Jump to content

Laban (band)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Laban
Pedersen and Jønsson in 1986.
Pedersen and Jønsson in 1986.
Background information
OriginDenmark
Genres
Years active1982–1988
Labels
Past membersLecia Jønsson
Ivan Pedersen

Laban was a 1980s Eurodisco duo consisting of Lecia Jønsson and Ivan Pedersen. Both members were born in Denmark and originally sang in Danish, finding great success in their native country. In 1986, Laban expanded into English language releases that gave the duo limited international success. Laban released two albums internationally, and they became known for singles such as "Love in Siberia" and "Caught by Surprise." "Love in Siberia" achieved limited moderate success in the United States in addition to the success it found in Europe. Their 1986 album, Caught by Surprise, also performed well. In total, Laban's albums and singles were released in over forty countries worldwide.[1]

History

[edit]

Formation and success in Denmark

[edit]

Laban was formed after music manager and producer Cai Leitner heard Ricchi e Poveri's "Sarà perché ti amo" and thought it had the potential to be a hit single and wanted a Danish version recorded. Through his secretary, Leitner requested composer and singer-songwriter Ivan Pedersen to rewrite the song in Danish,[2] and Leitner suggested Pedersen record it as a duet with Lecia Jønsson, who was affiliated with EMI.[3] The song was called "Hvor ska' vi sove i nat?" ("Where Are We Going to Sleep Tonight?"). However, since Pedersen and Jønsson were involved in other projects, it was decided the single would be released under a different name after consultation with the record company. Producer Tommy Seebach suggested the name Laban, inspired by Abba, which also included two A's. Seebach, who was an "in-house" producer at EMI, then had the song recorded in November 1981 with the identities of Pedersen and Jønsson remaining anonymous.[4] "Hvor ska' vi sove i nat?" was released in March 1982, and the record company used the anonymity for a PR campaign where music critics competed to guess who performed it.[5] In turn, the campaign garnered significant attention, promoting sales of the single, and making the duo's identities quickly known among the public.

"Hvor ska' vi sove i nat?" became an instant hit in Denmark and has sold over a million copies to date.[6] Pedersen and Jønsson subsequently began extensively touring throughout Denmark to promote the song. Following the success of their debut single, a self-entitled debut album, Laban, was swiftly recorded and released in October 1982.[7] Laban became a gold record on the day it released[8] and included another song cover, called "Jeg ka' li' dig alligevel" ("I Like You Anyway"), which was originally performed by the Dutch disco group Hot Shot as "Angel from Paradise." The debut album was followed by Laban 2 in 1983, Laban 3 in 1984, and Laban 4 in 1985, which were sung in Danish and reached platinum status in Denmark.

In 1985, Laban released a single titled "Kold som is" (Cold as Ice) which went to Number 4 in Denmark.[9] After this, Laban's music began to be recorded in English for international releases.

Caught by Surprise, Love in Siberia, and international success

[edit]

After Laban 4, the duo's first English album was an LP called Caught by Surprise, consisting of English versions of songs from prior releases. In 1986, Caught by Surprise saw a global release,[10] along with a single release of the title track. The same year, Laban's most well-known song, "Love in Siberia" (an English version of "Kold som is") was released. It was written by Pedersen and inspired by "Self Control" by Laura Branigan.[11] The song's music video was filmed in Spain's Canary Islands and Laban's native Denmark in August 1986. "Love in Siberia" spent 4 weeks in the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at Number 88 in November 1986.[12] It also reached Number 38 on the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart[13] and #47 on the Cash Box chart.[14] The success of "Love in Siberia" made Laban only the fifth Danish act to break into the Billboard Hot 100 at the time.[15]

The success of "Love in Siberia" launched the pair to even bigger international success, especially in Europe and Latin America. Caught by Surprise also included their third international single titled "Donna Donna." Laban's mainstream success in Scandinavian territories included Sweden, where the title track single "Caught by Surprise" reached #9[16] and the album reached #28.[17] By the release of Caught by Surprise, Pedersen and Jønsson began feeling worn out, but due to the success of "Love in Siberia", the duo chose to continue working together and record new music.[18]

Roulette and fading popularity

[edit]

Following the success of Caught by Surprise and the previous singles, Laban released a second international album titled Roulette in August 1987.[19] Roulette had more of a rock music sound than Caught by Surprise, and the album was composed of English versions of songs on Laban 5 (which was released in October 1987[20]), and some from Laban 4. Four songs were released as singles, including "Prisoner of the Night," but the album and its singles failed to make the same impact as the band's previous releases. By the latter part of 1987, Laban's popularity was fading, and record sales in their native Denmark had stagnated.[21] The last studio album Laban released was Laban 5, and like Roulette, it also had more of a rock music sound. Laban's last Danish single was written by Pedersen and titled "De vilde er de værste" (The Wild Ones Are the Worst), remaining exclusive in Denmark as the song and its B side, "Hvor ka' vi mødes" (Where Can We Meet), written by Jønsson, only appeared on Laban 5 and neither song had an English version recorded.

Dissolution

[edit]

Internal disagreements and extensive touring eventually took their toll on Pedersen and Jønsson. Additionally, without another single achieving the same success as "Love in Siberia", the future seemed bleak for Laban by 1988.[22] Laban's last single was a cover of the Dusty Springfield song "I Close My Eyes and Count to Ten," released in 1988 and included on the Laban: Greatest Hits compilation the same year. In combination with their popularity fading and disagreements over Laban's future, Laban split up in the summer of 1988 following a short tour for Laban 5 in Sweden.[23][24] Since the dissolution, Pedersen has remained active in the music industry with various projects, releasing solo material and forming bands such as Backseat. While Jønsson has stepped away from the public eye, she continues to sing and has released solo material. There are currently no plans for Laban to reunite.

In 2017, Pedersen published his memoir titled "Med Hjerte Udenpå" (With a Heart on the Outside), discussing his experience in the music industry and time in Laban.[25] In 2023, Jønsson published a book called "Det' en hem’lighed" (It's a Secret) that reflected on her time in Laban and behind-the-scenes conflicts,[26] garnering criticism from Pedersen.[27]

Discography

[edit]

Albums

[edit]

Singles

[edit]

Compilations

[edit]
  • Laban's bedste (1985)
  • Laban: Greatest Hits (1988)
  • De største narrestreger (1997)
  • The Collection (2000)
  • De 36 bedste narrestreger (2009)
  • Komplet & rariteter (2010)
  • Love in Siberia - The Best Of Laban (2010)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Jønsson, Lecia. "Songwriter". Lecia.dk. Lecia Jønsson. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  2. ^ Pedersen, Ivan (2017). Med Hjertet Udenpå. Denmark: Dreamlitt Publishing. p. 129. ISBN 978-87-7171-487-6.
  3. ^ Pedersen, Ivan (2017). Med Hjertet Udenpå. Denmark: Dreamlitt Publishing. p. 130. ISBN 978-87-7171-487-6.
  4. ^ Pedersen, Ivan (2017). Med Hjertet Udenpå. Denmark: Dreamlitt Publishing. p. 131. ISBN 978-87-7171-487-6.
  5. ^ Pedersen, Ivan (2017). Med Hjertet Udenpå. Denmark: Dreamlitt Publishing. p. 138. ISBN 978-87-7171-487-6.
  6. ^ "Laban tørret i bagdelen". Avisen.dk. Jens Norre. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  7. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "Laban 1". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  8. ^ "Laban: Ivan Pedersen Interview Entrevista 2020". YouTube.com. Retro Talking Mix. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  9. ^ "Danish Chart Archive Singles". ukmis.org. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  10. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "Caught by Surprise". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  11. ^ "Laban: Ivan Pedersen Interview Entrevista 2020". YouTube.com. Retro Talking Mix. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  12. ^ "Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). WorldRadioHistory.com. Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  13. ^ "Hot Dance/Disco" (PDF). WorldRadioHistory.com. Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  14. ^ "Cash Box Top 12" Dance Singles" (PDF). WorldRadioHistory.com. Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  15. ^ Grein, Paul. "Chart Beat" (PDF). WorldRadioHistory.com. Paul Grein. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  16. ^ "Laban – Caught By Surprise". hitparade.ch. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  17. ^ "Laban -- Caught by Surprise (Album)". hitparade.ch. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  18. ^ "Laban: Ivan Pedersen Interview Entrevista 2020". YouTube.com. Retro Talking Mix. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  19. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "Roulette". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  20. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "Laban 5". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  21. ^ Pedersen, Ivan (2017). Med Hjertet Udenpå. Denmark: Dreamlitt Publishing. p. 183. ISBN 978-87-7171-487-6.
  22. ^ "Laban: Ivan Pedersen Interview Entrevista 2020". YouTube.com. Retro Talking Mix. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  23. ^ Jønsson, Lecia. "About: LABAN". lecia.dk. Lecia Jønsson. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  24. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "1988". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  25. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "2017". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  26. ^ Vraa, Nikolaj. "Lecia vil begrave stridsøksen: Klar til Laban-genforening". alt.dk. alt.dk. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  27. ^ Pedersen, Ivan. "IVANS KOMMENATAR TIL LECIAS BOG". ivanpedersen.com. Ivan Pedersen. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Laban_(band)&oldid=1285995630"