"Life's What You Make It" is a song by English band Talk Talk, initially released in Germany on 18 November 1985 as the first single from the band's third studio album The Colour of Spring, before being released in the UK on 6 January 1986 and becoming a hit, peaking at No. 16, and charted in numerous other countries, often reaching the top 20. It appeared at No. 90 on the Billboard Hot 100 the weeks of February 15 and 22, 1986.
Artist James Marsh created the single's cover illustration. The track was re-released as a single in 1990, charting for a second time.
The song was one of the last to be conceived for The Colour of Spring, following concern from the band's management at the lack of an obvious single among accumulated work. Initially unwilling, Mark Hollis and Tim Friese-Greene, the principal source of original material for the band, accepted the task as a challenge. Friese-Greene: "I had a drum pattern loosely inspired by Kate Bush's 'Running Up That Hill' and Mark was playing 'Green Onions' organ over the top." (Making No. 3 in the UK Singles Chart, "Running Up That Hill" had been released in August 1985.) The track was embellished with David Rhodes' guitar hook.
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<sup>1</sup>Remix
The song is covered in 1994 by The Divine Comedy with a string quartet during the Promenade album sessions, and released in several occasions.
In 2009, "Life's What You Make It" was covered by Australian rock musician Rowland S. Howard for his final solo album Pop Crimes.
For the 2012 benefit tribute album Spirit of Talk Talk, "Life's What You Make It" was covered by singer-songwriter Duncan Sheik in a duet with Rachael Yamagata. In 2011 the Danish band Dúné recorded the song for the film ID:A.
More recently, a Placebo cover version of "Life's What You Make It" featured on both a double A-side (with "Jesus' Son") and the band's Life's What You Make It EP in 2016. American rock band Joywave covered the song for a Spotify Singles release for the music streaming service in 2018.