"The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" is a song by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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 originally recorded for the band's 1981 album ''

Dare Dare may refer to: Places * Dare, East Timor, a city * Darè, Italy, a commune * Dare County, North Carolina, United States * Dare, Virginia, United States, an unincorporated community Name * Dare (name), a list of people and fictional c ...

'', but was

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

ed, remastered and released as a dance EP single in 2008. It reached number two in the official UK Dance Chart in February 2008.

Background

The song is the opening track on the Human League's ''Dare'' album, recorded at Genetic Studios in the summer of 1981. It was produced by

Martin Rushent Martin Charles Rushent (11 July 1948 – 4 June 2011) was an English record producer, best known for his work with The Human League, The Stranglers and Buzzcocks. Early life Rushent was born on 11 July 1948 in Enfield, Middlesex. His father ...

. The song is a tribute to the simple pleasures in life which are then juxtaposed against a greater ambition.

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 ...

namechecks some of his and

Philip Adrian Wright Philip Adrian Wright (born 30 June 1956) is an English musician, also known as Adrian Wright. Wright had studied film making at Sheffield Art College and was a friend of Philip Oakey. In 1978, he was invited to join the new avant-garde electr ...

's favourite things, an eclectic list from

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as str ...

Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...

and the names of the band members of

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

. Wright called the song a metaphor for the band's ambition in 1981. Backing vocals are performed by

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 ...

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 ...

(then 18-year-old schoolgirls) who today, together with Oakey, are now the only remaining band members from the original ''Dare'' line up. Since the recording of ''Dare'', the Human League have frequently played the song live. It was the opening track of performances on the Dare '07 tour. The first remix of the song appeared on the band's 1982 remix album ''

Love and Dancing ''Love and Dancing'' is a remix album by English synth-pop band The Human League, released in July 1982 by Virgin Records. Issued under the band name "The League Unlimited Orchestra" as a nod to Barry White's disco-era Love Unlimited Orchestra, ...

'', which contained remixes of various tracks from the band's ''Dare'' period. In August 2003, a mash-up of the instrumentation of "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" and the lyrics to

SOS Band The S.O.S. Band (sometimes written as S.O.S. Band; abbreviation for Sounds of Success) is an American R&B and electro-funk group who gained fame in the 1980s. They are best known for the songs "Take Your Time (Do It Right)", "Just Be Good to M ...

's "The Finest" was released as a single under the title "Finest Dreams". Produced by

Richard X Richard Philips, better known by his stage name Richard X, is a British songwriter and music producer. Gaining attention as a pioneer of the bootleg craze, Richard X has earned success as a producer and remixer. He has helmed hit singles for arti ...

, the song featured American singer

Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perform ...

on vocals. The song reached #8 on UK charts. It appears on Richard X's album ''

Richard X Presents His X-Factor Vol. 1 ''Richard X Presents His X-Factor Vol. 1'' is the debut compilation album by British pop producer Richard X. The album features 15 tracks all produced by Richard X, most of which feature guest vocals. Track listing # "Start" (Richard X) # "Be ...

'' In 2007, Martin Rushent's newly resurrected Genetic Recordings label released a limited edition EP of the song containing the 'More of Mix' and 'Justus Köncke Vocal Mix Edit'. Concurrently

Hooj Choons Hooj Choons is a house record label formed by Alex Simons and Red Jerry (real name Jeremy Dickens) in 1990. The first release was "Carnival de Casa" by Rio Rhythm Band, however, it was not until 1992's release of Felix's "Don't You Want Me", ...

issued a remix of the song by DJ/producer Tommy Bisdee aka '

Kissy Sell Out Kissy Sell Out (born Thomas Bisdee on 18 June 1984 in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England) is a British/Canadian DJ, producer, graphic designer, label manager of San City High Records and Stepper Man, part-time astrophysicist and science column ...

'. Realising that the song had commercial selling power, Hooj Choons then released a full commercial version on 21 January 2008. Separate to the Hooj release, a version of the song remixed by British

big beat Big beat is an electronic music genre that usually uses heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns – common to acid house/techno. The term has been used by the British music industry to describe music by artists such as ...

group

Groove Armada Groove Armada are an English electronic music duo, composed of Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They achieved chart success with their singles "At the River", "I See You Baby" and "Superstylin'". The duo have released nine studio albums, four of whic ...

, appeared on their compilation album '' Late Night Tales: Groove Armada'', released 12 March 2008 by

Azuli Records Azuli Records was a British independent record label, focusing mainly on house music and other forms of electronic dance music. The label was founded by DJ Dave Piccioni in London, England in 1991 but went into liquidation in April 2009. Some ...

. Although an officially released Human League single more than a quarter of a century after its first appearance on ''Dare'', the band themselves did not initiate its release and have had nothing to do with the record's promotion. The track became popular with DJs and in clubs, gaining its own momentum through radio play on UK national

BBC Radio One BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

. After release it reached number two on the UK Dance Chart and number 17 on the UK Indie Chart in February 2008. It was the first return to the charts for the Human League in six years.

Track listing

# "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" (original dub), mixed by

A # "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" (Justus Kohncke dub), mixed by Justus Köncke A # "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" (Richard Stone mix), mixed by Richard Stone B

Use in film and television

*In the 1982

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

comedy '' The Young Ones'', the song is featured in the episode "Interesting". *The song is played in an early scene in the 1989 film ''

Longtime Companion ''Longtime Companion'' is a 1989 American romantic drama film directed by Norman René and starring Bruce Davison, Campbell Scott, Patrick Cassidy, and Mary-Louise Parker. The first wide-release theatrical film to deal with the subject of AIDS, th ...

'', which dealt with the 1980s

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

epidemic. The scene is set in early July 1981, which presents an

anachronism An anachronism (from the Ancient Greek, Greek , 'against' and , 'time') is a chronology, chronological inconsistency in some arrangement, especially a juxtaposition of people, events, objects, language terms and customs from different time per ...

as the song was not released (on the ''Dare'' album) until October 1981, and even later than that in the US where the film is set. *In 2010, the song was featured in

The Kevin Bishop Show ''The Kevin Bishop Show'' is a sketch comedy written by and starring English comedian Kevin Bishop, part of the ''Star Stories'' team. The show was commissioned by Channel 4 for a six-part series starting on 25 July 2008 at 10 p.m. A pilot was b ...

Series 2, Episode 5. *Frequent use during the 1980s in the

series

Ski Sunday ''Ski Sunday'' is the BBC Sports weekly magazine-style television show covering winter sports, broadcast in the United Kingdom on Sundays in a late afternoon or an early evening time-slot. It began in 1978, and is currently presented by Ed Leigh ...

as incidental music.

References

External links

* http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/things_that_dreams_are_made_of.htm * http://www.hooj.com/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Things That Dreams Are Made Of, The 2008 singles The Human League songs Songs written by Philip Oakey 1981 songs Song recordings produced by Martin Rushent Songs written by Philip Adrian Wright