Namesakes #144: The Human Beings

Strictly speaking, every band that's ever been featured on Namesakes has been made up of Human Beings. With the obvious exception of Oasis, who are Neanderthals. 

This week, we look at bands that chose to name themselves after everyday people... with a variety of spellings, to confuse and aggravate any Maths teachers who believe that everything should be precise and exact.

THE HUMAN BEINGS #1

We start with some Stonesy rock 'n' roll from Detroit in 1966, led by Ted Licavoli.

The Human Beings - You're Bad News

HUMAN BEINGS #2

Next we go to Norway, where Human Beings also emerged in 1966. They appear to have released one single (probably a cover of The Small Faces' Sha-La-La-La-Lee, though I can't find it on the tube of you), and then finally got around to putting out an album FIFTY years later in 2016. Not sure what they did in between. Here is a tribute to their hometown of Bergen...

Human Beings - Heia Bergen

THE HUMAN BEINZ #3

1966 was a big year for naming your band after homo sapiens, so much so that this Youngstown, Ohio band chose a different spelling (they were originally The Human Beingz, but who needs the g?).

Back when I worked in radio, one of the sales execs visited the US and came back with a cassette of a radio jingle for a used car company in the States that ripped off the biggest hit by The Human Beinz... Nobody But Me. He proceeded to rip off that jingle for one of his clients. I can still remember it, because the ad was on high rotation. "Nobody can do CREDIT like we do, nobody can do FINANCE like we do..." I'm pretty sure the Human Beinz received no money for either the UK rip off or the US original. Although to be fair, as their hit was written by The Isley Brothers (who also recorded the original version), it was those guys who probably needed both the CREDIT and the FINANCE. I hope Quentin Tarantino paid up when he used the track in Kill Bill. 

The Human Beinz - Nobody But Me

THE HUMAN BEANS #4

In 1967, The Human Beans were one of Dave Edmunds' early bands. They released one single, but presumably never set foot in front of a camera, so I had to settle for a picture of the band they evolved into: Love Sculpture.

The Human Beans - Morning Dew (Take Me For A Walk)

THE HUMAN BEINGS #5

From Farnham in Surrey, these Human Beings began life as a punk band in 1977 (what else would you do in 1977?) before "migrating into soft rock". They released one "double B-side" single on Bognor Regis based Airship Records and went on to support Alexei Sayle. The Big Time!

The Human Beings - New Song

HUMAN BEINGS #6

Dutch techno techno techno duo from 1992, when such things were prevalent. Like scurvy.

Human Beings - F.U.B.A.R.

THE HUMAN BEANS #7

More half-baked Beans, this time from San Francisco in the mid 90s. In their favour, they recorded very short songs.

Human Beans - Fight My Disease

HUMANBEINGS #8

US rockers from 2001 with a broken space bar. No idea what they sound like, but I appreciated their song title.

Humanbeings - It's Better To Have Loved And Lost Than It Is To Get Stabbed In The Eye With A Pencil

HUMAN BEINGS #9

Funky acoustic jazz/soul ensemble from France in 2004. Big fans of Wilf Gasmask Grimshaw.

Human Beings - Thema Bounga Thema

HUMAN BEINGS #10

A noisy Japanese lot from 2011...

Human Beings - 島嶼城市 咱 / 島嶼城市 咱 The Island, the City, and We

HUMAN BEANS #11

Spanish power poppers from 2021... could I have saved the best for last this week?

Human Beans - Out In The Field

THE HUMAN BEINGS #12

Oh no, wait - that wasn't the last one. This is the last one. From Pennsylvania in 2022. And it's even better!

The Human Beings - Runnin' (Learning)

Twelve lots of Human Beings for your listening pleasure... but which ones are homo superior?