cctm collettivo culturale tuttomondo The Human League (UK)
The Human League, Don’t You Want Me, 1981
You were working as a waitress in a cocktail bar
When I met you
I picked you out, I shook up and turned you around
Turned you into someone new
Now five years later on, you’ve got the world at your feet
Success has been so easy for you
But don’t forget, it’s me who put you where you are now
And I can put you back down too
Don’t, don’t you want me?
You know I can’t believe it when I hear that you won’t see me
Don’t, don’t you want me?
You know I don’t believe you when you say that you don’t need me
It’s much too late to find
You think you’ve changed your mind
You’d better change it back, or we will both be sorry
Don’t you want me, baby?
Don’t you want me? Oh
Don’t you want me, baby?
Don’t you want me? Oh
I was working as a waitress in a cocktail bar
That much is true
But even then, I knew I’d find a much better place
Either with or without you
The five years we have had have been such good times
I still love you
But now, I think it’s time I live my life on my own
I guess it’s just what I must do
Don’t, don’t you want me?
You know I can’t believe it when I hear that you won’t see me
Don’t, don’t you want me?
You know I don’t believe you
When you say that you don’t need me
It’s much too late to find
You think you’ve changed your mind
You’d better change it back, or we will both be sorry
Don’t you want me, baby?
Don’t you want me? Oh
Don’t you want me, baby?
The Human League, Don’t You Want Me, dall’album Dare, 1981
The Human League è un gruppo musicale britannico formatosi a Sheffield nel 1977, considerato tra i pionieri del synth pop.
Il loro stile ha avuto un impatto fondamentale sull’evoluzione della musica elettronica e pop degli anni Ottanta, grazie a un mix di suoni sintetici, melodie accattivanti e un’estetica futurista.
Il gruppo nasce dall’incontro tra Martyn Ware e Ian Craig Marsh, inizialmente programmatori di computer senza esperienza musicale, accomunati dall’interesse per la musica elettronica d’avanguardia e il pop. Insieme ad Adi Newton formarono prima The Future, poi, con l’arrivo di Philip Oakey come cantante, adottarono il nome The Human League, ispirato a un gioco di fantascienza.
La formazione originale comprendeva Oakey, Ware, Marsh e Philip Adrian Wright. Dopo due album (“Reproduction” e “Travelogue”) e un successo commerciale ancora limitato, nel 1980 Ware e Marsh lasciarono il gruppo per fondare gli Heaven 17, mentre Oakey mantenne il nome e rinnovò la band, reclutando le coriste Susan Ann Sulley e Joanne Catherall, che diventeranno figure iconiche del gruppo.
Il successo arriva nel 1981 con l’album Dare, che contiene la hit mondiale “Don’t You Want Me”, diventata simbolo del synth pop e della cosiddetta “Second British Invasion” negli Stati Uniti. Seguiranno altri successi come “Mirror Man”, “(Keep Feeling) Fascination”, “The Lebanon” e “Human”. Il gruppo ha continuato a pubblicare album e singoli negli anni successivi, attraversando varie fasi di popolarità ma mantenendo sempre una forte identità elettronica e visiva.
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cctm collettivo culturale tuttomondo The Human League (UK)