Being Boiled - The Human League

Being Boiled - The Human League
Written by Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh and Phillip Oakey
1978 Fast Product
B-Side Circus of Death
1978 failed to chart
Re-recorded and reissued in 1980
Reached number 56 in 1980 and number 46 in 1982


If I had to choose just one song as my favourite, it would without a doubt be Being Boiled by The Human League. It completely passed me by on it's release as I would have been 9 or 10 at the time. I can't even remember hearing it when it was re-recorded and reissued in 1980/1982. It must have been some 20 years ago or so when I found it in a local charity shop for the grand sum of 25p and bought it.

I can remember playing it for the first time and being completely blown away! It was dark, not only the lyrics, but the melody with it's haunting bassline. I had always loved electronic music but this was amazing! Being Boiled was completely unlike the later releases by the band which were more 'poppy' and included vocals by Joanne Catherall and Susanne Sulley. 

The lyrics are a protest against silk farming (sericulture) with the opening line;  "Listen to the voice of Buddha, saying stop your sericulture."  The ringing of bells is referred to as "The voice of Buddha" in Japan. The song's music predates the formation of The Human League, originally being written by Ware and Marsh as The Future. Singer Adi  Newton had left and Oakey was asked to join and given the music. 2 days later,  he returned with the lyrics to Being Boiled. The original version was recorded on a home tape recorder in an abandoned factory and cost about £2.50 to make!

The B-side, Circus of Death starts with a spoken intro by Phil Oakey. "This is a song called "The Circus of Death". It tells the true story of a circus we met. The first two verses concern the actual arrival at Heathrow Airport of Commissioner Steve McGarrett. The third emotionally describes a map showing the range of the circus. The fourth and fifth were extracted from an article in The Guardian of March the 19th, 1962. The last is a short wave radio message from the last man on Earth." 

Being Boiled has remained a firm favourite and is definitely top of my list of '10 records I would save if music was to end'.


I have a small and ridiculous claim to fame regarding The Human League! When I was about 12 or 13, I was walking down into Sheffield's famous 'Hole in the road' with my mum one Saturday afternoon. All of a sudden, someone ran smack into me and almost knocked me off my feet! I looked up to see a very tall man who put his hand on my shoulder and said he was very sorry. It was Phil Oakey! Suddenly, a group of screaming girls appeared and he ran off again with them in hot pursuit! I was in complete awe! He touched me! Phil Oakey touched my shoulder and apologised for  bumping into me! As a teenage girl and a massive Human League fan, I dined out on that for a very long time!!