"Human" is a song by British

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

duo

Goldfrapp Goldfrapp are an English electronic music duo from London, formed in 1999. The duo consists of Alison Goldfrapp (vocals, synthesiser) and Will Gregory (synthesiser). Despite favourable reviews and a short-listing for the Mercury Prize, their ...

. The song was written by the group with

Startled Insects Startled Insects, later known as The Insects, are an instrumental English pop-jazz band. History Startled Insects began around 1983 in Bristol, England, as a collective of three producers/multi-instrumentalists, Tim Norfolk, Bob Locke and Rich ...

' Tim Norfolk and Bob Locke, and produced by

Alison Goldfrapp Alison Elizabeth Margaret Goldfrapp (born 13 May 1966) is an English musician and record producer, known as the vocalist of English electronic music duo Goldfrapp. Early life Goldfrapp was born on 13 May 1966, in Enfield, London, the youngest o ...

and

Will Gregory William Owen Gregory (born 17 September 1959) is an English musician and record producer. He is best known as the lead keyboardist, producer, and composer of the electronic music duo Goldfrapp. Early life Gregory was born in Bristol, the son ...

for the duo's debut album ''

Felt Mountain ''Felt Mountain'' is the debut studio album by English electronic music duo Goldfrapp. It was released on 11 September 2000 by Mute Records. The album takes influence from a variety of music styles such as 1960s Pop music, pop, cabaret, Folk mus ...

'' (2000). "Human" is the only track on ''

'' with additional songwriters. It was released as the album's third

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

on 26 February 2001 and reached number 87 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The song was sampled by American rapper

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

for his track "Freestyle 4". It was also used in the closing credits of the second season of the French spy show The Bureau.

Critical response

"Human" received generally positive reviews from pop music critics. ''

Flak Magazine ''Flak Magazine'' was an early American online magazine, founded in 1998 by James Norton, Benjamin Fowler, Justin Knoll, Nicholas Coleman and others, mostly alumni and students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The chief editor was James Nor ...

'' reviewer Eric Wittmershaus called the song a "surprisingly-daring-yet-easy-to-listen-to genre-bender" that "is easily the disc's standout track."Wittmershaus, Eric
"Review of Goldfrapp's Felt Mountain"
. ''

''. 10 October 2000. Retrieved 13 April 2009. Sacha Esterson of Musicomh.com described the track as "middle eastern-influenced upbeat gem" that is "particularly fantastic."Esterson, Sacha
"Goldfrapp - Felt Mountain (Mute)"
Musicomh.com. Retrieved 13 April 2009. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' wrote that "Human" "sounds like

Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists ...

, but with none of the dance nous the Welsh warbler brought to her collaboration with the

Propellerheads Propellerheads were an English electronic music duo, formed in 1995 in Bath and consisting of Will White and Alex Gifford. History Their first release was an EP named ''Dive!'', released in 1996 through the independent label Wall of Sound. ...

Formats and track listings

* CD single (UK) #"Human" (Single Version) – 3:44 #"Human" (

Calexico Calexico () is a city in southern Imperial County, California. Situated on the Mexican border, it is linked economically with the much larger city of Mexicali, the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California. It is about east of San Diego ...

Vocal) – 4:50 #"Human" ( Massey's Cro-Magnon Mix) – 5:54 * 12-inch single (UK) #"Human" (Single Version) – 3:44 #"Human" (Calexico Instrumental) – 4:48 #"Human" (Massey's Neanderthal Mix) – 7:27 * Digital single #"Human" (Single Version) – 3:43 #"Human" (Calexico Vocal) – 4:49 #"Human" (Massey's Cro-Magnon Mix) – 5:53 #"Human" (Calexico Instrumental) – 4:47 #"Human" (Massey's Neanderthal Mix) – 7:29

Charts

References

External links

Goldfrapp.com
{{Authority control 2000 songs 2001 singles Goldfrapp songs Mute Records singles Songs written by Alison Goldfrapp Songs written by Will Gregory