"History Never Repeats" was a single written by Neil Finn

Neil Finn

Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...

 and recorded by Split Enz

Split Enz

Split Enz were a New Zealand band of the 1970s and early 1980s featuring Phil Judd and brothers Tim Finn and Neil Finn. They achieved chart success in New Zealand, Australia, and Canada during the early 1980s ‒ most notably with the single "I Got You", and built a cult following elsewhere...

 for their 1981 Waiata album. The song remains one of their most popular. The video was one of the first to be played on MTV

MTV

MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 upon its launch in 1981.

The guitar bridge in this song, played by Neil Finn, was originally featured in an old Phil Judd

Phil Judd

Philip Judd is a New Zealand singer-songwriter known for being one of the founders of the bands Split Enz and The Swingers.-Split Enz:...

 song, "Bergen Aan Zee". The band only played the latter song live.

International release

Released in the UK, Holland, Spain, and Portugal with different artwork and track listings.

UK/Portugal Track Listing

1. "History Never Repeats" - 3:00
2. "Shark Attack (Live)"
3. "What's The Matter With You (Live)"

Holland/Spain Track Listing

1. "History Never Repeats" - 3:00
2. "What's The Matter With You (Live)"

Charts

Chart (1981)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart	#4
New Zealand Singles Chart	#5
UK Singles Chart	#63
US Mainstream Rock	#33

Personnel

• Neil Finn
  Neil Finn
  Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...
  
   - vocals
  Singing
  Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
  
  , guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  
• Tim Finn
  Tim Finn
  Brian Timothy "Tim" Finn, OBE is a New Zealand singer and musician. Finn is most known for his music with New Zealand 1970s and 1980s rock group Split Enz, and later for his solo work, a temporary membership in his brother Neil's band Crowded House and his joint efforts with Neil Finn as the Finn...
  
   - vocals
• Noel Crombie
  Noel Crombie
  Noel Crombie is a New Zealand singer and former member of the band Split Enz. He fulfilled multiple roles including costume and hair designer, percussionist, album cover designer, and music video director...
  
   - percussion
  Percussion instrument
  A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
  
  
• Malcolm Green
  Malcolm Green (musician)
  Malcolm Green is an English-born drummer best known as a member of New Zealand band Split Enz from 1976 to 1981.Green was recruited by Split Enz in Britain, where he had formerly played with Love Affair, The Honeycombs -- both of them long after their run of '60s hits -- and Octopus...
  
   - drums
  Drum kit
  A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
  
  
• Nigel Griggs
  Nigel Griggs
  Nigel Griggs is a musician who played bass guitar in Split Enz. He is the brother of Paul Griggs from the 1970s vocal group Guys 'n' Dolls...
  
   - bass
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  
• Eddie Rayner
  Eddie Rayner
  Eddie Rayner , is a New Zealand musician who has played in bands such as Split Enz, Space Waltz, Crowded House, The Makers and 801....
  
   - vocals, keyboards
  Keyboard instrument
  A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...