The Human League

The Human League
The Human League in 2008 (from left: Susan Ann Sulley, Philip Oakey, Joanne Catherall)
Background information
Also known as	The Future (1977), The Men, The League, The League Unlimited Orchestra (1982)
Origin	Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England
Genres	synthpop, new wave, art pop
Years active	1977–present
Labels	Fast Product, EMI, Wall of Sound, Virgin, A&M, East West, Caroline
Associated acts	BEF, Heaven 17, Giorgio Moroder, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis
Website	thehumanleague.co.uk
Members	Philip Oakey Joanne Catherall Susan Ann Sulley
Past members	Ian Craig Marsh Martyn Ware Philip Adrian Wright Ian Burden Jo Callis Jim Russell

The Human League are an English synthpop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. After signing to Virgin Records in 1979, the band released two albums and a string of singles before attaining widespread commercial success with their third album Dare in 1981. The album contained four hit singles, including "Love Action", "Open Your Heart", and the UK/US number one hit "Don't You Want Me". The band received the Brit Award for Best British Breakthrough Act in 1982. Further hits followed throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, including "Being Boiled", "Mirror Man", "Fascination", "The Lebanon", "Human" (a US No. 1) and "Tell Me When".

The band began as an avant-garde all-male synthesizer-based group. The only constant band member since 1977 has been vocalist and songwriter Philip Oakey. Keyboard players Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh both left the band in 1980 to form Heaven 17. Under Oakey's leadership, the Human League then evolved into a commercially successful synthpop band with a new line-up including female vocalists Joanne Catherall and Susan Ann Sulley. Since the mid-1990s, the band has essentially been a trio of Oakey, Catherall and Sulley with various sidemen.