After The Human League broke through into the top 40 with Don’t You Want Me Baby in 1981, they had a run of strong singles that were embraced by the alt-rock radio of the day. In late 1983, Virgin Records hounded the band for more new music to follow up the Dare record (the one with the big hit). They ensconced themselves at George Martin’s AIR Studios in London, paying £1,000 a day. The group stayed at AIR for nearly a year, recording under often fractious circumstances.
The Lebanon was inspired by the Lebanese civil war (well, one of them), specifically of an incident known as the Sabra and Shatila massacre of 1982. On paper, the lyrics look awful (the was number nine in a 2007 vote for the tracks with the worst lyrics of all time), but when you listen in the context of the song, they sound pretty good. It wasn’t the hit they were hoping for (it stalled at #11 on the British charts), but it has endured as a Human League staple.
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