Homosapien (album)

Homosapien
Studio album by Pete Shelley
Released	1981
Recorded	1981, Genetic Studios, London
Genre	New wave
Length	35:51
Label	Genetic (Island)
Producer	Martin Rushent, Pete Shelley
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Pete Shelley chronology
Homosapien (1981) XL1 (1983)
Singles from Homosapien
"Homosapien" b/w "Keat's Song" Released: September 1981 "Homosapien" b/w "Love in Vain" Released: 1982, (changed B-side)

Homosapien was Buzzcocks frontman Pete Shelley's 1981 debut solo album, the title-track of which was released as a UK single the same year. The single was banned by the BBC, but was nevertheless a hit in several countries.

The album began as a collection of studio demos recorded by Shelley (and produced by Martin Rushent) for the next Buzzcocks' album. In the process, Shelley and Rushent grew enormously fond of the sound they had created in the studio, which featured an interesting blend of drum machines, synthesizers and sequencers coupled with guitars. Shelley, weary of the Buzzcocks' financial state, decided to leave the band after Island Records' Andrew Lauder offered him a solo record deal based on the demos.

Released at the start of the home computer boom, the album cover featured Shelley in a stylised 'office' leaning on a Commodore PET computer.

As was typical in the era, Homosapien had a different track listing in the United States, with three songs being excised and three single b-sides being added in their place.

In the mid 1980's Homosapien was originally issued on Compact Disc by Arista Records. In 1997, Razor & Tie Entertainment reissued the US version on CD with five bonus tracks taken from Shelley's follow-up album, XL1. In 2006, the original UK version was reissued on CD by Varep Records. It includes all the songs from the US version as bonus tracks, as well as two other b-side "dub" mixes.

Track listings

All tracks written by Pete Shelley.

Original UK Track Listing

1. "Homosapien"
2. "Yesterday's Not Here"
3. "I Generate a Feeling"
4. "Keat's Song"
5. "Qu'est-ce que c'est que ça ?"
6. "I Don't Know What It Is"
7. "Guess I Must Have Been in Love with Myself"
8. "Pusher Man"
9. "Just One of Those Affairs"
10. "It's Hard Enough Knowing"

2006 CD Bonus Tracks

1. "Witness the Change"
2. "Maxine"
3. "In Love with Somebody Else"
4. "Homosapien (Dub)"
5. "Witness the Change/I Don't Know What Love Is"
6. "Love in Vain"

• Track 5 is an unspecified instrumental "dub" mix of both songs.

US Track Listing

1. "Homosapien"
2. "Yesterday's Not Here"
3. "Love in Vain"
4. "Just One of Those Affairs"
5. "Qu' Est-Ce Que C' Est Que Ça"
6. "I Don't Know What It Is"
7. "Witness the Change"
8. "Guess I Must Have Been in Love with Myself"
9. "I Generate a Feeling"
10. "In Love with Somebody Else"

1997 CD Bonus Tracks

1. "Telephone Operator"
2. "If You Ask Me (I Won't Say No)"
3. "You Know Better Than I Know"
4. "(Millions of People) No One Like You"
5. "XL1"

Personnel

• Pete Shelley - vocals, multi-instruments
• Barry Adamson - bass
• Martin Rushent - keyboards
• Jim Russell - drums

Associated Flexidisc

'New Sounds, New Style' magazine offered a free givaway yellow flexidisc featuring an extended version of "Qu' Est-Ce Que C' Est Que Ça". Halfway through the album version an obvious edit was made into a dubbed version of the track. This version has never been re-released.