Empire State Human
title: "Empire State Human" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["the-human-league-songs", "1979-singles", "1979-songs", "song-recordings-produced-by-colin-thurston", "songs-written-by-martyn-ware", "songs-written-by-philip-oakey", "songs-written-by-ian-craig-marsh", "music-videos-directed-by-russell-mulcahy", "virgin-records-singles"] topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_State_Human" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox song"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Empire State Human |
| cover | Empirestatehuman.jpg |
| type | single |
| artist | The Human League |
| album | Reproduction |
| B-side | "Introducing" |
| released | 12 October 1979 |
| June 1980 (re-release) | |
| recorded | Monumental Studios, Sheffield |
| * Art pop<ref name | "Number Ones 2022" |
| * electro-punk<ref name | "Wide 2020" |
| * electronic rock<ref name | "Evans 2024"{{cite book |
| url | https://books.google.com/books?id=EID8zgEACAAJ}} |
| * glam rock<ref name | "Evans 2024"/ |
| length | 4:36 |
| label | Virgin |
| writer | Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh |
| producer | The Human League, Colin Thurston |
| prev_title | I Don't Depend on You |
| prev_year | The Men, 1979 |
| next_title | Only After Dark |
| next_year | 1980 |
| misc | {{Audio sample |
| type | single |
| file | Empire State Human.ogg |
| :: |
| name = Empire State Human | cover = Empirestatehuman.jpg | alt = | type = single | artist = The Human League | album = Reproduction | B-side = "Introducing" "You've Lost that Loving Feeling" (Dutch Release) | released = 12 October 1979 June 1980 (re-release) | recorded = Monumental Studios, Sheffield | studio = | venue = | genre =
- Art pop
- electro-punk
- electronic rock{{cite book|title= Listening to the Music the Machines Make: Inventing Electronic Pop 1978-1983|first=Richard|last=Evans|date= August 6, 2024|chapter= 1979.3|page= 153|publisher=Omnibus Press|isbn=978-1-915841-45-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EID8zgEACAAJ}}
- glam rock | length = 4:36 | label = Virgin | writer = Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh | producer = The Human League, Colin Thurston | prev_title = I Don't Depend on You | prev_year = The Men, 1979 | next_title = Only After Dark | next_year = 1980 | misc = {{Audio sample | type = single | file = Empire State Human.ogg "Empire State Human" is a song by the British synth-pop group The Human League. The song was written by Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh. It was co-produced by The Human League and Colin Thurston, and recorded at Monumental Studios in Sheffield.
The song was the third single to be released by the original line-up of the Human League, and the only single from the band's 1979 debut album Reproduction. Upon its first release in October 1979, the single failed to chart. However, it was re-released in June 1980 and fared slightly better, reaching number 62 in the UK Singles Chart.{{cite book | first= David | last= Roberts | year= 2006 | title= British Hit Singles & Albums | edition= 19th | publisher= Guinness World Records Limited | location= London | isbn= 1-904994-10-5 | page= 262}} For the re-release, Virgin Records included a free copy of the single "Only After Dark" with the first 15,000 copies as a sweetener.
Lyrically, "Empire State Human" is a song about becoming powerful using the analogy of size, with Oakey declaring that he wants to be "tall" 60 times in 3 minutes. Uncut magazine drew a comparison with Oakey's own personal ambition:
The B-side, "Introducing", is an instrumental produced by The Human League. Oakey sang on the original recording but the vocals were not used on the released version.
The open shirted man on the cover artwork is band member Ian Craig Marsh's father.
It was used in the 2012 video game Lollipop Chainsaw in a minigame for the retro stage, and also featured on the game's original soundtrack.
In 2022 the song was used as the intro music on the "Surrender" book tour by U2 front man Bono. It was used again for the show's Broadway run in 2023.
References
References
- "The Human League - Empire State Human (Vinyl)".
- Breihan, Tom. (November 15, 2022). "The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music". [[Hachette Book Group]].
- Wide, Steve. (September 22, 2020). "A Field Guide to Post-Punk and New Wave". Smith Street Books.
- (2013-04-09). "THE HUMAN LEAGUE Blind Youth - the complete guide to The Human League 1977-1980".
- "Made In Sheffield".
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