The Pleasure Principle (album)

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}} {{Use British English|date=February 2013}} {{about|the Gary Numan album|the Parlet album|Pleasure Principle (album)|5=Pleasure principle (disambiguation)}} {{Infobox album | name = The Pleasure Principle | type = studio | artist = [[Gary Numan]] | cover = ThePleasurePrinciple1.jpg | alt = Gary Numan (seen wearing a business suit) looks at a glowing purple Perspex pyramid that is on a black reflective table. | released = 7 September 1979 | recorded = Mid–1979 | studio = Marcus Music AB ([[London]], England) | genre = {{hlist|[[Synth-pop]]|[[electropop]]|[[New wave music|new wave]]|[[electronica]]|[[post-punk]]}} | length = {{duration|m=41|s=07}} | label = [[Beggars Banquet Records|Beggars Banquet]] | producer = Gary Numan | prev_title = [[Replicas (album)|Replicas]] | prev_year = 1979 | next_title = [[Telekon]] | next_year = 1980 | misc = {{Singles | name = The Pleasure Principle | type = studio | single1 = [[Cars (song)|Cars]] | single1date = 24 August 1979<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1979/Music-Week-1979-09-01.pdf|title=Music Week|page=46}}</ref> | single2 = [[Complex (song)|Complex]] | single2date = 16 November 1979 }} {{Extra album cover | header = Alternative cover | type = studio | cover = Gary_Numan,_The_Pleasure_Principle_-_The_First_Recordings,_front_cover.png | border = | alt = | caption = ''The Pleasure Principle: The First Recordings'' cover }} }}

'''''The Pleasure Principle''''' is the debut solo studio album by the English [[New wave music|new wave]] musician [[Gary Numan]], released on 7 September 1979 by [[Beggars Banquet Records]]. The album came about six months after ''[[Replicas (album)|Replicas]]'' (1979), his second and final studio album with the band [[Tubeway Army]]. ''The Pleasure Principle'' peaked at No. 1 on the [[UK Albums Chart]].

The album features his biggest hit, "[[Cars (song)|Cars]]".

==Recording== Following ''Replicas'', Numan recruited a permanent drummer and a keyboard player and demoed an album's worth of new material in April 1979. This was before the single "[[Are "Friends" Electric?]]" from the previous album had been released. A second session that yielded four further songs followed some weeks later. The day after "Are "Friends" Electric?" reached number one on the [[UK Singles Chart]], Numan and his band recorded four of the new songs in a session for [[John Peel]], credited to Gary Numan and dropping the group name Tubeway Army. By the time ''Replicas'' reached number one on the albums chart ''The Pleasure Principle'' was being recorded at Marcus Music Studio, London.<ref>[https://archive.beggars.com/numan-gary-the-pleasure-principle-first/ Gary Numan The Pleasure Principle – The First Recordings] Archive Beggars</ref>

==Composition and release== ''The Pleasure Principle'' has been described as featuring [[synth-pop]],<ref name="Sandlin"/> [[electropop]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.classicpopmag.com/2021/08/top-15-electropop-albums/ |title=Top 15 Electropop Albums |website=[[Classic Pop (magazine)|Classic Pop]] |date=25 August 2021}}</ref> [[New wave music|new wave]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/new-wave/the-best-new-wave-albums/ |title=The 50 Best New Wave Albums |website=[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]] |date=8 September 2016 |access-date=30 December 2017}}</ref> and [[electronica]]<ref name= "Kato 2016">{{cite book|first= Yoshi|last= Kato|editor-first= Robert |editor-last= Dimery |year= 2016 |title= [[1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die]] |chapter= Gary Numan - ''The Pleasure Principle''|publisher= [[Cassell (publisher)|Cassell Illustrated]] |location= London |page= 445}}</ref> throughout. Numan completely abandoned electric guitar on the album.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.riverfronttimes.com/stlouis/electronic-music-icon-gary-numan-talks-performing-his-landmark-album-the-pleasure-principle/Content?oid=2491966 |title=Electronic-music icon Gary Numan talks performing his landmark album, The Pleasure Principle |newspaper=[[Riverfront Times]] |location=St. Louis |date=11 November 2010 |access-date=3 November 2020 |last=Zaleski |first=Annie}}</ref> This change, coupled with frequent use of synthetic percussion, produced the most purely electronic and robotic sound of his career. In addition to the [[Minimoog]] [[synthesizer]] employed on his previous album, Numan made liberal use of the [[Polymoog]] keyboard, particularly its distinctive "Vox Humana" preset. Other production tricks included copious amounts of [[flanging]], [[Phaser (effect)|phasing]] and [[reverberation|reverb]], plus the unusual move of including solo [[viola]] and [[violin]] parts in the arrangements.

Lyrically, the album continued the [[science fiction]]-themes of the previous album. While not a theme album the way ''[[Replicas (album)|Replicas]]'' was, Numan has described the songs as "more of a collection of thoughts I'd had about the way [[technology]] was evolving and where it would take us."<ref name="A" />

Notable tracks included "Airlane", the lead-off instrumental; "Metal", sung from the perspective of an [[android (robot)|android]] longing to be human;<ref name="A" /> "M.E.", standing for "Mechanical Engineering"<ref name="A" /> and told from the perspective of the last machine on Earth, the electronic ballad "[[Complex (song)|Complex]]", a UK No. 6 single; and "Cars", a worldwide [[synth-pop]] hit which reached No. 9 in the U.S. and No. 1 in Canada,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.0189a&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.0189a.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.0189a |title=RPM 100 Singles |magazine=[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]] |location=Toronto |volume=33 |issue=13 |date=21 June 1980 |access-date=3 November 2020}}</ref> helping make ''The Pleasure Principle'' Numan's strongest North American showing, but lack of a strong commercial follow-up resulted in him being tagged as a [[one-hit wonder]] there.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://toponehitwonders.com/1980s/cars-gary-numan/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101130232615/http://toponehitwonders.com/1980s/cars-gary-numan/ |archive-date=30 November 2010 |title=Cars - Gary Numan {{!}} Top One-Hit Wonders}}</ref>

"Complex", featuring an arrangement including [[piano]], [[violin]] (played by [[Ultravox]]'s [[Billy Currie]]) and [[viola]], was chosen as the second single from the album, released in November 1979. Despite its commercial success, peaking at No. 6 in the UK during a nine-week chart run, Numan later regretted the choice of it as a single and that "Metal" should have been released instead.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Harris|first=Will|title=Gary Numan on 'The Pleasure Principle' at 40 & the 'Luck' That Led to 'Cars'|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/gary-numan-cars-the-pleasure-principle-interview-8529348/|magazine=Billboard|date=7 September 2019|access-date=8 February 2024}}</ref>

==Title and cover image== The title of the album was taken from the [[surrealism|surrealist]] painting ''The Pleasure Principle'' by [[René Magritte]].<ref name="A">Gary Numan ''(R)evolution: The Autobiography'', Hatchett 2020, Chapter six: 1979</ref> Subtitled ''(A portrait of Edward James)'', it depicts a seated figure whose arms rest on a wooden table upon which lies a small stone, and a ball of light obliterating the figure's head. The cover image of Numan's album is an adaptation of the painting with Numan seated in the same position dressed in a similar suit, but replacing the natural materials (wood and stone) with shiny and glowing artificial objects and futuristic shapes.<ref>Judith A. Peraino "Synthesizing difference: early synth-pop" in ''Rethinking Difference in Music Scholarship'', Cambridge University Press 2015, p.290</ref> According to Numan it was "a clear nod towards technology. Where Magritte had a rock on a desk, for example, I had a glowing purple [[Poly(methyl methacrylate)|Perspex]] [[pyramid]]."<ref name="A" />

==Tour== Numan toured throughout the world in support of the album with a huge stage set including banks of [[Neon lamp|neon lights]] and twin pyramids which moved across the stage via radio control.{{Citation needed|date= December 2019}} The live show was captured on record as ''[[Living Ornaments '79]]'' (1981) and on [[video]] as ''The Touring Principle''. The support act on the UK leg of the tour was [[Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark]]. An expanded version of ''Living Ornaments '79'' was issued on CD in 2005, and the final show of ''The Touring Principle'' was captured on the CD ''Engineers'' (released exclusively through Numan's official website) in 2008.{{Citation needed|date= December 2019}}

Numan performed a 16-date mini-tour dedicated to the album across the UK and Ireland during November and December 2009, similar to his previous tours for ''[[Replicas (album)|Replicas]]'' (1979) and ''Telekon'' (1980), performing the album in its entirety.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thequietus.com/articles/02079-gary-numan-announces-tour |title=Gary Numan Announces Tour |website=[[The Quietus]] |date=7 July 2009 |access-date=3 November 2020 |last=Hewitt |first=Ben}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/gary-numan/2009/wulfrun-hall-wolverhampton-england-63d57af3.html|title = Gary Numan Setlist at Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton|website = setlist.fm}}</ref> Numan had been scheduled to play the 2010 [[Coachella (festival)|Coachella Festival]] in [[Indio, California]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gaston |first=Peter |date=2010-01-19 |title=Coachella 2010: Jay-Z, Muse, Gorillaz to Headline |url=https://www.spin.com/2010/01/coachella-2010-jay-z-muse-gorillaz-headline/ |access-date=2025-02-14 |website=SPIN |language=en-US}}</ref> but was forced to cancel, due to the [[2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull|Icelandic volcano eruption]] that disrupted air travel.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Team |first=KESQ News |date=2010-04-18 |title=Gary Numan Cancels Coachella Performance |url=https://kesq.com/news/2010/04/18/gary-numan-cancels-coachella-performance/ |access-date=2025-02-14 |website=KESQ |language=en-US}}</ref> To make up for this, he embarked upon another 16-date mini-tour of the U.S. that August, again performing ''The Pleasure Principle'' in its entirety.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vilas-boas |first=Eric |date=2010-08-09 |title=Gary Numan to Play Classic Album on U.S. Tour |url=https://www.spin.com/2010/08/gary-numan-play-classic-album-us-tour/ |access-date=2025-02-14 |website=SPIN |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Reissue== Of the bonus tracks later included on [[Compact disc|CD]] reissues, "Random" and "Oceans" were [[instrumental]] outtakes from ''The Pleasure Principle'' sessions, originally issued on vinyl with other previously unreleased tracks in 1985, while "Asylum" was the instrumental [[A-side and B-side|B-side]] of the "Cars" vinyl single. The live versions of "Me! I Disconnect From You" and "[[Bombers (Tubeway Army song)|Bombers]]", which appeared as B-sides of "Complex", were recorded on tour and later made available in their original context on the expanded ''Living Ornaments '79'' CD, along with "Remember I Was Vapour" and "[[On Broadway (song)|On Broadway]]". The latter two tracks were first released as a promotional single shipped with early pressings of the album ''[[Telekon]]'' in 1980; Numan's [[cover version]] of the classic "On Broadway" was dominated by a characteristic synthesizer solo by then-former (and soon-to-be-again) [[Ultravox]] band member [[Billy Currie]].

==Critical reception== {{Album ratings | rev1 = [[AllMusic]] | rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="AMG">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-pleasure-principle-mw0000599295 |title=The Pleasure Principle – Gary Numan |publisher=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=7 July 2011 |last=Prato |first=Greg}}</ref> | rev2 = ''[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]]'' | rev2score = 9/10<ref name="classic" >{{cite magazine |title=Gary Numan: The Pleasure Principle: 30th Anniversary Edition |magazine=[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]] |location=Bath |issue=138 |date=November 2009 |last=Doran |first=John |page=96}}</ref> | rev3 = ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'' | rev3score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Gary Numan: The Pleasure Principle |magazine=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |location=London |issn=1351-0193 |issue=192 |date=November 2009 |last=Buckley |first=David |page=109}}</ref> | rev4 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' | rev4score = 8.2/10<ref name="Sandlin">{{cite web |url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/n/numan_gary/pleasure-principal.shtml |title=Gary Numan: The Pleasure Principle |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |access-date=24 February 2019 |last=Sandlin |first=Michael |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000816183129/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/n/numan_gary/pleasure-principal.shtml |archive-date=16 August 2000 |url-status=dead}}</ref> | rev5 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]'' | rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Gary Numan: The Pleasure Principle |magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]] |location=London |issue=280 |date=November 2009 |last=Green |first=Thomas H. |page=123}}</ref> | rev6 = ''[[Record Collector]]'' | rev6score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/the-pleasure-principleexpanded-edition |title=Gary Numan – The Pleasure Principle: Expanded Edition |magazine=[[Record Collector]] |location=London |issue=368 |date=November 2009 |access-date=7 July 2011 |last=McIver |first=Joel |author-link=Joel McIver |page=95}}</ref> | rev7 = ''[[Smash Hits]]'' | rev7score = 7/10<ref name="sh">{{cite magazine |title=Albums |magazine=[[Smash Hits]] |location=London |volume=1 |issue=21 |date=20 September – 3 October 1979 |last=Starr |first=Red |page=25}}</ref> | rev8 = ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' | rev8score = 8/10<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-5EbyHNqgkwC&pg=PT30 |title=Retro Active |magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] |location=New York |volume=14 |issue=9 |date=September 1998 |access-date=20 September 2015 |last=Price |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Price |pages=188–89}}</ref> | rev9 = ''[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]]'' | rev9score = 9/10<ref>{{cite magazine |title=How to Buy... Gary Numan |magazine=[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]] |location=London |issue=250 |date=March 2018 |last=Martin |first=Piers |page=43}}</ref> | rev10 = ''[[The Village Voice]]'' | rev10score = B<ref name="christgau">{{cite news |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv3-80.php |title=Christgau's Consumer Guide |newspaper=[[The Village Voice]] |location=New York |date=31 March 1980 |access-date=20 September 2015 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau}}</ref> }} [[Robert Christgau]] of ''[[The Village Voice]]'' described ''The Pleasure Principle'' as "''[[Metal Machine Music]]'' goes [[easy listening|easy-listening]]," continuing: "This time he's singing about robots, engineers, and isolation. In such a slight artist, these things make all the difference."<ref name="christgau" />

''[[Smash Hits]]'' reviewer Red Starr found the album to be "not bad, mind you — a smoother, almost [[disco]]ish version of ''Replicas'' — but much too similar to it and not as adventurous".<ref name="sh" />

''[[Record Mirror]]'''s Simon Ludgate also found that Numan repeated the formula from ''Replicas'' and criticized the songs for being too cold and detached: "Detachment and distance are painstakingly sewn into every track (...) Numan's affected android voice and his lumbering synthesizers infiltrate your mind, leaving you numbed and clogged."<ref>{{Cite magazine|title=Pain in Pleasure: Gary Numan The Pleasure Principle |author=Ludgate, Simon |magazine=Record Mirror 8 September 1979 |page=18 }}</ref>

In a retrospective review, [[AllMusic]]'s Greg Prato said ''The Pleasure Principle'' was distinguished by the consistent quality of its songs and the presence of drummer Cedric Sharpley, who "adds a whole new dimension with his powerful percussion work."<ref name="AMG" /> Prato concluded, "If you had to own just one Gary Numan album, ''The Pleasure Principle'' would be it."<ref name="AMG" />

==Track listing== {{Track listing | all_writing = Gary Numan, except where noted | headline = Side one | title1 = Airlane | length1 = 3:18 | title2 = [[Metal (song)|Metal]] | length2 = 3:32 | title3 = [[Complex (Gary Numan song)|Complex]] | length3 = 3:12 | title4 = Films | length4 = 4:09 | title5 = M.E. | length5 = 5:37 }} {{Track listing | headline = Side two | title6 = Tracks | length6 = 2:51 | title7 = Observer | length7 = 2:53 | title8 = Conversation | length8 = 7:36 | title9 = [[Cars (song)|Cars]] | length9 = 3:58 | title10 = Engineers | length10 = 4:01 }}

{{Track listing | headline = 1998 CD bonus tracks | title11 = Random | length11 = 3:49 | title12 = Oceans | length12 = 3:03 | title13 = Asylum | length13 = 2:31 | title14 = Me! I Disconnect From You | note14 = Live | length14 = 3:06 | title15 = [[Bombers (Gary Numan song)|Bombers]] | note15 = Live | length15 = 5:46 | title16 = Remember I Was Vapour | note16 = Live | length16 = 4:46 | title17 = [[On Broadway (song)|On Broadway]] | note17 = Live | writer17 = [[Jerry Leiber]], [[Mike Stoller]], [[Barry Mann]], [[Cynthia Weil]] | length17 = 4:48 }}

===30th Anniversary Edition=== To coincide with ''The Pleasure Principle'' 30th Anniversary Tour, a special edition of the album was released on 21 September 2009. Featuring the original album and a second disc of demos, studio sessions, and live recordings. A triple disc edition of the reissue was also available through Townsend Records and Numan's website.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.townsend-records.co.uk/sites/garynuman/index.php?productId=10003424&pTypeId=1 |title=Gary Numan Online Store |publisher=Townsend Records |access-date=14 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090716213327/http://www.townsend-records.co.uk/sites/garynuman/index.php?productId=10003424&pTypeId=1 |archive-date=16 July 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

{{Track listing | headline = 2009 Reissue bonus disc | title1 = Airlane | note1 = Demo | length1 = 3:17 | title2 = Metal | note2 = Demo | length2 = 3:35 | title3 = Complex | note3 = Demo | length3 = 3:16 | title4 = Films | note4 = Demo | length4 = 2:41 | title5 = M.E. | note5 = Demo | length5 = 4:31 | title6 = Tracks | note6 = Outtake | length6 = 2:51 | title7 = Observer | note7 = Demo | length7 = 3:02 | title8 = Conversation | note8 = Demo 2 | length8 = 6:49 | title9 = Cars | note9 = Demo 2 | length9 = 3:14 | title10 = Engineers | note10 = Demo | length10 = 3:51 | title11 = Random | length11 = 3:58 | title12 = Oceans | length12 = 3:03 | title13 = Asylum | length13 = 2:31 | title14 = Photograph | length14 = 2:26 | title15 = Trois Gymnopédies No. 1 | note15 = Demo | length15 = 2:25 | title16 = Conversation | note16 = Demo 1 | length16 = 3:55 | title17 = M.E. | note17 = Outtake | length17 = 5:15 }} {{Track listing | headline = 2009 Reissue Townsend Records exclusive disc | extra_column = Original release | title1 = Down In The Park | note1 = Live; first recording | length1 = 4:32 | title2 = On Broadway | note2 = Live | writer2 = Leiber, Stoller, Mann, Weil | length2 = 4:44 | title3 = Everyday I Die | note3 = Live | length3 = 3:40 | title4 = Remember I Was Vapour | note4 = Live | length4 = 4:43 | title5 = Bombers | note5 = Live | extra5 = "Complex" 12" single | length5 = 5:33 | title6 = Me! I Disconnect From You | note6 = Live | extra6 = "Complex" single | length6 = 3:06 | title7 = Conversation | note7 = Live; first recording | length7 = 7:47 | title8 = Metal | note8 = Live; first recording | length8 = 3:27 | title9 = Down In The Park | note9 = Live; second recording | length9 = 5:14 | title10 = Airlane | note10 = Live | extra10 = ''[[Living Ornaments '79]]'' | length10 = 3:16 | title11 = Cars | note11 = Live | extra11 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length11 = 3:26 | title12 = We Are So Fragile | note12 = Live | extra12 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length12 = 2:39 | title13 = Films | note13 = Live | extra13 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length13 = 3:51 | title14 = Something's In The House | note14 = Live | extra14 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length14 = 4:12 | title15 = My Shadow In Vain | note15 = Live | extra15 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length15 = 2:54 | title16 = Conversation | note16 = Live; second recording | extra16 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length16 = 7:44 | title17 = The Dream Police | note17 = Live | extra17 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length17 = 4:18 | title18 = Metal | note18 = Live; second recording | extra18 = ''Living Ornaments '79'' | length18 = 4:02 }}

===40th Anniversary Edition=== To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the release of ''The Pleasure Principle'', a special edition of the album, ''The Pleasure Principle: The First Recordings'' was released on 11 October 2019.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.superdeluxeedition.com/news/gary-numan-40th-anniversary-reissues/ |title=Gary Numan / 40th anniversary reissues |publisher=Super Deluxe Edition |date=21 August 2019 |access-date=26 April 2020 |last=Sinclair |first=Paul}}</ref> Released on 2 LP coloured vinyl and 2 CD editions.

{{Track listing | headline = ''The Pleasure Principle: The First Recordings'' disc 1 | title1 = Cars | note1 = Demo 2 | length1 = 3:14 | title2 = Films | note2 = Demo | length2 = 2:41 | title3 = Complex | note3 = Demo | length3 = 3:16 | title4 = Random | length4 = 3:58 | title5 = M.E. | note5 = Demo | length5 = 4:31 | title6 = Conversation | note6 = Demo 2 | length6 = 6:49 | title7 = Tracks | note7 = Demo | length7 = 3:01 | title8 = Cars | note8 = Demo 1 | length8 = 3:36 | title9 = Metal | note9 = Demo | length9 = 3:35 | title10 = Airlane | note10 = Demo | length10 = 3:17 | title11 = Trois Gymnopédies No. 1 | note11 = Demo | length11 = 2:25 | title12 = Observer | note12 = Demo | length12 = 3:02 | title13 = Conversation | note13 = Demo 1 | length13 = 3:55 | title14 = Engineers | note14 = Demo | length14 = 3:51 | title15 = Asylum | length15 = 2:31 | title16 = Oceans | length16 = 3:01 | title17 = Photograph | length17 = 2:26 }} {{Track listing | headline = ''The Pleasure Principle: The First Recordings'' disc 2 | title1 = Airlane | note1 = [[John Peel|Peel Session]] | length1 = 3:24 | title2 = Cars | note2 = Peel Sessions | length2 = 3:15 | title3 = Films | note3 = Peel Session | length3 = 2:50 | title4 = Conversation | note4 = Peel Session | length4 = 6:49 | title5 = Tracks | note5 = Outtake | length5 = 2:51 | title6 = Complex | note6 = Outtake | length6 = 3:14 | title7 = M.E. | note7 = Outtake | length7 = 5:16 | title8 = Engineers | note8 = Outtake | length8 = 3:44 | title9 = Airlane | note9 = Outtake | length9 = 3:17 | title10 = Cars | note10 = Outtake | length10 = 3:45 }}

==Personnel== Credits are adapted from ''The Pleasure Principle'' liner notes.<ref name=linernotes2>{{cite AV media notes|title=The Pleasure Principle|others=[[Gary Numan]]|year=1979|publisher=[[Beggars Banquet Records]]|type=CD booklet}}</ref>

* [[Gary Numan]] – [[Singing|vocals]]; [[synthesizer]]s ([[Minimoog]], [[Polymoog]], [[ARP Odyssey]]); synthetic percussion (Synare 3) * [[Paul Gardiner]] – [[Bass guitar|bass]] * [[Chris Payne (musician)|Chris Payne]] – keyboards (Minimoog, Polymoog, [[piano]]); [[viola]] * [[Cedric Sharpley]] – [[Drum kit|drums]], [[Percussion instrument|percussion]] * [[Billy Currie]] – fadeout [[violin]] on "Tracks" and "Conversation" * Garry Robson – [[Backing vocalist|backing vocals]] on "Conversation"

==Charts== {{col-begin}} {{col-2}}

===Weekly charts=== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+ Weekly chart performance for ''The Pleasure Principle'' |- ! scope="col"| Chart (1979–1980) ! scope="col"| Peak<br />position |- ! scope="row"| Australian Albums ([[Kent Music Report]])<ref>{{harvnb|Kent|1993|p=220}}</ref> | 24 |- {{album chart|Canada|11|chartid=4768a|rowheader=true|access-date=25 February 2018}} |- ! scope="row"| Japanese Albums ([[Oricon Albums Chart|Oricon]])<ref>{{cite book |title=Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 |last=Okamoto |first=Satoshi |publisher=[[Oricon]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-4-87131-077-2}}</ref> | 64 |- {{album chart|New Zealand|19|artist=Gary Numan|album=The Pleasure Principle|rowheader=true|access-date=3 November 2020}} |- {{album chart|UK2|1|date=19790916|rowheader=true|access-date=3 November 2020}} |- {{album chart|Billboard200|16|artist=Gary Numan|rowheader=true|access-date=5 May 2018}} |}

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |+ Weekly chart performance for ''The Pleasure Principle'' (30th Anniversary Edition) |- ! scope="col"| Chart (2009) ! scope="col"| Peak<br />position |- {{album chart|UK2|98|date=20090927|rowheader=true|access-date=21 December 2021|refname="uk2009"}} |}

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |+ Weekly chart performance for ''The Pleasure Principle: The First Recordings'' |- ! scope="col"| Chart (2019) ! scope="col"| Peak<br />position |- {{album chart|UK2|36|date=20191018|rowheader=true|access-date=21 December 2021|refname="uk2019"}} |} {{col-2}}

===Year-end charts=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+ 1979 year-end chart performance for ''The Pleasure Principle'' |- ! scope="col"| Chart (1979) ! scope="col"| Position |- ! scope="row"| UK Albums (OCC)<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Top Albums 1979 |magazine=[[Music Week]] |date=22 December 1979 |page=30 |issn=0265-1548}}</ref> | 34 |}

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+ 1980 year-end chart performance for ''The Pleasure Principle'' |- ! scope="col"| Chart (1980) ! scope="col"| Position |- ! scope="row"| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)<ref>{{harvnb|Kent|1993|p=432}}</ref> | 97 |- ! scope="row"| Canada Top Albums/CDs (''RPM'')<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.0275&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.0275.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.0275 |title=Top 100 Albums |magazine=RPM |volume=34 |issue=6 |date=20 December 1980 |issn=0315-5994 |via=Library and Archives Canada}}</ref> | 49 |- ! scope="row"| US ''Billboard'' 200<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1980/top-billboard-200-albums |title=Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1980 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=21 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221160227/https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1980/top-billboard-200-albums |archive-date=21 February 2020}}</ref> | 50 |} {{col-end}}

==Certifications== {{Certification Table Top}} {{Certification Table Entry|title= Pleasure Principle|artist=Gary Numan|type=album|relyear=1978|certyear=1980|region=Australia|award=Gold|certref=<ref name="AC80">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1980/CB-1980-05-17.pdf|title=International Dateline|magazine=[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=39|date=17 May 1980|access-date= 3 December 2021}}</ref>}} {{Certification Table Entry|title= Pleasure Principle|artist=Gary Numan|type=album|relyear=1978|certyear=1980|region=Canada|award=Gold|certref=<ref name="AC80"/>}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|title=The Pleasure Principle|artist=Gary Numan|type=album|award=Gold|id=7215-3511-2|access-date=3 November 2020}} {{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}

==Legacy== "Metal" was covered by [[Nine Inch Nails]] on ''[[Things Falling Apart]]'' (2000),<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Walters |first=Barry |date=7 December 2000 |title=Things Falling Apart |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/things-falling-apart-198316/ |access-date=6 May 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}</ref> [[Thought Industry]] on ''[[Recruited to Do Good Deeds for the Devil]]'' (1998)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Recruited to Do Good Deeds for the Devil - Thought Industry {{!}} Release Info |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/release/recruited-to-do-good-deeds-for-the-devil-mr0001389901 |access-date=6 May 2023 |website=AllMusic |language=en}}</ref> and [[Afrika Bambaataa]] on ''[[Dark Matter Moving at the Speed of Light]]'' (2004).<ref>{{Citation |title=Afrika Bambaataa - Dark Matter Moving at the Speed of Light Album Reviews, Songs & More {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/dark-matter-moving-at-the-speed-of-light-mw0000140728 |access-date=2023-05-06 |language=en}}</ref>

"M.E." was used as backing for [[Basement Jaxx]]'s "[[Where's Your Head At]]".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rowe |first=Felix |date=16 March 2023 |title=Classic Album: Gary Numan – The Pleasure Principle |url=https://www.classicpopmag.com/2023/03/gary-numan-the-pleasure-principle/ |access-date=6 May 2023 |website=www.classicpopmag.com}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

===Bibliography=== * {{cite book |last=Kent |first=David |author-link=David Kent (historian) |title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 |edition=illustrated |location=St Ives, N.S.W. |publisher=Australian Chart Book |year=1993 |isbn=0-646-11917-6}}

==External links==  *[http://www.radio3net.ro/dbartists/supersearch/VGhlIFBsZWFzdXJlIFByaW5jaXBsZQ==/The%20Pleasure%20Principle ''The Pleasure Principle''] ([[Adobe Flash]]) at [[Radio3Net]] (streamed copy where licensed)  * {{Discogs master|70133}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pleasure Principle, The}} [[Category:1979 debut albums]] [[Category:Atco Records albums]] [[Category:Beggars Banquet Records albums]] [[Category:Electropop albums]] [[Category:Gary Numan albums]]