CONTENTS

1. JOY DIVISION 1977-1980: BAND, MYTH AND MAGIC Page 4

2. FROM MACCLESFIELD VIA WARSAW ... TO WHERE? ORIGINS 1977 8

3. NOT A CONCEPT; AN ENIGMA: THE IDEAL FOR JOY DIVISION - 1978 15

4. "THIS BAND IS BUSY DOING THE GROUNDWORK FOR THE MUSIC OFTHE EIGHTIES" - MICK MIDDLES, SOUNDS, 1980 18

5. LIFE AFTER A DEATH - 1980 26

6. THE NEW ORDER: BEYOND 1980 34

7. JOY DIVISION LIVE GUIDE 38

8. EQUIPMENT FILE 41

9. DISCOGRAPHY 42

10. VINYL COLLECTORS CHECKLIST 50

11. ODDS & ENDS 52

12. JOY DIVISION LEFTOVERSi) Studio Recordingsii) The John Peel Sessions

iii) Bootlegs

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13. FILMS & VIDEOS 55

14. INDEX OF SONG TITLES 56

15. THE STATISTICSa) On Recordb) The John Peel 'Festive 50'c) Music Paper Polls

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ORIGINS-1977The aggressive 'Never Mind the Bollocks' rock of theSex Pistols now seems to have very little connectionwith Joy Division music like 'Atmosphere' or 'NewDawn Fades', but like so many bands, Joy Divisionmay well never have existed if the Sex Pistols had notturned the British rock scene around from its collisioncourse with Middle of the Road respectability in thesummer of 1976, first with live performances ofalmost total spontaneity and carefree enthusiasm, andthen with a series of singles which took rock out ofthe concert halls and back onto the streets.

Ian Curtis, Bernard Dicken, Peter Hook and SteveMorris were all twenty in 1976 and working in eitherdull or dead-end jobs. Ian Curtis pushed trucks in acotton mill and Bernard Dicken pushed a pen in anoffice. At twenty they were old enough, after fouryears of work, to feel themselves to be in a rut butstill young enough not to have dreams and ambitionworn out of them by the daily grind. The Pistolsrevolution, which was almost immediately taken upby local Manchester bands like The Buzzcocks,Slaughter & The Dogs and The Drones, inspiredCurtis, Dicken and Hook, along with so many others,to buy instruments and form a band as a means ofexpressing themselves. A year earlier such an ideawould have seemed absurd - only Real Musicianswho had 'paid their dues' in bands since childhoodhad any right to get up on a rock stage - but thePistols had cut through the mystique of the '70s rockmusicians' art and served as a reminder that threechords and a lot of cheek were basically all that anyone ever needed to rock and roll.

At first it was just three friends who met at gigs(Bernard and Peter had been at school together inManchester) learning guitars and trying to play andwrite punk music in the evenings and at weekends.Even by the time the three began to take on roles -Ian Curtis as the singer and-occasional guitarist,Bernard Dicken as the guitarist and Peter Hook as thebassist - and call themselves a band early in 1977there was still little to distinguish them from any

other Pistols followers spitting venom in back bedrooms all over Britain. With a target set somewherebetween the musical accomplishment of 'London'sBurning' and the urbane sophistication of Iggy Popthey played hard and obnoxious and - no doubt tothe relief of neighbours without a drummer as noone was yet willing to join them in that capacity.

like everyone else of their age they had listenedto Bowie in their teens, and when their band becameserious enough to need a name it was to Bowie's mostrecent album, 'Low', that they turned for inspiration:the Germanic instrumental 'Warszawa' seemed toprovide just the right combination of the familiar andthe exotic once amended to plain 'Warsaw' for localpunk consumption.

In keeping with the style of 1977, in which bandsdelayed for a minimum length of time between picking up their chosen instruments for the first time andmaking their performing debut, Warsaw played theirfirst public performance just five months after formation on May 29th at Manchester punk mecca TheElectric Circus. They were bottom of the bill whichalso included local heroes the Buzzcocks, who stillrelied on the sparks produced across the twin terminals of Howard Devoto and Pete Shelley at this stage,and Penetration. It was a performance of archetypalpunk cockyness and aggression, made all the moreconvincing by the fact that the original trio's monthssearching for a fourth member to play drums hadonly come to fruition on the eve of their publicdebut, with the completion of the line-up by IanCurtis' old Macclesfield school friend Steve Morris.

Despite the rawness and rough edges - to beexpected in such a new-born band - there wasalready evidence that Warsaw might prove to be arough diamond and that within the fashionable limitations of the punk format inherited from the Pistolsthe band had something of their own to contribute.It was a debut that created a lot of interest and gave

Warsaw the incentive they needed to continue. PeteShelley of the Buzzcocks was interested enough in

Warsaw were a combination of wide-eyed amateurenthusiasts and a new band rapidly learning to imposetheir ideas and personalities on the music they wereproducing. In much the same way as Siouxsie and theBanshees they soon left the crutch of Punk and developed a more personal and inventive style. It wasbuilt around tightening repetition, washes of soundand a replacement of the urban cliches of punk withIan Curtis' more natural lyrical leanings towardsmystery and bleak, strangely Russian, neo-Romanticmoods and imagery. In the apparent isolation ofwhat was actually a lack of gigs and exposure, Warsawbegan to make the transformation from passinglyinteresting part-time punks to an excitingly originalnew-wave outfit with something to say.

Many people who saw Warsaw in 1977 and JoyDivision in 1978 believed that some miracle had takenplace in which a remarkable butterfly had suddenlyemerged from the rather ordinary grub that had beenWarsaw it was not a miracle but six months ofvirtually no gigs in which creative energies were unified and refined in comparative isolation and theprocess of musical development, usually reduced tofits and starts by the routine of regular gigging,accelerated to an unusual degree.

The change coming over Warsaw was evident inOctober 1977 when the band were invited to play atthe 'last weekend' of the Electric Circus. The club wasforced to close and as a special wake a marathon 'LastDays of the Electric Circus' weekend was organisedover October 15 th and 16th. As one of the (many)bands to have made an impression at the club Warsawwere invited to play on the 16th. In fact it was not toprove the last weekend of the club, as it was to reopen in November 1978 for a time, but the passingof the club was duly marked by the presence of amobile recording unit to produce an album in thetradition of EMI's 'Live at the Roxy'. The fact thatthe Manor Mobile taped everything played over theweekend and Virgin issued an album means that theweekend of October 15th-16th, 1977 also providedthe earliest recorded example of the work of Curtis,Dicken (now Albrecht), Hook and Morris: 'At a LaterDate' included on the 'Short Circuit' album eventually released in June 1978. While Warsaw's riffingcontribution is interesting while undistinguished,recognisable as the work of the band that was tobecome Joy Division, 'At A Later Date' must surelystand as one of the most unmemorable recordingdebuts ever experienced by a band, in the sense thatWarsaw completed their entire set without being

aware that they were being recorded only discovering the fact when they sat in the dressing rooms andwere asked to sign contracts for the use of theirperformance on the album!

The closure of the Electric Circus, one of the fewvenues Warsaw ever played and where they had builtup a 'home' following, and a legal move by heavilypromoted HM band Warsaw Pakt to prevent themusing the name Warsaw, signalled the end of the'Warsaw era' and drove the members of the bandfurther into internal exile from the local rock sceneand consolidation of their musical identity.

Although Warsaw had achieved a great deal during1977, they may have achieved more if they had foundsomeone to manage their career at the start ratherthan at the end of the year. By their own admission,Warsaw had not been very good at managing themselves before they met up with Rafters DJ RobGretton in December 1977. Having developed a stockof material by the middle of 1977, Warsaw were keento put out a record, but having limited funds alloweda local record production company to handle theproject for them. Unfortunately when the recordingwas made, in October, the band were not happy withthe technical quality and the four songs were shelved.A major label was sniffing around by November andputting up money for recording sessions whichseemed to be leading towards an album deal, butultimately Warsaw - now trading as Joy Division -didn't care for the long-term contract deal they wereoffered and refused to sign.

The Stiff/Chiswick Test, however, proved to bethe turning point in the band's career. This was aspecial showcase for three local bands, in a series heldall over the country, to discover groups ripe for arecording deal with either Stiff or Chiswick. TheManchester test was held at Rafters Club, and in theaudience were DJ Rob Gretton and Tony Wilson,presenter of the North-West ITV local news programme 'Granada Reports' and the nationally networked rock programme 'So It Goes'. At the timeFactory records was not even a gleam in Wilson's eyebut he felt that Joy Division "had something to say"and he did not forget them. The impact on RobGretton was more immediate, despite the fact thatJoy Division played third on the bill and did notbegin to play until 3.00 in the morning, and findingthey were manager-less he offered his services. It wasto become one of the rare band/manager relationshipsin which the manager's level of involvement madehim in effect a non-playing member of the band.

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But by Febraury 1979, the October 1978 contribution to the Factory sampler was already well out ofdate as the John Peel programme sessions proved.The sessions, recorded at the end of January, becameone of the most successful ever broadcasts on theprogramme, and most listeners, music fans and musicbusiness people alike were struck by the rapid development the band were capable of and the innerpower and tension of the music they could nowproduce. The four songs recorded at Maida ValeStudios in London were 'She's Lost Control', 'Transmission', 'Insight' and 'Exercise One' and made'Digital' and 'Glass' seem like relics from some distantpast. Joy Division's ability to develop over shortperiods of time, first demonstrated during the lay-offfrom performing in the Autumn of 1977, suggestedthat the potential of the band, already regarded asvery great, might be little short of awesome.

Although the Factory sampler had been a one offproject and no contractual ties existed betweenFactory and the performers concerned - mainly, ofcourse, because Factory was not a 'record company'in the traditional sense - Joy Division resisted someattractive offers from major record companies who atlast saw their potential, and agreed to make an albumfor Factory on the same profit-sharing basis as theSampler.

During April and May 1979, Joy Division andMartin Hannett spent time at Hannett's favouriteStrawberry Studios in Stockport, recording a dozensongs for an album that was to emerge in July as'Unknown Pleasures'.

The growth of national interest also enabled JoyDivision to 'rest' the Manchester clubs, where theyhad played solidly for two years and felt they werebecoming over-familiar, and play a string of datesaround the country and in London. And just as theircasual contract deal with Factory was out of theordinary, so too was their approach to live work andtouring. Joy Division never undertook anything thatcould be described as a 'tour', with the single exception of a support spot on a Buzzcocks tour in theAutumn of 1979, but instead played isolated dates orgroups of dates seemingly at random throughout theirperforming life mainly under the banner of 'FactoryNights'.

The fact that Joy Division's recorded output wasvery tiny and, by the Spring of 1979 well out of date,focused a great deal of attention on these live performances and encouraged the circulation of bootlegtapes of live material and the famous John Peelsessions. Live Joy Division in early 1979 was already

several light years away from the immaturity of 'IdealFor Living' and the tentative first steps toward greatness on the Factory Sampler, as the rave reviews ofJoy Division performances indicate:

"Joy Division . . . sketch withering grey abstractionsof urban malaise. Unfortunately ... their vision isdeadly accurate.""A series of spatial constructions based on cyclicalvariations on simple melancholy themes. The impactis stunning and oppressive".

"What makes them unique is singer Ian Curtis. Aslight thin figure, he moves deftly and delicately, hisvoice surprisingly strong, in his eyes and face a lookof humility and fear. If this sounds like a mere stageplay on paper, in reality Curtis' transparent humanity- that of a loser caught in a world only partiallyunderstood is totally credible."

"When Joy Division left the stage I felt emotionallydrained. They are, without any exaggeration, animportant band."

- Ian Wood, NME, 26th May, 1979.

The first Joy Division album took a total of fourand a half days of recording to put at the mixingstage, as the bulk of the material was already perfected in live performance, and in a suitably crafted PeterSaville sleeve became the first Factory album releasein July 1979 as 'Unknown Pleasures'. Few firstalbums had been so eagerly awaited as the first fromJoy Division, and while many who had become usedto the power and glory of Joy Division live felt thealbum inevitably lacked the intensity and passion theband was capable of projecting, the direction indicated by the Factory Sampler and revealed by the JohnPeel session was satisfyingly explored over thealbum's ten songs.

Included were versions of two songs from the Peelsessions - 'She's Lost Control' and 'Insight' - with'Transmission', now familiar as a live opener, beingreserved for a single and 'Exercise One' along with'Auto-Suggestion', 'From Safety to Where?', 'TheKill' and 'Walked in Line' being recorded but left offthe finished album which presented the bulk of thefamiliar live show, including a stunning version of'New Dawn Fades' at the end of the 'Outside'.

Reviews of the album generally acknowledged that'Unknown Pleasures' would be remembered as one ofthe classic releases of 1979:

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"Unknown Pleasures is an English rock master-work,it's only equivalent probably being made in LosAngeles twelve years ago. The Doors' 'Strange Days'."

- Max Bell, NME, 14th July, 1979.

" 'Unknown Pleasures' may well be one of the bestwhite English debut LPs of the year."

- John Savage, Melody Maker, 21st July, 1979.

The NME review by Max Bell indicated one of theidentifiable ingredients of Joy Division's uniquemusical concoction: Ian Curtis' melancholy baritoneso often recalled the Doors' Jim Morrison, just as hiswild epileptic dancing conjured up visions of IggyPop: a man who also lapsed into a very acceptableimpersonation of Mr Mojo Rising on occasion. Thisundeniable Jim Morrison/Iggy Pop heritage was setagainst a musical backdrop that was an electric mix ofpost-punk 'free-form' a la Siouxsie and the Banshees'explorations of Minor 7th chords, Tangerine Dream/Neu/La Dusseldorf mood mekaniks, Epic grandeur ofthe Pink Floyd/King Crimson school and the sullenmelancholia of the Jacques Brel/Scott Engel/TimBuckley/Leonard Cohen faculty of PsychosisEngineering. Yet to list the elements of Joy Division'smusic is to devalue a unique and original experience:just as a chemical compound takes on an identity thatis uniquely its own and not that of an amalgam ofelements, so Joy Division's music achieved the rareand elusive quality of originality. So much so thatidentifiable similarities with past music soon seem tobe merely surface features when the music becomesfamiliar. Much of Joy Division's impact was, forexample, derived from their subtle melodic inventiveness and their haunting quality from a remarkablemanipulation of familiar ideas set against lyrical andinstrumental 'obscurity' and uncertainty, whichplaced them within the context of late seventies rockbut at the same time quite outside similar previousexperience.

Remarkably, an era dominated by the independentsingle, Joy Division had not released a conventionalsingle during their first two years of operation so forthem releasing a single in 1979 was a novelty. Usualpractice was to issue one of the outstanding tracksfrom an album immediately before putting the albumout, in the hope that a hit single would give thealbum an initial sales boost, but neither Joy Divisionnor Factory were slaves to industry conventions andalthough a single was chosen from the May albumsessions it was deliberately left off the album and noone seemed in any hurry to release it, despite con

siderable demand.The A side selected was 'Transmission'. The song

had been a highlight of Joy Division live since late1978 and the January John Peel programme sessionversion had created a great deal more interest. Theexclusion of the song from 'Unknown Pleasures' hadbeen a disappointment to many but with deliberatecontrariness Joy Division did not begin to mix thetrack for single release until July - when any otherband would have been busy promoting the song as ahit single and 'Transmission' did not appear in theshops until the following November.

The attitude of Britain's notoriously cynical rockpress to Joy Division had been favourable from thevery first and with the release of 'Unknown Pleasures'began to verge on the dreaded 'future of rock 'n' roll'overkill. This, combined with heavy play on the JohnPeel programme, ensured that the album sold out itstentative 10,000 copy first-pressing in less than twomonths, more than justifying Tony Wilson's personalinvestment of the unit trusts he had inherited theyear before.

Although 'Unknown Pleasures' never reached theBritish album chart, even during the first two fast-selling months, Joy Division's unique arrangementwith Factory actually meant that they earned morereal cash money from the album than most of thegroups signed to major labels with records high in theTop 20. Factory made no advance payment of royalties but merely put up the funds to pay for recordingand manufacture and, once those costs were coveredby income from sales, paid over two thirds of all themoney plus the usual performer/writer royaltypercentages. That kind of deal on 10,000-plus albumswholesaling at around 2.70 eventually brought JoyDivision a very healthy clear profit as the basis of aliving wage - a great deal more than the usual 4% ofselling price contract would have brought them.

Joy Division's glorious independence with Factoryproved itself capable of profitability to match itsartistic integrity but independence also broughtproblems. Income from records is slow to reachrecord companies and performers, and with limitedfunds and no arrangement for record manufactureand distribution, each batch of 10,000 copies of'Unknown Pleasures' could only be financed when theprevious batch sold out, often leaving shops withcustomer orders but no copies to sell. It is a wellknown fact that customers who find that records arenot readily available will buy something else, so'Unknown Pleasures' lost numerous sales by beingtemporarily off the streets. The lack of mass promo-

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tion and distribution also limited sales in chart-returnshops, keeping the album out of the sales chart, andput a ceiling on the number of copies the album couldactually sell over a short period of time: 'UnknownPleasures' had to remain an unknown sales quantity -Factory could not sell 50 or 60 thousand copies ofthe album in a week simply because they lacked themeans of putting such large numbers of the album inthe shops at any one time and, in any case, could notsupply the promotional 'push' to win so many customers at the same moment. It was a dilemma, becausewhile the hand-to-mouth arrangement worked beautifully for small quantities and gave complete control,a pressing and distribution deal gave unlimited salespotential and ultimately much larger profits at thecost of smaller percentages and the loss of totalartistic control. In fact, Joy Division never took the'licensing deal' option on any of their records in orderto sell larger quantities, and the fact that their secondand final albums, as well as the 'Love Will Tear UsApart' single (which sold a remarkable 160,000copies) being big hits is a vindication of their artisticintegrity and refusal to compromise to achievesuccess, and a tribute to the efficiency with whichFactory handled their records, despite minimalfacilities.

By September 1979 and the 'second coming' of'Unknown Pleasures' into the record shops, JoyDivision live had jumped even further ahead of theirrecord persona, beginning their set with the sullen,awesome 'Atmosphere'. It was a choice which setJoy Division apart from just about every other performing band that has ever been. The straightforward, accessible, bright 'limbering-up' opener isalmost obligatory in rock performances and JoyDivision now chose to begin with an entirely newsong of shattering/shattered emotion built aroundstaggering chords of doom: a choice entirely at oddswith their forthcoming position as support/guests ona major national tour by the Buzzcocks. But JoyDivision were already beyond being judged accordingto 'the rules' - they had joined the thin ranks ofthose whose adventures re-define the rules:

"Compared with Joy Division most other bandsworking in supposedly left-field areas are like lightentertainers on the Saturday Night special."

-Adrian Thrills, NME.

Similarly unpredictable was the next Joy Divisionrecord release on the heels of 'Unknown Pleasures' -not 'Transmission' or any other single and not even a

Factory record. In their unique contractual positionJoy Division were entirely free to release theirmaterial in one-off deals with any company theywished and when Bob Last asked them to contributemusic to the second of his Fast Products 'Earcom'(i.e. Ear Comic) 12 inch EP-based packages theypassed him the tapes of two songs they had completed the previous Spring at the 'Unknown Pleasures'sessions but not used on the album 'Auto-Suggestion' and 'From Safety to Where?'. Giving potentiallyvaluable material to such a low key enterprise was amove by now typical of Joy Division's anti-starattitude toward the music business, and although'Earcom 2' sold very well, the songs were never to riseabove 'obscurity' status tucked away on such a smalllabel experiment. The EP's release also helped tomake an already confusing band discography a mazeof mysteries and take Joy Division into a sixth recordrelease without their having made an ordinary 7 inchsingle.

The Buzzcocks' Autumn 1979 tour was a curioussetting for Joy Division, with the band's hard-edgedand introspective music and sombre presence contrasting totally with the bright Pop tunes and ebullienceof Pete Shelley, but the tour actually succeededsurprisingly well with both bands benefiting ratherthan suffering from the sharpness of the contrast.

If joining a tour seemed to suggest that JoyDivision were softening in their defiance of rockconventions, the fact that they released their long-awaited first single of 'Transmission' at the end ratherthan at the start of their nationwide showcase tourwas enough to reassure any doubters. Such crudecommerciality as using a tour to promote a single(and vice versa) had no place in Joy Division's schemeof things and Factory did not release the band's firstentry into the singles market until the middle ofNovember, the tour having ended on November 10th.

'Transmission', backed by a new song 'Novelty',came in surprisingly ordinary 7 inch form and presented Joy Division being about as close as they ever gotto being 'commercial'. Reviewers were certainly inno doubts about the quality and potential of'Transmission':

"This is an awesome disc . .. could easily be a hit."

"cannot be dismissed as just another good single by aprovincial band on a nice little independent. JoyDivision ... not to mention Factory, are contenders."

-Adrian Thrills, NME, 17th November 1979.

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In fact 'Transmission' was not a hit in November1979 nor in February 1981 when it was re-issued in12 inch form but, as with all Joy Division's Factoryproduce, the modest sales and profit targets werequickly met to everyone's satisfaction: the 'success'of a record being ultimately measurable only in termsof what it is intended to achieve.

After almost five months break from recording,Joy Division had returned with Martin Hannett in midOctober to the studio where they had begun theirrelationship - Cargo in Rochdale - and recordedthree new songs, 'Ice Age', 'Dead Souls' and the muchpraised live opener 'Atmosphere'. It was, as thoserecorded versions testify, a particularly creativesession but the outstanding results were treated witha casualness that was little less than contrary. 'IceAge' was to be given away for use on a proposedLeeds Futurama Sci Fi Festival album (this nevermaterialised, of course, and the song did not emergeuntil the 1981 'Still' album) and 'Dead Souls' and'Atmosphere' - simply two of the very best thingsJoy Division ever achieved in the studio werepresented to two French conceptual artists who askedfor Joy Division songs to place on a single at thecentre of a 'Total Art' package with a proposedcirculation of a mere 1578 copies worldwide.Condeming such a powerful piece of work as 'Atmosphere' to the obscurity of a French independentsingle of just over 1500 copies is almost psychotic inits deviant zeal to avoid rock 'n' roll obviousness: JoyDivision had recorded a genuine classic fit to staketheir vinyl claim to be ranked with the Greats andthen acted as if they were ashamed of it, off-loadingit onto an arty-farty project as if it were some one-take jam no one could be bothered to finish.

The band's final recording date of 1979 was at theBBC Maida Vale studios for another John PeelProgramme session on November 26th. Joy Division'sclosest followers were once again kept in touch withthe latest developments, and in a session of unusualpower produced versions of 'Love Will Tear Us Apart','Colony', 'The Sound Of Music' and 'Twenty-FourHours'. This session not merely provided a chance tohear studio versions of new songs, but actuallypresented definitive versions of the songs. Onceagain, they showed themselves capable of a rate ofexpansion and creative development which left manystill clutching at the reference points of the firstalbum.

In spite of their studied avoidance of conventionalrock career progress, as 1979 drew to its close JoyDivision had undoubtedly 'made it' and on their own

terms become a fashionable and popular band.Surprisingly, perhaps, they ended the year very muchas they had begun it as the darlings of the Britishmusic press. New Musical Express rated 'UnknownPleasures' as third best album of 1979 after Pil's'Metal Box' and Talking Heads' 'Fear of Music' in it'sstaff chart, and Sounds, rather safely perhaps, tippedthem to 'be big' in 1980. This favour was not restricted to the staff either, as the reader polls published inthe new year showed: the readers of NME voted JoyDivision as 5th Best in the 'New Act' category. Theywere on their way . . .

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gesamtkunstwerke - 'Atmosphere' - would becomeavailable again within months but, typically, merelyas the B side of a specially re-recorded 12 inch versionof 'She's Lost Control' to be issued only in the USA!The attitude of Joy Division towards their greatestachievements took low profile almost to the point ofinversion.

With the material road-tested over the previoustwo months, the sessions for a second album tookplace in March at the Britannia Row Studios inIslington, London. This was the first time JoyDivision had recorded in London, but there was nofeeling of adventure abroad in the Joy Division campas the shadows now deepening around Ian Curtis castfurrows in every brow.

Ian Curtis was never the cliched tortured artist inthe Van Gogh tradition that his legend has cast himas, on the evidence of aspects of his music. He was adeeply sensitive and creative introvert but also capable of such everyday acts as enjoying a joke, a drinkand following Manchester United FC. Few people arecapable of smiling through the crumbling fragmentation of emotions and nerves that accompanies thebreak-up of a marriage and Ian Curtis was notexceptional in any way when he joined the ranks ofthe sufferers.

Recording what was to become the 'Closer' albumtook 13 days and 13 nights in March 1980 and,despite the brilliant result, no one present enjoyedthe experience very much. The Romantic gloom thatsurrounded Joy Division's fractured ballads seemed tolure Ian Curtis into a claustrophobic dialogue withhimself which drew him ever inward and furtherdown.

No one who has heard the resulting album can failto feel the tensions reverberating around the vastmusical area that Joy Division had created for themselves, but even within the darknesses on the albumthere is hope and optimism which seem to exist incontradiction of the realities crushing the owner ofthe album's voice. 'Closer' is not an album of gaspsuttered from the end of a rope but the peak ofartistic achievement that everyone had hoped for andpredicted. Even on the rack Joy Division's groupidentity and corporate greatness could not be muted.

The tensions which hacked at Ian Curtis duringthose album sessions cut ever deeper in subsequentweeks as he performed his duties with Joy Divisionthrough a sequence of live dates that were to preceedand warm up for the band's debut US tour in themiddle of May. The tortured figure temporarilyunable to continue at Hampstead's Moonlight Club

on April 4th was no sham-acting James Brown but aman treading a tightrope across a deeply personalinternal abyss. Yet, paradoxically, even at suchextremity Joy Division could still give hope to thewretched through the glory and ultimate triumph ofthe will that was their musical maelstrom:

"Joy Division convince me that I could spit in theface of God."

- Neil Norman, NME, 19th April, 1980.

The handful of early April dates at the Moonlightwere in the tradition of the 'Factory Evenings' butdeviated slightly in that Joy Division performed forfour consecutive nights supported by a fly-past ofFactory acts, changing on each night. Section 25, ACertain Ratio - Joy Division partners on so manyFactory evenings - Durutti Column, X-O-Dus, KevinHewitt, Crawling Chaos, Blurt and the Royal Familyall took their turn to support Joy Division and intheir turn Joy Division took advantage of their stay inLondon to support the Stranglers at a prestige Rainbow date on April 4th. It seemed hectic and tooutsiders Ian Curtis seemed to be the worst affectedby the heavy work-load in between songs. The Moonlight shows and the isolated gig, so typical of JoyDivision's date book, on May 2nd at BirminghamUniversity's High Hall, soon took on a far greatersignificance: they were to be the last the band wouldever play.

After playing the Birmingham date, supported byA Certain Ratio and recorded for a proposed German-only live album release, as were many performancesover previous months, Joy Division returned toManchester to prepare themselves for whatever theUS of A had to offer them. 'Unknown Pleasures' hadbeen successful as an import album voted one ofthe year's best by 'New York Rocker' and the datesbooked in New York were already attracting someinterest. In the days before their planned departuredate of Sunday May L8th, Joy Division rested andmade plans for future releases with Factory. Thesecond album was set for June release, and the song'Love Will Tear Us Apart' was left off the album andmixed for a single release with accompanying video(filmed on April 30th) for possible TV exposure if, asexpected, the single became a hit. And as if thesetwo releases seemed too conventional, Factory alsoprepared to take the unheard-of step of releasing anentirely free single to be given to anyone who askedfor it. Not even the Beatles at the height of theirsuccess gave free records to more people than were

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members of their fan club but Factory were planningto give back some of the 'Unknown Pleasures' profitsvia 25,000 free three-track flexi-discs.

Also planned, but with no specific date, was thelive album for Germany, to be assembled from recentlive tapes. In usual Factory style there were no plansto issue the album anywhere else in the world.

On Saturday May 17th, 1980 - the day before hewas due to fly to New York to play the first of JoyDivision's US dates - Ian Curtis revisited the home hehad shared in Macclesfield with his wife and baby and,after an evening alone watching his favourite directorSaul Herzog's film 'Stroszek' on BBC2 TV, hunghimself in the kitchen during the early hours ofSunday morning. His dead body was found by hiswife just before noon on Sunday 18th May and at theinquest the following week a verdict of suicide wasrecorded. The funeral took place on June 13th.

During May 1980 the British music press began alengthy industrial dispute which kept the familiarweeklies - NME, Sounds, Melody Maker and RecordMirror - off the streets so the news of the death andconfirmation of details was slow to spread. At firstit was just a rumour that sounded more like a sickjoke being put about at gigs but on May 24th thetemporary opportunist weekly music paper 'NewMusic News' carried a tiny announcement - almost asif they did not believe the story - that Ian Curtis had"died at his home" the previous Saturday. Listenersto the John Peel programme knew by this time thatthe story was no hoax, as not for the first or last timeJohn Peel was given the entirely unwelcome task ofbeing the first to broadcast the news of a rock death.

When the weeklies began to drift back onto thestreets the details and the tributes began to accumulate. The fact that Ian Curtis and Joy Division (theband that seemed just an album away from their veryown brand of superstardom) were suddenly no morebegan to sink home.

For many, the method and circumstances of IanCurtis' death seemed an inevitable development of thegloom and despondency of his music, as if the 'Where'that he had sung about was inevitably the same destination as the cliche 'tortured artist', in spite of theplain enough fact that Ian Curtis was no more or lessthan a sad and unfortunate man driven into theground by private and deeply personal unhappiness.His was no Romantic martyrdom but still thenecromancers gathered to sob to the sounds of'Atmosphere' and 'New Dawn Fades' and distort thecritical perspective on what was, on merit alone, oneof the Great bands in the history of rock with a singer

of unusual power.The growth of such a death cult focusing on Joy

Division was doubly inappropriate, for beneath themelancholy surface of their music lay an undeniableaffirmation of purpose and hope. The apparentdespair and sadness in much of Joy Division's greatestmusic was, in context, merely an aspect of humanityreflected and always accompanied by a sense of ultimatevictory over adversity. The 'message' of JoyDivision's music was not as so many like to believe to lay down and die but to accept the human condition for what it was without self-pity and risethrough that acceptance to the affirmation ofindividuality and purpose. The 'gloom' often provided a smoke screen for the true uplifting nature of JoyDivision's music which, far from being the soundtrackfor suicide, was something that almost by its veryexistence proved that determined individuals canassert themselves against the odds, 'beat the system'of the music business or anything else.

Ian Curtis' death of course halted the US tour andput an end to Joy Division as a band. All the members of Joy Division had agreed that if any onemember ever left the remainder would immediatelyabandon the identity of Joy Division along with allthe material associated with the band and begin againunder a new name with new music. Such devotion tointegrity and principles is extraordinary in a musicbusiness in which bands often tour under once famousnames regardless of the fact that the original membersassociated with near-forgotten hit songs may haveleft the fold years since. The decision to bury JoyDivision with Ian Curtis was a brave one in view ofthe fact that his death had created the myth that thesinger and co-songwriter was the be-all and end-all ofJoy Division's greatness, and far too many peoplewere prepared to regard the remaining members ofJoy Division as pathetic figures whose ride to fameand fortune had been halted for good by the death oftheir pilot. This was, as events were to prove beyondall doubt, an extremely inaccurate assessment of JoyDivision's creative mechanism: Albrecht, Hook andMorris were never merely three satellites of a creativesun but three quarters of a unique partnership.

Publicly the remains of Joy Division - now nameless - kept a low profile, writing a new repertoirewhile testing out the possibilities existing within thequartet framework. The whole question of 'replacing'Ian Curtis was avoided, but at the same time thepossibility of a new member or members if neededwas kept open. Any additions would be part of anatural process arising from needs rather than the

30

songs - 'Komakino'/'Incubation' and 'And ThenAgain More' rapidly 'sould out' its initial 25,000 copypressing, it did not qualify for the charts as it cost lessthan 50p and it took the grimly appropriate singletitle of 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' - released a week orso later to put the name of Joy Division on theBritish charts for the first time during the weekending June 28th, 1980.

The success of 'Love' and subsequent Joy Divisionreleases was attributed by the band's few detractorsas a morbid reaction to May 18th, but while it islikely that many had heard of Joy Division for thefirst time through the death news there is ampleevidence such as the results of the May 1980 ZigZag reader poll - to argue that Joy Division's subsequent records would have gained mass acceptanceanyway.

'Love Will Tear Us Apart' was an astonishinglysuccessful record for a company of Factory's modestresources and rose as far as No. 12 on the BBC singleschart (Melody Maker took it even higher to No. 8)eventually selling 160,000 copies. The acceptance(and cash) from the record went a long way to justifythe time and money spent preparing the song forrelease. In fact, two versions of the song were actually put onto record - the 7 inch and the 12 inch -not for the usual reasons of disco-mix novelty ormarketing gimmick but because the band and producer were never agreed on which of the two alternativemixes should be used so they compromised andused both. The issue was further confused by the factthat the John Peel session version of the previousJanuary also had a lot in its favour, however, thisversion did not complicate the decision as the BBCtapes were tied up in a maze of legal difficulties.

When 'Closer' was eventually released after a fewweeks delay in July 1980 it came not in a moment oftriumph or confirmation, but as a premature and(sadly apt) closer to the chapter on a band that hadentered the realms of what-might-have-been.

Unlike so many 'last albums' - Hendrix's 'Cry ofLove', Lennon's 'Double Fantasy' or The Doors' 'LAWoman' 'Closer' gained nothing from the circumstances of its arrival. The quality of material andunity of purpose and texture made even their excellent debut album of a year earlier seem, by comparison, flawed by an uncertainty of direction. 'Closer'was a superb album, with Martin Hannett's absorptioninto the band as synthesizer-playing fifth man providing the vital and crowning cohesive element. Thefact that it had to be a last album is jarring because,unlike those other final albums mentioned above,

'Closer' did not represent the last efforts of oncegreat stars but the start of something new and magnificent... a start that was to be over within the timeit took to listen to a single album.

Not surprisingly, 'Closer' was warmly reviewed inthe music press and a sizeable hit album.

33

main vocalist, with Peter Hook providing an alternative voice to compensate for the fact that the band'svocals no longer had the character and interest of IanCurtis' unique voice.

The bravest move of all was New Order's insistenceon not playing any of Joy Division's material despitetheir undoubted right to it, and that fact that it was,at the start, the only common ground with theiraudience. Few other bands would have taken thisrefusal to trade on their past works as far, but NewOrder were determined to be accepted as an entirelynew band with their own music, and presented themselves as committed to success on their own terms asJoy Division did.

New Order make exceptions to their refusal totrade on the Joy Division legacy in the cases of thesongs 'Ceremony' and 'In A Lonely Place': the lasttwo songs composed by Ian Curtis and Joy Division.Although these songs had been performed live duringthe last months of Joy Division they had never hadthe chance to record them - a live version of 'Ceremony' from the last ever Joy Division performanceappears on 'Still' and rather than lose them in thetransitional zone between Joy Division and NewOrder the songs were included as the single point ofcontinuity between the two bands.

Factory meanwhile laboured to tidy up therecorded legacy of Joy Division and satisfy the hugedemand for the former band's records. In an attemptto beat the importers who were making large profitsfrom the US 12 inch of 'She's Lost Control' a Britishpressing was made available, and to beat the pirateelement selling bootlegged copies of the free flexi-discs for prices up to 5, the money made from 'LoveWill Tear Us Apart' was used to pay for a secondpressing of 25,000 with a committment to more ifneeded. The Joy Division archives were also due tobe cleared with the release of all finished but unusedFactory material on a 'last gasp' album - which waseventually to emerge as 'Still'.

The Joy Division 'activity' in Britain gave NewOrder the chance to slip away for the postponed JoyDivision US tour in September. The Factory package(like Joy Division, New Order had A Certain Ratio assupport band) hit the New York streets which hadonce provided a home for Andy Warhol's Factory,and far away from the eager eyes and ears of theBritish music press New Order began to state theircase for life after a death.

On stage the immediate impression was the desired

one New Order were not Joy Division II. BernardAlbrecht's voice carried none of the Jim Morrisontimbre of Ian Curtis and with the main vocalist nowsporting a Gibson 335 at centre stage the wholeappearance of the band was different. The new setalso proved beyond any doubt that the vital sparkthat had fired Joy Division's greatness had not diedwith Ian Curtis and that, unlike the remaining Doorswho, despite being just as important to the band'smusic as the sunken Mr Mojo, were left without avoice and without a song by Jim Morrison's death,New Order were able to assert their own music.Inevitably, the music of New Order had much incommon with that of Joy Division - the rhythmicinterest was a function of the Hook/Morris combination just as the melodic strength derived fromAlbrecht's guitar/keyboards and Hook's forward bass- but to compensate for the missing vocal distinctionthese elements, so often below the surface mood inJoy Division's music, were brought to the front inNew Order: to the surprise of many, New Order werea new band with a highly attractive line in melodyand a fortuitously fashionable regard for the dance.

Still retaining a low profile of unannounced random British performances and surprise appearancesat such places as Rotterdam, New Order released afirst single in February 1981 - 'Ceremony'. Thecritics who still wanted to believe that the cloak ofsecrecy around New Order was worn in order to hidethe fact that they had nothing to offer were immediately silenced by the first real opportunity to hearwhat New Order was all about. While still undeniablyretaining something of the aura of Joy Division,'Ceremony' took the music of 'Closer' nine months ofuneven progress further on, with Albrecht's muchweaker voice almost forgotten as a shortcoming in thecontext of a perfect instrumental mesh and prominantmelody more satisfying than could ever have beenhoped for. In context the new voice was a strengthbecause Bernard Albrecht brought the full warmth ofabsolute honesty to his performance, he sang just as itcame, whereas Ian Curtis' richly cavernous tones hadalways seemed somehow aloof and created a tensionby so often teetering on the edge of play-acting theAmerican sonorities of Jim Morrison.

'Ceremony' stated the case for New Order entirelyconvincingly and by reaching No. 34 on the Britishsingles chart satisfyingly became the second biggesthit single the members of the band had been associated with (after, of course, Joy Division's 'Love Will

36

Tear Us Apart'). Perhaps more significant, 'Ceremony' was voted second best single of 1981 in theNME Readers Poll published in January 1982 andrated 4th best single of all-time in the December 1981John Peel Radio 1 programme's 'Festive Fifty' poll.

The satisfying acceptance of 'Ceremony' on itsown merits did not lead New Order to press theircase. New Order took 1981 slowly but surely, soaware that the wave of acclaim and affection that hadbroken over the 'Closer' album in the middle of 1980could just as dramatically leave them high and dry inthe middle of 1981.

The final Joy Division album 'Still' prolonged theagony for New Order by not ending the Joy Divisionrelease schedule until the Autumn of 1981 and whenit did come - in its slightly absurd choice of conventional cloth sleeve - belied its title by revivinginterest in Joy Division once again and betrayed itspurpose by presenting yet another rag-bag assortmentof material rather than neatly closing the chapter onJoy Division's recording career with an assembly ofmissing and scattered items to sit beside 'UnknownPleasures' and 'Closer'. What it had to offer wasworthwhile nonetheless and the album had its ownclaim to finality with the inclusion of two sides madeup from the final performance of Joy Division atBirmingham University on May 2nd 1980. Inevitably,'Still' outsold New Order's album 'Movement'released just weeks after, and did little to help NewOrder's attempt to move out of Joy Division's longshadow in Britain. In December 1981 New Orderreturned to the USA where they were able to play toan audience able to regard them as a new band, andjudge them without reference to a band that died inMay 1980.

Life for the living goes on. Artistic developmentin new directions, high-profile commercial success andthe memory-wiping passage of time have been theingredients in New Order's four-year battle toexorcize the ghost of Joy Division. The widening anddiversifying of their audience through chart successeshas sealed off their past and separated their acclaimfrom that of Joy Division.

Joy Division existed for a mere two years as arecording band and have now been gone for far longerthan they flourished. Their complete studio outputwould barely fill a half dozen LPs and a complete listof their live performances barely fills a couple ofpages. Yet they are remembered with reverence.That Joy Division are now a cult and legend is under

standable but also worrying. It would be anothertragedy if the undoubted greatness of their music waslost in a mist of sloppy hyperbole, or cut up in thereaction of an irreverent backlash. Ultimately themonument to Ian Curtis is the fact that the music hemade with Joy Division will always be listened to.That is remembrance and reverence enough foranyone.

37

8. EQUIPMENT FILE

BERNARD ALBRECHT:

PETER HOOK:

STEVE MORRIS:

IAN CURTIS:

MARTIN HANNETT:(Producer)

Guitars (with Joy Division): Gibson SG Standard(without Vibrola), Shergold Masquerader, VoxPhantom (with New Order): Gibson 335 semi-acoustic.Amplification: Vox UD 30 amplifier driving Voxcabinet with two Marshall 12 inch speakersSynths: ETI Synthesiser, Powertran Transcendent2000 Synthesiser, ARP OMNI 12 Synthesiser.Effects etc: Woolworths (Bontempi) Reed organ,Melos Echo unit, MXR Ten band Graphic Equalizer, Chorus Flanger, Attair PW-5 Power Attenuator (for both guitar and ARP synth), Melodian.

Basses: Rickenbacker copy, Yamaha RB 1200,Shergold Marathon Six String bass (with NewOrder)Amplification: (Early Joy Division): Marshall 50Watt Bass Amp driving Vox cabinet with twoMarshall 12 inch speakers(Later Joy Division/New Order)Amplification: Marshall Bass Amp (later replacedby Hiwatt Custom 100 Watt amp) driving VoxFoundation Bass cabinet fitted with two 18 inchGoodmans 100 Watt speakers OR Alembic Preamplifier with Crown Amcron DC 300 A amplifierwith Marshall Bass cabinet fitted with four 15 inchGauss 400 Watt speakers (Choice of amp dependant on venue)

Rogers Concert kit consisted of:22 inch Bass drum, 12 inch, 13 inch, 14 inch, 15inch hanging concert Tom Toms, 14 inch and 16inch Floor Tom Toms, 20 inch Earth Ride andCrash ride cymbals, plus 14 inch Gretch Snare drum,15 inch Super Zyn Hi Hat, 14 inch and 18 inchZildjian Crash cymbals.Simmonds 2 channel drum synth, Synare 3 drumsynth, Musicaid Claptrap, Roland BOSS Dr 55Drum machine

Guitars: Vox Teardrop and Vox PhantomAmplification: Vox UD 30 amplifier driving Voxcabinet with two 12 inch Marshall speakers

(On records only): ARP OMNI 12 Synthesiser(through effects such as MXR Graphic EQ, ChorusFlanger, Melos Echo unit on Closer album)

41

FACTORY SAMPLER Factory Fac 2Double 7 inch EP with picture sleeveSix track double EP produced by Martin 'Zero'Hannett at Cargo Studios, Rochdale with oneside devoted to Joy Division:

Digital/Glass(Glass re-issued October 1981 as track on Stilldouble album, Factory Fac 40).Both songs composed by Joy Division.Personnel: As for Ideal for Living 7 inch EP.Released: January 1979 (Delayed until February

1979 by pressing problems).(Sampler also features tracks from CabaretVoltaire, Durutti Column and John Dowie).

UNKNOWN PLEASURES Factory Fac 1012 inch albumOutside: Disorder/Day of the Lords/Candidate/

Insight/New Dawn FadesInside: She's Lost Control/Shadowplay/Wilder-

ness/Interzone/Remember NothingAll songs composed: by Joy DivisionPersonnel: Ian Curtis (vocals), Bernard Albrecht

(guitar), Peter Hook (bass), Steve Morris(drums), Martin Hannett (synth).

Produced by: Martin 'Zero' HannettRecorded: at Strawberry Studios, Stockport,

May 1979Released: July 1979Sleeve design: by Peter Saville, based on graph

of radio waves from an imploding star suggested by Bernard Albrecht.

Transmission/Novelty Factory Fac 137 inch single with picture sleeve (designed byPeter Saville)Both songs by Joy DivisionPersonnel: as for Unknown Pleasures albumProduced by: Martin Hannett at Strawberry

Studios, Stockport, July 1979Released: November 1979. (12 inch version

released February 1981 with different picturesleeve).

Atmosphere/Dead Souls Sordide SentimentaleSS 33002. 7 inch single in folder with essay andprint. Limited edition of 1578 copies onlyissued in France.Both songs by: Joy DivisionPersonnel: As for Unknown Pleasures albumProduced by: Martin Hannett at Cargo Studios,

Rochdale, October 1979.(Special artistic project of Jean Pierre Turmeland Jean-Francois Jamoul involving elaboratefolder including Jamoul painting, 7 inch singleand text by Turmel placing Joy Division in thecontext of Romantic art recording entirelysupervised by Joy Division and Martin Hannettbut packaging entirely the work of Turmel andJamoul.)Released: March 1980 (Limited edition of only

1578 copies worldwide) Sold out and deletedbut Atmosphere later available on US 12 inchsingle later issued in UK and Dead Soulsissued October 1981 as track on Still album).

EARCOM 2 Fast Products 9b12 inch EP with paraphenaliaBob Last Turntable magazine featuring 20minutes of music from Thursdays, Bascax andJoy Division. Features two tracks left over fromMay 1979 Martin Hannett produced StrawberryStudios, Stockport sessions for UnknownPleasures album:

Auto-Suggestion/From Safety to Where?All credits: as for Unknown Pleasures albumReleased: October 1979

44

Atmosphere/She's Lost Control Factory US 212 inch single with picture sleeve (designed byPeter Saville).UK release of US-only 12 inch in order to prevent large scale importation of US copies.Released: October 1980

Transmission/Novelty Factory Fac 13/1212 inch single with picture sleeve.12 inch version of November 1979 7 inch singlewith re-designed picture sleeve.Released: February 1981

Love Will Tear Us Apart/These Days FactoryFac 23/12. 12 inch single with picture sleeve.12 inch version of June 1980 7 inch single withre-designed picture sleeve.Released: February 1981

STILL Factory Fac 40 Double 12 inch albumSide 1: Ice Age/Walking in Line/The Kill/Glass/

Exercise OneSide 2: Sound of Music/The Only Mistake/Some

thing Must Break/Dead Souls/Sister RaySide 3: Ceremony/Shadowplay/Means to an End/

Passover/New Dawn FadesSide 4: Transmission/Disorder/Isolation/

Decades/DigitalAll songs by: Joy Division except Sister Ray (by

Reed/Cale/Morrison/Tucker - The VelvetUnderground).

Ice Age Produced by Martin Hannett and recorded at Cargo Studios, Rochdale, October1979 (with Atmosphere/Dead Souls) fornever-released Leeds Futurama SciFi FestivalLP Walked in Line & The Kill. RecordedMay 1979 out-takes from UnknownPleasures

Glass Produced by Martin Hannett at CargoStudios, Rochdale, November 1978 and originally released in February 1979 as one trackon Factory Sampler double EP

Exercise One & Sound of Music Recorded31/1/79 and 26/11/79 respectively at BBCMaida Vale Studios, London. Produced byTony Wilson (of BBC) for John Peel Show

The Only Mistake & Something Must Break Produced by Martin Hannett and recorded at

Britannia Row Studios, Islington, London,March 1980 out-takes from Closer albumsessions.

Dead Souls Produced by Martin Hannett andrecorded at Cargo Studios, Rochdale, October1979. Originally released (with Atmosphere)as part of the very limited French SordideSentimentale project in March 1980.

Sister Ray Recorded live at the MoonlightClub, 3rd April 1980 (Number featured as anencore).

Sides 3 &4 Recorded live at BirminghamUniversity High Hall, May 2nd, 1980. (Thiswas the last performance of Joy Division)Originally intended as a German-only livealbum release. Ceremony is the only song recorded by both Joy Division and New Order:Ceremony and In a Lonely Place were to berecorded at the time of Ian Curtis' death butonly this live version was completed by JoyDivision

Sleeve Design: Peter Saville. This album releasedin two sleeves: a standard cardboard sleeveand a special very limited cloth sleeve.(Copies of the limited cloth edition beingpriced at considerably more than the 'doublefor the price of a single album' price of thestandard album.)

Released: October 1981Chart: No. 15

48

10.VINYL COLLECTORS CHECKLIST

(All are legal UK releases unless stated)

SINGLES/EPs

7 inch

I I Ideal for Living (Enigma Records)'' With 'Hitler Youth' drummer sleeve and 'This is not a concept EP it is an Enigma'.

Sold out September 1978 -Deleted

I I Factory Sampler (Factory Fac 2)Double EP shared with Cabaret Voltaire, Durutti Column and John Dowie.

Transmission/NoveltPicture sleeve single.

I I Transmission/Novelty (Factory Fac 13)

I I Atmosphere/Dead Souls (Sordide Sentimentale SS33002)French single with folder, essay and print. Limited edition of only 1578 copies sold out and deleted.

I 1 Love Will Tear Us Apart/These Days (Factory Fac 23)Picture sleeve single.

Komakino/IncubaticSleeveless flexi-single provided free of charge.

Ceremony/In a Lonely Place (Factory FFirst New Order single in picture sleeve.

I I Komakino/Incubation/And Then Again (Factory Fac 28)

I I Ceremony/In a Lonely Place (Factory Fac 33)

12 inch

Ideal for Living (Anonymous Records Anon 1)Re-issue of first (7 inch) EP with re-designed picture sleeve. Sold out deleted.

I I Earcom 2 (Fast Products 9b)' ' EP package shared with Thursdays and Bascax.

She's Lost Control/Atmosphere (Factory US2)US single with picture sleeve.

50

12 inch singles continued

I I She's Lost Control/Atmosphere (Factory US2)1' British pressing of US single (with picture sleeve).

I I Transmission/Novelty (Factory 13/12)'' Picture sleeve single.

I I Love Will Tear Us Apart/These Days (Factory Fac 23/12)'' Picture sleeve single.

I I Ceremony/In A Lonely Place (Factory Fac 33/12)I 12 inch single with picture sleeve (original February 1981 version).

I I Ceremony/In A Lonely Place (Factory)1I 12 inch single with picture sleeve (January 1982 remixed version with re-designed

picture sleeve).

I I Everything's Gone Green/Mesh/Cries and Whispers (Factory/Disques de Crepescule)'I Belgian release import into Britain with picture sleeve (New Order)

I I She 9s Lost Control Grace Jones' B side of Private Life (Island WIP 6629). Limited 12 inch version only.

ALBUMS

12 inch

I I Unknown Pleasures (Factory Fac XX)

I I Closer (Factory XXV)

I I Still (Factory Fac 40) Double album.

10 inch

I I Short Circuit: The Last Night at the Electric Circus (Virgin VCL 5003)' ' First 5,000 copies in blue vinyl.

51

ODDS & ENDSPrivate Life/Warm Leatherette/She's Lost Control - GRACE JONESIsland 12-WIP 6629. Released July 1980 (limited edition - sold out)The first cover of a Joy Division song and appropriately elusive as She's LostControl was the 12 inch 'bonus' track and the limited edition quickly sold out asthe record became very successful.

Low-DAVID BOWIERCA PL 12030. 1977 album.The source of the name Warsaw was the Low track Warszawa.

Love Will Tear Us Apart - PAUL YOUNGon the No Parkez album CBS 25521 1983

WARSAW PAKTLargely forgotten late seventies British Heavy Metal band who forced Warsaw tochange their name. Warsaw Pakt consisted of Lucas Fox, Andy Colquhoun, ChrisUnderhill, John Walker and Jimmy Coull and lost out on fame and fortune largelythrough making their bid for stardom at the height of Punk/New Wave popularityin Britain. They are best remembered for their elaborately hyped debut album forIsland, Needletime (ILPS 9515), released in November 1977 rapidly after recordingat Trident Studios. The album actually qualified for the Guinness Book of Recordsas the band recorded directly onto master discs which were used just hours later topress copies for sale and publicity as a 'direct-cut' super Hi Fi album and 'instant'release.

THE NEW ORDER: Not to be confused with New Order.The New Order was a band formed in Detroit USA in 1975 by former Stoogesguitarist Ron Ashetom (with ex-MC5er Dennis Thompson on drums, Iggy sidemanScott Thurston on keyboards and ex-Ted Nugent Amboy Duke Dave Gilbert onvocals) which allegedly took the WWII connotations of the name a little too seriously.One album, entitled The New Order was released in France (and nowhere else) byFun Records in May 1978 in case the sleeve picture fails to make the point it hasabsolutely nothing to do with Bernie and the boys (and girl).

Devils and Angels - THE PASSAGEWritten as a reply to Heart and Soul

Repetition - PETE PETROL (of Spizz Oil)on From Brussels With Love cassette. (Les Disques de Crepescule) was produced byJoy Division manager Rob Gretton.

52

12.JOY DMSION LEFTOVERS

I STUDIO RECORDINGSIn November/December 1977 Warsaw recorded early material for a proposed albumthat was never released. Although quality is said to be poor these tapes may be ofsome interest.

At least three finished Joy Division songs remain unreleased: The Drawback/Exercise One/The Sound of Music. (The last two were replaced by the more satisfactory John Peel Radio 1 session versions on the Still album so would seem unlikelyever to find their way onto a record).

H OFFICIAL LIVE RECORDINGSThe entire Joy Division performance (as Warsaw) at the Electric Circus, Manchesterin October 1977 was recorded by the Manor Mobile but only At A Later Date wasused for the Virgin Short Circuit live album. The band was of the opinion that theirchoice of song for inclusion was not a good one so it is likely that something ofinterest exists on these tapes in recordings of good technical quality.Several 1979/1980 Joy Division gigs were professionally recorded for a proposedGerman live album and such tapes certainly exist of the 3rd April 1980 Moonlightgig from which the encore of Sister Ray was taken for inclusion on the Still album.Many (if not most) Joy Division gigs were recorded in some form and 8mm and16mm film of several gigs is also in existance much of this provides the basis ofthe Factory Joy Division video (Here are the Young Men).

Ill 'THE JOHN PEEL SESSIONS'Joy Division recorded two sessions for the John Peel BBC Radio 1 show during1979 at the BBC's Maida Vale (London) 8 track studio with staff producer TonyWilson:

Recorded 31st January, 1979Exercise One/Insight/Transmission/She's Lost ControlRecorded 26th November, 1979:Sound of Music/Twenty-Four Hours/Colony/Love Will Tear Us Apart

Both sessions were broadcast at least three times each and despite the limitations ofonly eight tracks and limited time are of very great interest as all versions are considerably different to any officially recorded. In fact, Factory were keen to release analbum of these sessions but because of complex BBC contractual agreements thiswas prohibitively costly and only Exercise One and Sound of Music could be includedon the Still album.The first New Order recording session after the death of Ian Curtis was with theFactory protege Kevin Hewitt (two tracks not used).In February 1981 New Order made their broadcast debut with a session for theJohn Peel programme and the early versions of songs much later to appear on theMovement album (November 1981) are in some ways more interesting. Once again,these are unlikely to be released officially.

53

14. INDEX OF SONG TITLES

A Means to An End (Studio version on Closeralbum and live version on Still live record).

And Then Again (Uncredited third track on freeflexi on Side 2 after Incubation).

At a Later Date (Live track recorded at Manchester Electric Circus, October 1977featured on Virgin Short Grcuit album).

Atmosphere (Originally a track on the limitedSordide Sentimentale project but also releasedas a US 12 inch single and British pressing).

Atrocity Exhibition (Studio version on Closeralbum also featured on live bootlegs).

Auto-Suggestion (Studio out-take fromUnknown Pleasures album released on FastEarcom 2 12 inch).

Candidate (Studio version on UnknownPleasures album).

Ceremony (One of the last Joy Division songs recorded only as part of Still live record butfeatured as first single by New Order).

Colony (Studio version on Closer album, alsofeatured live and recorded at November 1979John Peel session).

DDay of the Lords (Studio version on Unknown

Pleasures album also featured live).Dead Souls (Originally the companion track to

Atmosphere on the limited French SordideSentimentale single but re-issued as a track onStill album).

Decades (Studio version on Closer album andlive version on Still).

Digital (Studio track originally released onFactory sampler and rare live version featuredon Still).

Disorder (Studio version on Unknown Pleasuresalbum, live version available on Still).

The Drawback (Unreleased studio out-take).

EThe Eternal (Studio version on Closer).Exercise One (Studio version unreleased but

John Peel January 1979 session versionincluded on Still album).

Failures (Early song recorded as Warsaw forIdeal for Living EP).

From Safety to Where? (Studio out-take fromUnknown Pleasures album released on FastEarcom 2 12 inch project).

GGlass (Early Joy Division studio recording

released on Factory Sampler and re-issued asa track on Still).

HHeart and Soul (Studio version on Closer album

also featured live. Manchester band ThePassage have recorded a reply to this songDevils and Angels).

Ice Age (Studio version originally recorded forproposed Futurama Festival album but eventually released on Still).

In a Lonely Place (Performed live by JoyDivision but not recorded. Featured by NewOrder on their first single. Words by IanCurtis).

Incubation (Studio version featured on FreeFlexi).

Insight (Studio version on Unknown Pleasuresalbum, performed live and also featured onJanuary 1979 John Peel Radio 1 sessions).

Interzone (Studio version featured on UnknownPleasures album).

Isolation (Studio version on Closer album alsofeatured live on Still).

56

KThe Kill (Early Joy Division song eventually

released on Still album).Komakino (Studio version featured on Free

Flexi).

Leaders of Men (Warsaw/Early Joy Division songrecorded on Ideal for Living EP).

Love Will Tear Us Apart (Studio version featured on 7 inch and 12 inch hit singles, theNovember 1979 John Peel sessions and performed live).

NNew Dawn Fades (Studio version on Unknown

Pleasures album, live version featured on Still).No Love Lost (Early song recorded on Ideal for

Living EP).Novelty (Studio version used as B side of Trans

mission single).

OThe Only Mistake (Studio out-take eventually

released on Still album).

Passover (Studio version on Closer, live versionon Still).

RRemember Nothing (Studio version on Un

known Pleasures album).

Sister Ray (The only non-Joy Division song tobe recorded by the band exists only as aone-off spontaneous encore included on Stillfrom a live tape of a performance at theMoonlight Club in April 1980. Originallyrecorded by the Velvet Underground, ofcourse).

Something Must Break (Studio out-take eventually included on Still album).

Sound of Music (Unreleased studio versionexists, plus live tapes, only the November1979 John Peel session version released onStill).

These Days (Studio version on B side of LoveWill Tear Us Apart 7 inch and 12 inch singles).

Transmission (Studio version on 7 inch and 12inch singles, live version on Still, recordedJanuary 1979 for BBC John Peel programmeand a live favourite).

Twenty-Four Hours (Studio version on Closeralbum, also featured live and on November1979 John Peel Radio 1 session).

WWalked in Line (Studio out-take eventually re

leased on Still album).Warsaw (Early Warsaw/Joy Division song

recorded on Ideal for Living EP).Wilderness (Studio version recorded on Un

known Pleasures album).

Shadowplay (Studio version on UnknownPleasures, live version on Still).

She's Lost Control (Studio version on UnknownPleasures, re-recorded and re-mixed versionson 7 inch and 12 inch singles, a different version on January 1979 John Peel sessions and alive favourite. The only Joy Division song tobe 'covered' by another artist Grace Jonesrecorded a version on the B side of the limited12 inch edition of her hit Private Life).

57

15. THE STATISTICS

a) On Record

Joy Division recorded just 48 different songs ofwhich 47 were composed by the band themselves. These 48 songs are spread over:

2 12 inch albums1 12 inch double album3 7 inch singles plus 1 7 inch EP3 12 inch singles plus 1 12 inch EP1 7 inch three track flexi single1 song on 10 inch various artists compil

ation album2 songs on various artists double 7 inch EP2 songs on 12 inch various artists EP

Of the 17 records containing Joy Division material released between May 1978 and October1981 5 have sold out or been deleted (7 inchand 12 inch of Ideal for Living, Factory SamplerEP, Atmosphere on Sordide Sentimentale andUS 12 inch Atmosphere).

The most successful of all Joy Division recordswas the 7 inch single of Love Will Tear Us Apartwhich sold 160,000 (and is still available andselling) reaching No. 12 (No. 8 in Melody Makerchart) in the British singles chart. The best-selling album has been Closer which reached No.8 on the British album chart. (All Joy Divisionrecords have been successful in selling out initialpressings).

Joy Division tracks have appeared on six different record labels Factory, Virgin, Fast,Sordide Sentimentale, Enigma and Anonymous.

b) The John Peel 'Festive 50'

For a band such as Joy Division a far betterguide to the relative popularity of recordedsongs is undoubtedly the BBC Radio 1 JohnPeel programme's 'Festive 50' a semi-seriousannual poll in which listeners vote for theirall-time favourite tracks. Since Christmas 1980Joy Division have dominated this poll and as thePeel programme occupies a very special place inthe Joy Division story the results of the votinggive a meaningful reflection of the Joy Divisiontracks most appreciated by the band's mostardent supporters.

1980 (The figures refer to position in the overall Top 50)

2 Atmosphere3 Love Will Tear Us Apart

10 Transmission14 Decades20 New Dawn Fades22 She's Lost Control41 Twenty-Four Hours

(The No. 1 for 1980 was,4/iarc/ry in the UK).

19811 Atmosphere2 Love Will Tear Us Apart4 Ceremony (New Order)5 New Dawn Fades7 Decades

11 Dead Souls14 Transmission43 Twenty-Four Hours44 Isolation

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c) Music Paper Polls

Music paper polls generally succeed in saying alot more about the editorial policy of the magazine than the tastes of the 'average' music fanbut even the most hard-bitten cynic cannot helpbut experience a satisfying sense of justice beingdone when his favourite band gets a vote ofpopularity:

1979New Musical Express:

(Published January 1980) 5th Best New ActSounds:

(Published March 1980) No mentionsMelody Maker:

(Published January 1980) No mentionsRecord Mirror:

(Published February 1980) No mentionsNew York Rocker:

(Published March 1980) 4th Best Indepen-dant record of 1979 (The Unknown Pleasuresimport album).

1980Zig-Zag: (Published May 1980)

5th Group9th Live Group6th Small Group5th Male Singer (Ian Curtis)9th Songwriter (Joy Division)2nd Unrecorded Song (Love Will Tear Us

Apart)5th Tip For The Top4th Album (Unknown Pleasures)5th Single (Transmission)6th Label (Factory)

(It's worth remembering that this voting tookplace several weeks before Ian Curtis died)

New Musical Express: (Published January 1981)2nd Best Group3rd Male Singer3rd Guitarist (Bernard Albrecht)2nd Drums (Steve Morris)4th Bass (Peter Hook )4th Songwriter (Ian Curtis)2nd Single (Love Will Tear Us Apart)4th Single (Atmosphere)2nd Album (Closer)3rd Best Dressed Sleeve (Closer)14th Most Wonderful Human Being (Ian

Curtis)Sounds: (Published February 1981)

9th Band3rd Single (Love Will Tear Us Apart)

Melody Maker: (Published October 1980)9th Brightest Hope (Joy Division)

Record Mirror: (Published February 1981)No mentions

1981New Musical Express (Published January 1982)

19th Best Group (Joy Division)2nd Most Missed Person (Ian Curtis Lennon

was 1st)2nd Single (Ceremony)2nd Album (Still)2nd Best Dressed Sleeve (Still)6th Guitarist (Bernard Albrecht)3rd Bass (Peter Hook )4th Drums (Steve Morris)

1982New Musical Express (Published March 1982)

2nd Best LP (Still)2nd Best Single (Ceremony)

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