Shortly after, they recruited their good friend and photographer Glenn Gregory on vocals to complete their lineup for Heaven 17. Contrary to popular belief, they were not 'New Romantics' per se and had different visual characteristics than groups such as Spandau Ballet and the Culture Club. Like The Human League, Heaven 17 heavily used synthesizers and drum machines while taking influence from the minimalist electronica music of the 70s.
They had a few minor hits in their early days, including the song "Play To Win" that featured on the album 'Penthouse and Pavement'. Their debut single '(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang' from the same album attracted some attention, became a left-wing anthem for a while, and was banned by the BBC because of its overtly political lyrics, but it still reached number 45 in the UK singles chart.
Major chart success eluded them until the single 'Temptation' (in which they were augmented by the vocalist Carol Kenyon) reached number 2 in the UK charts in summer 1983. Other songs from the same album, The Luxury Gap, also charted though not as high - 'Come Live With Me' reached number 5 in the UK, 'Crushed By The Wheels Of Industry' reached number 17, and 'Let Me Go', reaching 41 in November 1982. The album itself charted at their best ever position, number four.
At the end of 1983, the band helped re-launch Tina Turner's solo career, producing and providing backing vocals on her debut hit 'Let's Stay Together'. 1984 featured the release of the moderately successful How Men Are, which reached number 12.
The band also worked on the Band Aid single at the end of 1984, with Gregory supplying vocals alongside Midge Ure and Sting. However, they did not perform at Live Aid the following year.
Pleasure One (featuring the single 'Trouble') appeared in 1986 and it was followed up in 1988 with Teddy Bear, Duke & Psycho (featuring the single 'Train Of Love In Motion'). The early 90's were a quiet period for the band and they wouldn't work together as Heaven 17 until 1996's Bigger Than America. In the preceding years, Marsh and Ware produced a second B.E.F. album to 1981's original Music of Quality and Distinction and Gregory formed the band Ugly. Ware became an in-demand producer, working for the likes of Terence Trent D'Arby, Alison Moyet and Erasure. 2005 saw the release of the long-awaited Before After; the album having a much more contemporary dance sound compared to previous albums.
RED
Heaven 17 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And an angel writes a word across the sky
When the people laugh there's no sound
And the words keep falling round and round
And the world just keeps on watching
Till there's nothing left to buy
I don't believe it
It's moving closer
It's everywhere
Everything around us turning red - red
You walk into your home
You walk it talks - red
The fever's taken over everyone
And the only law that matters is the gun
The people run from every slum
There's nowhere safe to watch it from
The underground is over now
There's nothing that can be done
I don't believe it
Well they don't care
It's moving closer
It's everywhere
Everything around us turning red
You walk into a bar
You drink it smokes - red
You're driving in your car
You turn it burns - red
As the air becomes too hot for us to breathe
There's none of us that really want to leave
From the frozen north to the sun soaked south
The colour spreads by word of mouth
Till there's no-one left to talk to
We just look into the screen
Well I don't believe it
Well they don't care
It's moving closer
It's everywhere
Everything around us turning red - red
You walk into your home
You walk it talks - red
You walk into a bar
You drink it smokes - red
You're driving in your car
You turn it burns - red
You're on the telephone
You talk it's always - red
You walk into your home
You walk it talks - red
You walk into a bar
You drink it smokes - red
Red! - red! - red! - red!
Heaven 17's song "Red" presents a bleak vision of a society consumed by violence and chaos. The opening lines of the song describe a world where people have lost their voice, and the only communication is through an angel writing words in the sky. This is a metaphor for the lack of human interaction and empathy in this world - everyone is too busy pursuing their own interests to care about anything else.
As the song progresses, we learn that the world is turning red, a metaphor for the spread of violence and destruction. People are running from slums, and the only law that matters is the gun. Everywhere people go, everything they do, the color red is inescapable - it's in their homes, their cars, and even in their conversations.
What makes "Red" such a powerful song is the way it confronts us with the consequences of our actions. The world it presents is one where we have lost our humanity and our connection to one another. At the same time, however, "Red" is a call to action. It urges us to open our eyes to what's happening around us and to work together to create a better world.
Line by Line Meaning
The streets are full of stars again tonight
The night sky is full of bright, twinkling stars
And an angel writes a word across the sky
An angel symbolically writes a message in the sky
When the people laugh there's no sound
People are afraid to openly express joy
And the words keep falling round and round
Words of despair and fear are repeated continuously
And the world just keeps on watching
People are passive and not taking action
Till there's nothing left to buy
The obsession with consumerism leads to a meaningless existence
Everything around us turning red - red
The world is becoming consumed by violence and bloodshed
You walk into your home, you walk it talks - red
Even personal spaces like homes are consumed by violent thoughts
The fever's taken over everyone
People are consumed by a violent and destructive energy
And the only law that matters is the gun
Violence and power are the only things that determine a person's worth
The people run from every slum
People are trying to escape areas of poverty and violence
There's nowhere safe to watch it from
There is no safe place to observe the chaos from
The underground is over now
Even underground communities are being destroyed by violence
There's nothing that can be done
There seems to be no solution to the violence and chaos
As the air becomes too hot for us to breathe
The world is becoming uninhabitable due to widespread violence
There's none of us that really want to leave
Despite the violence, people are unwilling to abandon the world
From the frozen north to the sun soaked south
Violence is spreading everywhere, regardless of location
The colour spreads by word of mouth
The message of violence and chaos is spreading through conversations
Till there's no-one left to talk to
Eventually, everyone will be consumed by violence and chaos
We just look into the screen
People are passive and disconnected, staring at screens instead of taking action
Red! - red! - red! - red!
The repetition of this word symbolizes the overwhelming presence of violence and chaos
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: GLENN GREGORY, IAN MARSH, MARTYN WARE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind