# Laban (band)

Laban was a 1980s Eurodisco duo consisting of Lecia Jønsson and Ivan Pedersen. Both members were born in Denmark and originally sang in Danish, before moving on to English language releases. They went on to limited international success with the releases of two albums, as well as singles such as "Love in Siberia" and "Caught by Surprise."
The duo formed in 1982, and recorded the song "Hvor Ska' Vi Sove I Nat?" ("Where Shall We Sleep Tonight?") in 1982, a cover version of Ricchi e Poveri's "Sarà perché ti amo". A manager called Cai Leitner heard the song, and two days later it was released as a single. They recorded another cover song that year, called "Jeg Kan Li' Dig Alligevel" ("I Like You Anyway"), originally performed by the German pop group Hot Shot as "Angel from Paradise". Following the success of their debut single, a self-entitled debut album, Laban, was released in October 1982. The debut album was followed by Laban 2 (1983), Laban 3 (1984), and Laban 4 (1985), all sung in Danish.
After Laban 4, the duo began recording in English for international releases, with the first English album being an LP called Caught by Surprise, consisting of English versions of songs from prior releases. In 1986, Caught by Surprise saw a global release, along with a single release of the title track. The same year, Laban's most well-known song, "Love in Siberia," was released and spent 4 weeks in the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at Number 88. It also reached Number 38 on the U.S. Hot Dance Music / Club Play chart. The success of "Love in Siberia" launched the pair to even bigger international success, especially all around Europe.
Caught by Surprise also included the single releases of "Donna Donna" and "Ch-Ch-Cherrie," allowing the duo to release a second international album titled Roulette in August 1987. Roulette had more of a rock music feel than Caught by Surprise, and the album was composed of English versions of songs on Laban 5 (which was released in October 1987), 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 stagnated.
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 internal disagreements over Laban's future, Laban split up in the summer of 1988 following a tour in Sweden. Since the dissolution, Lecia Jønsson and Ivan Pedersen have remained active in the music industry with various projects, although there are currently no plans for Laban to reunite.

## Discography
### Albums

* Laban (1982)
* Laban 2 (1983)
* Laban 3 (1984)
* Laban's bedste (compilation) (1985)
* Laban 4 (1985)
* Caught by Surprise (1986)
* Roulette (1987)
* Laban 5 (1987)
* Laban: Greatest Hits (compilation) (1988)
* De største narrestreger (compilation) (1997)
* De 36 bedste narrestreger (compilation) (2009)
* Komplet & rariteter (compilation) (2010)

### Singles

* "Hvor ska' vi sove i nat?" (Where Are We Going Sleep Tonight?)
* "Meget bedre nu/Det jeg føler for dig" (Much Better Now/What I Feel for You)
* "Came-camera"
* "Kun et sekund" (Danish version of "Caught by Surprise")
* "Kold som is" (Danish version of "Love in Siberia")
* "Caught by Surprise"
* "Love in Siberia"
* "Donna Donna"
* "Ch-Ch-Cherrie"
* "Russian Roulette"
* "Fange i natten" (Danish version of "Prisoner of the Night")
* "Prisoner of the Night"
* "Down on Your Knees"
* "Don't Stop"
* "I Close My Eyes and Count to Ten"