"I Don't Depend on You" is a disco-influenced song by the British

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

group

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

released under the pseudonym ''The Men''. It was released as a single in the UK in July 1979, but failed to chart. It was written by

Philip Oakey Philip Oakey (born 2 October 1955) is an English singer-songwriter who is the frontman and co-founder of the synth-pop band the Human League. Aside from the Human League, he has enjoyed an extensive solo music career and has collaborated with n ...

, Martyn Ware and

Ian Craig Marsh Ian Craig Marsh (born 11 November 1956) is an English musician and composer. He was a founding member of the electronic band the Human League, writing and playing on their first two albums and several singles, until leaving in 1980 to form th ...

; was produced by

Colin Thurston Colin Thurston (b. 1947 – 15 January 2007) was an English recording engineer and record producer, known for his work with David Bowie, Duran Duran and The Human League. Early life Born in Singapore in 1947, Thurston was a guitarist in se ...

and featured guest backing vocalists Katie Kissoon and Lisa Strike (who later worked with

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...

). After hastily signing the Human League in 1978 it became apparent to

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

that the band were not very profitable, with none of their releases under Fast Records making any impact on the charts. Virgin began putting pressure on the group to justify their large advance signing fee. Pressure was put on Ware, Oakey and Marsh to abandon their no traditional instruments rule and use conventional instruments in an attempt to be more commercial and sell more records. Ware reluctantly agreed but insisted that any material recorded this way should be released under a pseudonym to ensure that it wasn't confused with the pure electronic sound of the Human League. "I Don't Depend on You" was the only product of this compromise with Virgin. It was recorded with the addition of session musicians and was released under the name ''The Men''. The song also features the synth riff from debut single Being Boiled towards the end of the track. Afterwards the band were able to record tracks in their original style for Virgin. Before any further conventional style records could be recorded, the original Human League had split; Oakey then took the new reformed band down a different commercial and pop route. Later, it would be commented on that in recording "I Don’t Depend on You" – two years prior to the arrival of schoolgirl vocalists

Susan Ann Sulley Susan Ann Sulley (born 22 March 1963), formerly known as Susanne Sulley and Susan Ann Gayle, is an English singer. She is one of the two female vocalists in the synth-pop band the Human League, contributing co-lead vocals on the conflicting due ...

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, when Catherall had just turned 18 and was still at school doing A levels, she and her ...

– Oakey, Ware and Marsh had already produced a Human League Mk 2-style track complete with commercial pop sound: Oakey's vocal with female backing (with Katie Kissoon and Lisa Strike providing the backing vocals). ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' commented on this in 1990: The B-side, titled "Cruel", is simply a remix of "I Don’t Depend on You" without Oakey's vocals. "I Don’t Depend on You" received little promotion or airplay and did not chart. Re-releases on albums now credit the track as ''The Human League aka 'The Men.

Hot Gossip version

British dance troupe

Hot Gossip Hot Gossip (1974–1986) was a British television dance troupe and recording group. Formation Arlene Phillips moved to London to teach American jazz dance routines, working at Pineapple Dance Studios and the Italia Conti Stage School. ...

released a cover this song in February 1982 as a single from their album ''

Geisha Boys and Temple Girls ''Geisha Boys and Temple Girls'' is a studio album by British dance troupe Arlene Phillips' Hot Gossip. It was released in 1981 and was produced by BEF (former Human League members Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh.) Track listing Personnel ...

'' which was produced by Martyn Ware. The album and single were commercial failures. The single was

Dindisc Dindisc (often rendered DinDisc) was a UK record label, an imprint of Virgin Records but operating semi-independently, which issued new releases from mid-1979 through early 1982. It is no longer active, but CD reissues on Virgin still mention th ...

DIN-39 and was the last Dindisc release.

References

External links

The-black-hit-of-space.dkBlindyouth.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:I Don't Depend On You The Human League songs 1979 singles Songs written by Philip Oakey Songs written by Martyn Ware Songs written by Ian Craig Marsh 1979 songs Virgin Records singles