The Pleasure Principle

by Gary Numan

The Pleasure Principle cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 7 September 1979
  • Label: Beggars Banquet
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Length: 1:08:52
  • Community rating: 3.92/5 from 13 ratings

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Completely abandoning guitars in favor of incredibly dense, icy Minimoog synthesizers, Gary Numan delivered a profoundly influential milestone of early electronic pop. Anchored by the timeless hit 'Cars', 'The Pleasure Principle' is a starkly futuristic, deeply mechanical, and intensely atmospheric exploration of robotic alienation and science-fiction anxiety.

Genres

Descriptors: male-vocalist, repetitive, rhythmic, science fiction, alienation, atmospheric, synthesizers, electronic, minimal

Tracklist

  1. Airlane (3:18)
  2. Metal (3:32)
  3. Complex (3:12)
  4. Films (4:09)
  5. M.E. (5:37)
  6. Tracks (2:51)
  7. Observer (2:53)
  8. Conversation (7:36)
  9. Cars (3:58)
  10. Engineers (4:01)
  11. Random (3:49)
  12. Oceans (3:03)
  13. Asylum (2:31)
  14. Me, I Disconnect from You - Live (3:06)
  15. Bombers - '79 Live Original Mix (5:33)
  16. Remember I Was Vapour - Live (4:46)
  17. On Broadway - Live (4:48)

Credits

  • Gary Numan - primary artist, producer, vocals, keyboards, percussion [synthetic percussion], written-by [all songs written by]
  • Malti Kidia - art direction [art directed by]
  • Paul Gardiner - bass
  • Su Wathan - calligraphy
  • Ced Sharpley - drums, percussion
  • Harvey Webb - engineer, mixed by, lacquer cut by
  • Rikki Sylvan - engineer, mixed by
  • Tony Escott - illustration [illustrated by]
  • Chris Payne - keyboards, viola
  • Patti Burris - make-up
  • Julian Mills - mastered by
  • Melvyn Abrahams - mastered by
  • Geoff Howes - photography by [photographed by]
  • Eddy Gorecki - plated by
  • Billy Currie - violin [fadeout violin]
  • Garry Robson - backing vocals

More from Gary Numan: full discography