albums release. An important point is that the album essentially evolved during 1981 and wasn't written from a single conceptual starting point.
[9]
The original album comprised of ten tracks (others were added on re-releases):
"Things That Dreams Are Made Of"
Often informally abbreviated TTDAMO, the song is a tribute to the simple pleasures in life which is then juxtaposed against a greater ambition. Oakey namechecks some of his (and Wright's) favorite things, an eclectic list from
ice cream to
Norman Wisdom. The song contains the album title lyric "…do all the things you ever dared!" (although the album is actually named after a Vogue magazine cover). Philip Adrian Wright called the song a metaphor for the band's ambition in 1981.
"Open Your Heart"
"Open Your Heart" is the only one of the pre-releases specifically written for the album. The song is about the pain caused by an infidelity and the subsequent relationship breakdown. Technically it was Rushent's most complex track of the album with multiple synthesizer and drum machine layers, bound by complex
Fairlight sequences.
[10]
The vocals are also correspondingly complex. Oakey sings in a higher key than usual, but still leads with Gayle and Catherall's backing now mixed as a separate layer. Susan Gayle said (in 1989) "it is one of the most difficult to sing. So we don't do it live very often."
[6]. It was to be the only track classified as 'Blue' on the Human League's self-imposed 'Red' or 'Blue' labeling system ('Red' was for dance tracks and 'Blue' for pop songs). It was released as a single October 1981 (intentionally two weeks before ''Dare'').
Main articles: Open Your Heart (Human League song)
"The Sound of the Crowd"
Originally it was the first "new Human League-style" track created under Rushent's production. It is an electropop anthem, pre-Jo Callis, heavily featuring Burden's single-voice keyboard with incidental bass keyboards by Philip Adrian Wright. The vocal style is the band's keystone sound of Oakey's baritone lead and for the first time, the girlish female interaction from Gayle and Catherall (in their first vocal role). It was released as a single in April 1981. The album version is a re-recording and not the version that was released as the original single.
Main articles: The Sound of the Crowd
"Darkness"
In keeping with the title, the song is about the subconscious fears from deep within the soul which manifest themselves when the singer is alone at night. Written mainly by Philip Adrian Wright, it is based on his experience in trying to sleep after reading a horror novel.
[12] The low synthesizer tones are designed to be haunting, are slow at the beginning, deliberately dark and melancholy. The instrumental increases tempo to a frenzy of pitch blending as the song reaches its culmination. It is the only track on the album which contains the obvious influences of the original Human League of Oakey, Ware, Marsh and Wright.
"Do or Die"
"Do or Die" is a chorus-heavy song about a troublesome girlfriend. Opening to deep synthesized African drums from the LM1. Oakey's intentionally sneering delivery of the lyrics is overshadowd by the deliberately heavy multi-voice synthesizers of Callis, Burden and Wright and an escalating high drum beat, giving the track a slight reggae/South American touch. The chorus is repeated several times in succession with Oakey now joined by a chanting Gayle and Catherall. Oakey (speaking in 1981) described it as "a song about being in love with a girl who has been taken over by a poltergeist. Like the film ''Carrie''." whether or not this was a serious comment or Oakey being typically "tongue in cheek" is not apparent. Joanne Catherall in the same interview says it "has a latiny (sic) feel."
[13]
"Get Carter"
Included as a short interlude, the track is a minimalist instrumental
cover version of
Roy Budds theme for the film ''
Get Carter''. It is played on a single voice on a
Casio VL-1, using the preset 'Fantasy'. On its second repeat a stereo 'chorus' is added making the sound 'bigger', on the third repeat heavier 'Ensemble Chorus' is added making the single VL-1 sound like a dozen!. Arranged by Oakey, Callis and Rushent.
"I Am the Law"
A song with a brassy synthesized instrumental, the title and lyrics were inspired by the character
Judge Dredd from the British comic book ''
2000 AD''. Wright states that it was the first song that the band wrote after the 1980 split, and was played live on the October 1980 tour. He goes on to say, "It's specifically written from a policeman's point of view. It's very easy to run the police down until you need them. There’s very often a change of heart when you get your car stolen."
[14]
"Seconds"
"Seconds" is a serious, somber mood piece on the assassination of
John F. Kennedy in 1963, and its impact on the wider world. Where Oakey berates (the unnamed)
Lee Harvey Oswald, characterized by the lyrics "it took seconds of your time to take his life" and "a shot that was heard around the world". When played live the song is often accompanied by background slides of Kennedy. The song makes a feature of the voice assignment modes on the Roland
Jupiter 4 synthesizer, alternating between strident two-note chords, with 2
VCOs per note, and thinner three note chords with 1 VCO per voice.
"Love Action (I Believe in Love)"
"Love Action" is a semi-autobiographical song by Oakey about good and bad relationships. It includes references to his own various relationships, their problems and successes; with Oakey often referring to himself. Complete with the famous lyric "his is Phil talking" (a line inspired by a similar reference by
Iggy Pop),
[6] it also contains two cryptic references to one of Oakey's influences,
Lou Reed.
[16] It was released as a single in August 1981.
Main articles: Love Action (I Believe in Love)
"Don't You Want Me"
"Don't You Want Me" is a conflicting male/female duet on the subject of jealousy and sexual obsession. Because of its 'poppy' style it is often misinterpreted as a love song. The male protagonist of the song (Oakey) is a
svengali figure who turns a female waitress (sung by Susan Gayle) into a 'star', who then subsequently leaves him once she has obtained fame. It is underscored by two backing synthesizer samples and Rushent's LM1 sequence with Burden's core keyboard background. Rushent and Callis would be responsible for the final mix incorporating pizzicato strings. The track is completely at odds with the remainder of the album not only for its pop sound but also because it features a female joint lead vocal. It was released as a single in December 1981, it became the band's biggest hit.
Main articles: Don't You Want Me
Background
''Dare'' is the third studio album from the Human League but differs greatly from their previous two, ''
Reproduction'' and ''
Travelogue''. This is due to a split in the original line up, the subsequent reformation of the band with new personnel and the difference in musical style under Philip Oakey's direction.
In January 1981 the Human League consisted of just Oakey and Philip Adrian Wright with newly recruited teenage dancers Joanne Catherall and Susanne Sulley (Gayle). After the acrimonious split of the original band in October 1980 and the subsequent recruitment of Gayle and Catherall, the new band had only just survived a European tour by bringing in session keyboardist
Ian Burden to temporarily assist. The band were deeply in debt and only barely commercially viable. Under pressure to produce results from
Virgin Records, original members Oakey and Wright returned to Monumental Studios in
Sheffield to start recording demo tracks. They wrote and recorded the track "
Boys and Girls" which Virgin then quickly released as single. The style of "Boys and Girls" belonged to the original, now defunct Human League. Gayle and Catherall who were busy with school, were not used other than for publicity. The synthesizer work was basic as Oakey and Wright admitted they lacked the skill of Marsh and Ware. When "Boys and Girls" peaked at number 47 in the UK, Oakey realized that he would need to bring in professional help to take the band in the more pop and commercial sounding direction he wished.
Oakey's first move was to invite guitarist and keyboard player Ian Burden from the tour back to join the band full-time. As a trained musician, not only were Burden's keyboard skills vastly superior to Oakey and Wright's but he instantly proved to be an adept songwriter and composer as well. Virgin had suggested that Oakey needed professional production and paired him with veteran producer Martin Rushent, an expert on emerging music technologies of the time. Because of the "unhealthy" atmosphere at Monumental Studios in Sheffield caused by the Human League sharing it with new band
Heaven 17 (containing ex Human League members Ware and Marsh, Rushent moved the band to his Genetic Sound Studios in
Reading. In addition Rushent's studios were better-equipped for the type of music the band was making. A downside would be that the distance would cause problems for Gayle and Catherall who were taking their final school exams and had to be bussed down from Sheffield regularly.
[17]
The first result of their recording sessions was released in April 1981 entitled "The Sound of the Crowd"; it would be a defining moment for the band. With the sophisticated synthesizer work of Burden aided by Wright, Oakey's deep baritone lead vocal and for the first time female backing vocals from teenage dancers (now full vocalists) Gayle and Catherall it would prove to be the band's keystone sound. The final addition to the band would be the experienced guitarist and songwriter
Jo Callis formerly of
punk rock band
The Rezillos, who quickly had to learn the synthesizer.
Oakey accepts that Martin Rushent's adept sequencing and programming skills would bring a professional edge to the band's sound, and add many new elements and techniques. Oakey, Burden, Wright and Callis set about writing new material, shipping in Gayle and Catherall from Sheffield as often as they were available; all under Rushent's expert production eye. The aim was another album for the Human League within a year, Virgin were at this point lukewarm but keen that the band released another single as soon as possible.
The first release from the now complete new team came in August 1981, "Love Action (I Believe in Love)" was the band's first major critical and commercial success and peaked at number three in the UK. It brought the band to the forefront of public attention and would also see Virgin give the green light for an album release with a 6-12 month timescale. The band now had much new material to work with and set about arranging it into a viable album. Quickly, by September 1981 the prototype album was ready to go and provisionally entitled ''Dare''. To set the scene for the album's release. Virgin released one of the album tracks immediately in advance of the album. "Open Your Heart" went to number six in the UK singles chart confirming the band's standing, Virgin began heavily advertising the release of the new album, set for the end of October 1981.
With "Open Your Heart", complete with its futuristic looking promotional video (a rarity at the time) still in the singles chart, ''Dare'' premiered to critical acclaim. It was also condemned by the Musician's Union who believed the new technology employed by the Human League was making traditional musicians redundant and a threat to their monopoly. Soon they would begin a "Keep It Live" campaign believing that bands like the Human League would be able to perform concerts at the touch of a button.
[3]
This use of computer and synthesizer technology was groundbreaking for the period, but also Oakey had managed to steer the group in a commercial pop direction by using Gayle and Catherall as well as innovative instrumental work by Burdon, Wright and Callis. In addition to the tracks that had been pre-released singles, the album was filled with other tracks that was said could all be released as a singles; and the short cover of Roy Budd’s theme to the film ''Get Carter''.
The album was named after a
Vogue Magazine cover and is also incorporated into the lyrics of the song ''Things That Dreams are Made Of''. Philip Oakey explained the story behind the album name at the time:
Almost universally critically acclaimed in the UK, the album also sold in huge numbers taking it quickly to number one in the UK album charts in early November 1981. It was expected to be the finish to an enormously successful year for the band. But because of its extraordinary commercial success Virgin executive Simon Draper decided he wanted lift yet another single from the album before the end of 1981.
[3]
Draper's choice would be the track "Don't You Want Me", the conflicting male/female duet about jealousy and sexual obsession that Oakey had recorded with teenage backing singer Susanne Sulley (Susan Gayle). Oakey was unhappy with the decision and originally fought it, he believed it was the weakest track on ''Dare'' and for that reason it had been relegated to the last track in the B-side of the vinyl album. Oakey was eventually overruled by Virgin.
[20] Although Oakey believed the track wasn't good enough to be a single, it would go on to become the band's greatest ever hit, selling millions of copies worldwide and becoming the 25th highest ever selling single in the UK
[21]
By Christmas 1981 ''Dare'' had gone platinum in the UK, and the Human League had a number-one album and number-one single concurrently in the UK charts. ''Dare'' would eventually remain in the UK album charts for an enduring 71 weeks.
[22]
International releases
The single "Don't You Want Me" had been released with a very expensive and elaborate promotional video created by film maker
Steve Barron. Music video was a very new phenomenon and cable TV station
MTV had only just started up to capitalize on this new media but had very little material to work with. Virgin Records syndicated the video to MTV which was played around the clock. Because of the interest the video generated in "Don’t You Want Me", Virgin licensed the release in the U.S. of the single and the album. The licensee for the U.S. was
A&M Records who renamed the album ''Dare!'' The addition of the exclamation mark was because A&M wanted to differentiate their (U.S) release from the Virgin's original release in the UK. The release of ''Dare!'' immediately mirrored the success of the UK; and in mid 1982 it reached number three in the US
Billboard 200 and the single "Don’t You Want Me" was at number one on the
Billboard Hot 100. Although critics were not as universally applauding as in the UK, the commercial success of ''Dare!'' would set the scene for the band's return to the U.S. charts a number of times in later years.
''Dare'' earned considerable income for record labels Virgin and A&M; in Virgin's case, giving the label the first number-one album since the
Mike Oldfield album ''
Tubular Bells'' in
1973. The success of ''Dare'' was responsible for saving the label from impending bankruptcy. A very grateful
Richard Branson sent Philip Oakey a motorcycle as a thank you present, but Oakey had to return it as he couldn't ride it.
[3]
As well as the commercial success in the U.S. under A&M, in 1982 ''Dare'' was also highly successful in
Australia,
Japan,
France and
Germany. It has since been released in most industrialized nations since and as far a field
Hong Kong and
Saudi Arabia.
''Dare'' has been re-released a number of times since its original creation. Later releases of the album included the additional tracks "Hard Times" and "Non Stop".
[24]
Cover artwork
''Dare ''internal gatefold artwork 1981 - Sulley and Catherall
The cover and other album artwork is based a concept that Oakey wanted, that the album should look like an edition of ''
Vogue'' magazine. The final design is a joint effort between Philip Adrian Wright (also the band's director of visuals) and graphic designer Ken Ansell. Oakey is solo on the front cover with Gayle and Catherall on the internal gatefold, and the whole band on the reverse. The artwork has been reproduced in numerous forms for the various re-releases and sold as posters.
[24]
Explaining why the band's portraits are close cropped and the girls had their hair tied back for their photographs, Susan Ann Gayle explains, "we wanted people to still be able to buy the album in five years, we thought that hair styles would be the first thing to date. We had no idea people would still be buying it 25 years later."
Awards
Martin Rushent received the 'Best Producer Award' at the
1982 Brit Awards for the production on ''Dare''.
Commemorations
Dare Tour 2007 artwork - Gayle, Oakey, Catherall
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of ''Dare'' (and the 30th anniversary of the formation of the band), the modern day Human League (Oakey, Gayle and Catherall from the original 1981 band line up) will conduct a special ''Dare 2007'' tour of the UK and Europe playing the original album live in full in late 2007.
An updated version of the original artwork, now with recent photographs of Gayle, Oakey and Catherall in the style of the original artwork, accompanies advertising for the band's 2007 'Dare tour'.
[26]
On his mySpace page Martin Rushent in April 2007 mentions on a video blog that he is remixing Dare.
In the media
According to the book ''Let it Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bangs'', renowned music critic
Lester Bangs died of an accidental drug overdose while listening to ''Dare''.
[27]
External links
★ http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/dare.htm
★ http://www.league-online.com/biography1.html
★ http://www.susanne-sulley.net/bio
References
1. http://www.league-online.com/biography1.html
2. Q Magazine Special edition January 2005 – Article Johnny Dee
3. http://www.league-online.com/biography2.html
4. Dare album sleeve 1981
5. Dare, album sleeve, Virgin Records 1981
6. http://www.league-online.com/dare.html
7. Keyboard Magazine December 1982 [http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/articles_1982_keyboard_magazine.html
8. Keyboard Magazine December 1982 [http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/articles_1982_keyboard_magazine.html
9. Keyboard Magazine December 1982 [1]
10. Keyboard Magazine December 1982 [2]
11. http://www.league-online.com/dare.html
12. Human League Interview - Smash Hits magazine November 1981
13. Smash Hits magazine December 1981
14. Smash Hits magazine November 1981
15. http://www.league-online.com/dare.html
16. http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/dare.htm
17. http://www.league-online.com/biography2.htm
18. http://www.league-online.com/biography2.html
19. http://www.league-online.com/biography2.html
20. League-online Biography biography2
21. British Hit Singles and Albums (Guinness 19th Edition) Guinness World Records Limited; 20Rev Ed edition ISBN-978-1904994107 (2 Jun 2007)
22. British Hit Singles and Albums (Guinness 19th Edition) Guinness World Records Limited; 20Rev Ed edition ISBN-978-1904994107 (2 Jun 2007)
23. http://www.league-online.com/biography2.html
24. http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/dare.html
25. http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/dare.html
26. http://www.susanne-sulley.net/live
27. Let it Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bangs, Americas Greatest Rock Critic by Jim Derogatis 2000 (ISBN 0-7679-0509-1)
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