Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh were both working as computer programmers in 1977, and combined a love of pop music (such as glam rock and Tamla Motown) with avant garde electronic music. They acquired a Roland System 100 synthesizer and began to create music in their own rehearsal facility. Initially they formed a group called The Dead Daughters, which then became The Future with Adi Newton on vocals. Newton was soon dismissed and left to form the outfit Clock DVA. Ware and Marsh searched for a vocalist, but their first choice, Glenn Gregory (who would be the lead singer of their later band, Heaven 17), was unavailable. Ware instead decided to invite Philip Oakey, an old school friend, and a hospital porter at the time to join the band, "apparently by leaving a note stuck to his door". Oakey accepted the invitation, despite never having been in a band before. Shortly after, they decided to call themselves The Human League. A collection of demos from this period was released on CD in 2002, titled The Golden Hour of The Future, compiled by Richard X.
The original lineup of The Human League debuted in 1978 with the single "Being Boiled", a dark synth track that would later become extremely influential on later industrial musicians (namely Trent Reznor of the Nine Inch Nails). This single and it's follow-up "Empire State Human" were modest sucesses, however the group's albums - 1979's "Reproduction" and 1980's "Travelogue" - did not sell. This caused a rift in the band, and in 1980, Ian Marsh and Martyn Ware left the group.
Following the split of the original line-up, Phillip Adrian Wright (their live slide projectionist) fully joined the group and Oakey & himself released another flop single, "Boys and Girls". In order to fulfil their European tour commitments, they recruited bass player Ian Burden, and fronted the band with two singers, Susanne Sulley and Joanne Catherall, schoolgirls whom they had met in a Sheffield nightclub, and managed to complete the tour.
In 1981, Virgin Records paired them with former Stranglers producer Martin Rushent, and the first result was the single "The Sound of the Crowd", which saw them at last achieve success in the singles chart. Guitarist Jo Callis (formerly of The Rezillos) was now recruited to the band, and with Rushent at the helm, The Human League recorded their most successful album to date, "Dare!". It achieved huge success, fuelled by its further hit singles, "Open Your Heart", "Love Action" and most famously "Don't You Want Me", which reached number one in the UK charts during the Christmas of 1981 and was one of the biggest selling singles of that year, and it also charted at number one in the US during the summer of 1982. These three releases were accompanied by striking promo videos ("Love Action" based on the movie The Graduate). During their Dare! phase, the Human League were often associated with the New Romantic movement.
The band also had a number of other hits but their success faded towards the mid-1980s. Arguably, one problem was the length of time the band took to make a record. Dare! was followed by the six-song EP Fascination! (featuring hit singles "Mirror Man" and "Fascination") as a stopgap, and it took three years to release a full-length follow-up album, "Hysteria".
In 1985, outside of the Human League, Oakey scored a huge hit single in collaboration with one of his idols, synth pioneer Giorgio Moroder, with the single "Together in Electric Dreams", taken from the film soundtrack to Electric Dreams. The pair proceeded to record an entire album for Virgin, Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder, but this met with rather less success.
In 1986, the group found themselves in creative stagnation, struggling to record material to follow up on their previous success. Key songwriter Jo Callis departed, replaced by drummer Jim Russell, and Virgin paired the League up with cutting-edge American R&B producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The result was the "Crash" album. The album featured much material written by Jam and Lewis' team, and showcased their distinctive DX7-led sound, making it quite a departure from previous Human League material. It did provide an American number one single, "Human", but other singles made smaller chart impact.
The following tour saw keyboardist Neil Sutton join the line-up and also keyboardist/guitarist Russell Dennett. Since 1990, their resident engineer on and off stage has been David Beevers. Following Dennett's departure in 1996, Nic Burke has been his replacement for live work since 2001.
The Human League released a new album, Credo in March 2011.
Swang
The Human League Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Swang her round
Swang that girl all upside-down
And if that girl won't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Swang me a girl
Swang her 'til her face turns blue
And if that girl can't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah
Now turn that girl all upside down and
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang
Swang me a girl
Who thinks she's down
Swang her face across the ground
And if that girl can't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Swang me a girl
With brown eyes deep
Swang her 'til she starts to weep
And if that girl can't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah, yeah, yeah
And I've got to do that
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah
Now turn that girl all upside down and
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang
Come on, people
Swang, swang, swang
Well I'll be dancing
Across the floor
'Cause I like to
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
And, yes, she digs me
She wants some more, so I'll
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang, ooh
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
Swang, swang, swang
Swang
Swang
Come on and swang
Everybody grab a girl and let's do it
Swang
Hey
Hey you
Swang
Let's do it
You can do it
Swang
Well I'll be dancing
Across the floor
'Cause I like to
Swang
Do you like it
Yeah
Let's do it
And then they'll come up
And ask for more, so I'll
Swang
Come on, people
You can do it
Everybody
Swang
The lyrics of The Human League's song Swang contain an upbeat message about dancing and having a good time, specifically focused on "swanging" with a partner. The song describes various scenarios in which the singer swangs with different girls, suggesting that he is not picky about who he dances with as long as they are willing to let loose and have fun. The chorus of the song emphasizes the word "swang", urging listeners to join in and participate in the dance.
The lyrics are repetitive in nature, emphasizing the fun and energetic nature of the dance. There are several lines that suggest a sense of rebellion or disregard for societal norms, such as "swang her 'til her face turns blue" and "swang her face across the ground". The song seems to be celebrating a certain sense of freedom and abandon that comes with dancing with abandon.
Overall, the song Swang is a catchy and upbeat anthem to the joys of dancing with a partner. Whether you're looking for someone specific to dance with or are happy to swang with anyone who's willing, the song encourages you to let loose and have fun.
Line by Line Meaning
Grab your partner
Find a dancing companion
Swang her round
Rotate and spin your partner
Swang that girl all upside-down
Turn your partner upside down as part of the dancing move
And if that girl won't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
If your partner refuses to dance or follow the steps, find someone else to dance with
Swang me a girl
Who thinks she's cool
Swang her 'til her face turns blue
And if that girl can't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Find a girl who looks confident, dance with her until her face turns red, and if she can't follow your steps, find another dance partner
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah
The song is about a dance move called 'swang', popular in the city, and this verse emphasizes the urban feel of the dance
Now turn that girl all upside down and
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang
The song encourages dancers to keep performing the dance move, especially the upside-down turn
Swang me a girl
Who thinks she's down
Swang her face across the ground
And if that girl can't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Find a girl who thinks she's cool or hip, dance with her while moving her face towards the ground, and if she can't keep up, find someone else
Swang me a girl
With brown eyes deep
Swang her 'til she starts to weep
And if that girl can't
Swang with me
I'll swang me another girl, yes sirree
Find a girl with deep brown eyes, dance with her until she gets emotional, and if she can't progress through the dance move, move on to another partner
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah, yeah, yeah
And I've got to do that
Swang
Real city dancing
Yeah
Reiterating that the dance is a popular city move
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang
Encouraging everyone to keep performing the dance move
Come on, people
Swang, swang, swang
Inviting everyone to join and dance together
Well I'll be dancing
Across the floor
'Cause I like to
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
And, yes, she digs me
She wants some more, so I'll
Swang, swang, swang, do it
Swang, swang, swang, ooh
Swang, swang, swang, yeah
Swang, swang, swang
The singer is dancing on the dance floor because he loves to dance and is enjoying it with his dance partner, who apparently likes it too and wants to continue the dancing
Come on and swang
Everybody grab a girl and let's do it
Swang
Hey
Hey you
Swang
Let's do it
You can do it
Swang
Encouraging everyone to join in and dance, reassuring that anyone can do the dance
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DAVID EILAND, DAVID MAURICE EILAND
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Our Founding Liars
Heard this for the first time a couple days ago and it has consumed my life
david cabrera
vastly underrated. awesome song. :-D
pinoy0125
Crash is my favorite Human League album and Swang is my favorite song on the album ... Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis worked their magic and Americanized THL but unfortunately the band did not like it.
Live an adventure
Yea, I think Phil sounds really good on this album, like all albums really, but he seems to sound really confident on this album, I’m not overly keen on this track but it’s got its place
JL L
I love this song! ❤️ shoulda been a single for sure!
Aleks M.
this sounds like a mock pop song Devo would write
p A
A classic. I know my mum doesn't really like it!
GavinGT
This or Temporary Secretary? You can only choose one.
vichyssoise80
Feels like suburban parents cutting up at a basketball game, yesiree.
All kidding aside, I think I Need Your Loving is better.
Joseph
Needs more swang