"Love Is All That Matters" is a song by British

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

group

the Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album ''Dare' ...

. It was the third single to be taken from their fifth studio album, ''

Crash Crash or CRASH may refer to: Common meanings * Collision, an impact between two or more objects * Crash (computing), a condition where a program ceases to respond * Cardiac arrest, a medical condition in which the heart stops beating * Couch su ...

'' (1986). It was released in 1986 in the US, where it did not chart. The single would be reissued in 1988 to promote the band's first greatest hits album; this version of the single featured a different tracklist and was released in every territory but the US.

Background

It was recorded in early 1986 at the Flyte Time studios in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

while the Human League were in residence recording ''Crash'' with producers

Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III (born June 6, 1959) and Terry Steven Lewis (born November 24, 1956) are an American R&B/pop songwriting and record production team. They have enjoyed great success since the 1980s with various artists, most ...

. This song, like many other from the album, was a love song aimed towards the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

market, where the first single from ''Crash'', "

Human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

", had reached number one. However, this single failed and only charted in the UK where it reached number 41. As a result of the disappointing sales there would be no further releases from ''Crash''. "Love Is All That Matters" was released principally to promote the imminent release of the first ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' album in 1988.

Cover artwork

The cover artwork (expanded) designed by Ken Ansell, is actually a gatefold of a single photograph of

Susan Ann Sulley Susan Ann Sulley (born 22 March 1963), formerly known as Susanne Sulley and Susan Ann Gayle, is an English singer who is one of the two female vocalists in the synth-pop band The Human League. Born and raised in Sheffield, England, as a schoo ...

Philip Oakey Philip Oakey (born 2 October 1955) is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the lead singer, songwriter, and cofounder of British synth-pop band the Human League. Aside from the Human League, Oakey has enjoyed an e ...

and

Joanne Catherall Joanne Catherall (born 18 September 1962) is an English singer who is one of two female vocalists in the English synth-pop band The Human League. In 1980, Catherall was a 17-year-old school girl when she and her best friend Susan Ann Sulley w ...

. On the front of the vinyl versions and the CD, only Oakey is visible.

Critical reception

Graeme Kay from ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...

'' declared the song as "a flippin' corker", explaining, "It starts off with a mega-heavy

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

beat, then in come the group's resident foxtresses Sue and Joanne who trill away over layer upon layer of tringly oriental type bells and after a while

starts to holler away frenziedly about "being faithful" 'cos "love is all that matters". Jolly good show."

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for "Love Is All That Matters" was a result of

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

beginning to lose faith in the Human League and being reluctant to invest in any further elaborate music videos; so the video was kept deliberately low budget. The video is basically edited clips of all the band’s previous music videos to that point, spliced together with animated stills from the key points from those videos. This was also designed to provide a storyboard which promoted the band’s back catalogue to generate interest in the ''Greatest Hits'' compilation, the principal reason "Love Is All That Matters" was released in the first place.

Track listing

1986 US release

* 12" vinyl (A&M Records SP-12227) # "Love Is All That Matters (Extended Version)" – 7:45 # "Love Is All That Matters (7" Edit)" – 4:06 # "Love Is All That Matters (A Cappella)" – 2:45 # "Love Is All That Matters (Instrumental)" – 4:09

1988 international release

* 7" vinyl (Virgin VS1025) # "Love Is All That Matters (Edit)" – 4:06 # "I Love You Too Much" – 3:22 * 12" vinyl (Virgin VST1025) # "Love Is All That Matters (Extended Version)" – 7:45 # "I Love You Too Much (Dub)" – 5:54 # "Love Is All That Matters (Edit)" – 4:06 * CD (Virgin VSCD1025) # "Love Is All That Matters (Edit)" – 4:06 # "I Love You Too Much (Dub Version)" – 5:54 # "Love Is All That Matters (Extended Version)" – 7:45

2023 digital release

* digital and streaming platforms # "Love Is All That Matters (Edit)" - 4:12 # "Love Is All That Matters (Extended Version)" – 7:47 # "Love Is All That Matters (Accappella version)" – 2:45 # "Love Is All That Matters (Instrumental)" – 4:08 # "I Love You Too Much (Dub Version)" – 5:56 # "Are You Ever Coming Back? (7" edit)" – 4:25

References

External links

Record Data

{{authority control The Human League songs 1988 singles Songs written by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis Song recordings produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis 1986 songs Virgin Records singles