Photo: Peter Hook

Photo: John Robb, Shan, Andy Mclusky, Peter Hook

A host of names stepped out last week to celebrate the unveiling of blue plaques on two seminal recording studios in Rochdale.

On Wednesday 23rd September, 2009 New Order’s Peter Hook, OMD’s Andy McCluskey, members of Autechre, The Inspiral Carpets’s Clint Boon, journalist Mick Middles, Mock Turtles singer Martin Coogan, journalist and Goldblade/Membranes singer John Robb and Dave Fielding of The Chameleons came together to show support to a campaign giving the borough of Rochdale the chance to shine in its own right as part of the North’s musical history.

Rochdale is where OMD recorded pioneering electropop single Electricity, where Gang Of Four recorded the archetypal post-punk track Damaged Goods, where The Stone Roses fused dance and indie to create Elephant Stone and where Joy Division recorded Atmosphere. And that’s just the tip of a very big iceberg…

The blue plaques, issued by Peter Hook, Chris Hewitt and the Back Door Music Project as supported by Rochdale Borough Council, Link4Life, Rochdale Development Agency and various sponsors, were presented to celebrate this extraordinary contribution to British music. The event highlighted the borough’s links with the late John Peel, the Factory Records scene and the legendary Deeply Vale music festivals of the late ‘70s, recently described by Stuart Maconie as “the North West’s Glastonbury.”

The first plaque was erected on the former Tractor Sound Studios in Heywood, where local prog rockers (and the first band signed to John Peel’s Dandelion Records) Tractor rehearsed from 1968 and was also a big screen message from Sheila Ravenscroft and John Peel’s family. Peel’s Rochdale connection goes back to his pre-fame days – he lived in the town and worked at Townhead cotton mill (in the centre of Rochdale) in 1959 at the insistence of his Wirral-based, cotton broker father. It was his affection for the area that made him pay extra attention when Tractor’s demo arrived by post more than a decade later, and the relationship struck up between band and DJ led to Peel financing Tractor Sound Studios in 1973. “He was always drawn to bands from the north because he loved the north of England,” says Peel’s widow Sheila Ravenscroft.

The second plaque was unveiled on the Kenion Street Music Building in Rochdale. The former home to a music shop, hire company and two successive studios – Cargo Studios and then Peter Hook’s Suite 16 Studios – the building was in continuous use until 2001 and featured in the 24 Hour Party People movie. From 1977 onwards, this building saw an endless stream of bands from Manchester, Liverpool and all over the British Isles pass through its doors. Joy Division recorded there from 1978 onwards and had their bass equipment custom built on the ground floor. Later, Manchester’s Hacienda was kitted out with a sound system built on Kenion Street.

An exhibition at Heywood Library also celebrated the region’s musical heritage, from the two studios to Deeply Vale, the celebrated ‘60s and ‘70s venue The Seven Stars and the now-defunct label Imaginary Records, which once received an application letter from a then-unknown Kurt Cobain.

The event culminated in an afternoon reception at the Backdoor Music Project, followed by an evening of Hacienda/Factory music and young live bands, including a special one-off show with Peter Hook & Section 25 playing Joy Division numbers to an enthusiastic crowd. Hookie only played Rochdale once in 1980 despite recording there for years so it was a real special show centred on the music made in the era of Cargo and Suite 16 with Clint Boon, Martin Coogan and John Robb on DJ duties.

Peter Hook MySpace

NEW BLUE PLAQUES PUT ROCHDALE ON MUSICAL MAP UNVEILING EVENT 23 SEPTEMBER, 2009

An evening of Hacienda/Factory music and young live bands, featuring performances from Peter Hook, Clint Boon, Martin Coogan and John Robb

In the annals of music history, the borough of Rochdale has both benefited and suffered for being a close neighbour of Manchester.

A new campaign aims to give the borough the chance to shine in its own right, with the unveiling of two blue plaques commemorating two uniquely important recording studios that influenced rock and pop music locally, nationally and internationally.

Rochdale is where OMD recorded pioneering electropop single “Electricity”, where Gang Of Four recorded the archetypal post-punk track “Damaged Goods”, where The Stone Roses fused dance and indie to create “Elephant Stone” and where Joy Division recorded “Atmosphere”. And that’s just the tip of a very big iceberg.

The blue plaques are a celebration of this extraordinary contribution to British music. The event highlights the borough’s links with the late John Peel, the Factory Records scene and the legendary Deeply Vale music festivals of the late ‘70s, recently described by Stuart Maconie as “the North West’s Glastonbury.”

The first plaque is to be erected on the former Tractor Sound Studios in Heywood, where local prog rockers (and the first band signed to John Peel’s Dandelion Records) Tractor rehearsed from 1968.

Peel’s Rochdale connection goes back to his pre-fame days – he lived in the town and worked at Townhead cotton mill (in the centre of Rochdale) in 1959 at the insistence of his Wirral-based, cotton broker father.

It was his affection for the area that made him pay extra attention when Tractor’s demo arrived by post more than a decade later, and the relationship struck up between band and DJ led to Peel financing Tractor Sound Studios in 1973. “He was always drawn to bands from the north because he loved the north of England,” says Peel’s widow Sheila Ravenscroft.

The second plaque is set for the Kenion Street Music Building in Rochdale. The former home to a music shop, hire company and two successive studios – Cargo Studios and then Peter Hook’s Suite 16 Studios – the building was in continuous use until 2001 and featured in the 24 Hour Party People movie.

From 1977 onwards, this building saw an endless stream of bands from Manchester, Liverpool and all over the British Isles pass through its doors. Joy Division recorded there from 1978 onwards and had their bass equipment custom built on the ground floor. Later, Manchester’s Hacienda was kitted out with a sound system built on Kenion Street.

Taking place on 23 September, 2009, the grand unveiling will see a host of names stepping out to celebrate the influential institutions, including New Order’s Peter Hook, OMD’s Andy McCluskey, members of Autechre, The Inspiral Carpets’s Clint Boon, journalist Mick Middles, Mock Turtles singer Martin Coogan, journalist and Goldblade/Membranes singer John Robb and Dave Fielding of The Chameleons. There will also be a big screen message from Sheila Ravenscroft and John Peel’s family, plus footage of the myriad bands recording there.

As well as visiting both studios in the neighbouring towns, the unveiling event will take in a new exhibition at Heywood Library celebrating the region’s musical heritage, from the two studios to Deeply Vale, the celebrated ‘60s and ‘70s venue The Seven Stars and the now-defunct label Imaginary Records, which once received an application letter from a then-unknown Kurt Cobain.

The event will culminate in an afternoon reception at the Backdoor Music Project, followed by an evening of Hacienda/Factory music and young live bands, featuring performances from Peter Hook, Clint Boon, Martin Coogan and John Robb.

Rochdale Online

Backdoor Music Project Website

In celebration of the New Order ‘Collector’s Edition’ release, Rhino Records has put together a contest where you can win a signed bass from Peter Hook of New Order.

Check it out!

Contest Information

Listening Party Links:

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WMA 56

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Listening Party Track List:

1 Dreams Never End
2 Procession
3 Age of Consent
4 Blue Monday
5 The Perfect Kiss
6 Salvation Theme
7 Bizarre Love Triangle
8 1963
9 Round & Round
10 Don’t Do It

Rhino Reissues a decade of New Order

New Order on amazon.com

New Order on amazon.co.uk

After forming in 1980, New Order went on to develop a groundbreaking sound that mixed synthesizer-driven pop with electronic dance beats on a series of acclaimed and influential albums. The band – Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert – released a total of five albums during the ’80s that helped blaze a trail for the alternative music movement that would peak a decade later.

Rhino pays tribute to these musical pioneers with Collector’s Editions of the band’s first five albums: MOVEMENT, POWER, CORRUPTION & LIES, LOW-LIFE, BROTHERHOOD and TECHNIQUE. On November 11, 2008, all five will be available at all retail outlets, including www.rhino.com, for a list price of $24.98.

Each will be reissued as a double-disc that contains a remastered version of the original Factory Records recording on the first disc, along with a bonus disc that collects the band’s numerous non-album singles, b-sides and remixes.

After the tragic death of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis, the band’s surviving members, Sumner, Hook and Morris, founded New Order with Gilbert and released its darkly melodic debut, MOVEMENT (1981). The album’s eight songs show the band moving away from the past and embracing a new sound on “Truth,” “Denial” and the opening track, “Dreams Never End.” Among the bonus disc highlights is “Ceremony,” a song written by Joy Division but never recorded in the studio that New Order recorded as its first single. Also included are later singles (”Temptation” and “Everything’s Gone Green”) that foreshadow the band’s more dance-oriented direction.

New Order found its voice on the group’s sophomore effort, POWER, CORRUPTION & LIES (1983). Featuring the original eight songs on the British release, the first disc offers exceptional dance-pop with “Your Silent Face” and “Age Of Consent.” The bonus disc includes “Blue Monday”
and its b-side “The Beach,” which were released exclusively as a single in the U.K., but included on the U.S. version of Power, Corruption & Lies. The single became the best-selling, independently released 12″ single of all time in the U.K.

The group achieved a high-water mark with its third release LOW-LIFE (1985), an eight-song album that perfected New Order’s cutting-edge electronic sound with the singles “The Perfect Kiss” and “Sub-Culture.” The bonus disc contains songs the band contributed to the popular film
Pretty In Pink, including “Shellshock” (from the soundtrack) as well as an instrumental version of the album track “Elegia” that was heard in the film, but not on the soundtrack.

The band returned a year later with BROTHERHOOD (1986), an album highlighted by the brilliant single “Bizarre Love Triangle” along with the fan favorite “Weirdo” and the ballad “All Day Long.” The bonus disc offers the 12″ single versions of “Touched By The Hand Of God” and
“Bizarre Love Triangle” as well as two remixes of “True Faith”; its b-side “1963″; and a new version of “Blue Monday” released in 1988.

New Order closed the decade with TECHNIQUE (1989), a nine-song album influenced by the exploding popularity of the acid house scene in Great Britain. Debuting at #1 in the U.K., the album delivered the singles “Run,” “Fine Time” and “Round & Round” as well as “Vanishing Point,” a song later used as the theme for a popular British television show. The bonus disc features the 12″ single “World In Motion,” the official song of the English national football team in 1990’s World Cup competition. Also featured is “Fine Line,” an instrumental version of the album track “Fine Time,” as well as b-sides “Best & Marsh” and “MTO.”

Track List:

MOVEMENT

Disc One

1. “Dreams Never End”
2. “Truth”
3. “Senses”
4. “Chosen Time”
5. “I.C.B.”
6. “The Him”
7. “Doubts Even Here”
8. “Denial”

Disc Two

1. “Ceremony” – 12″ Version
2. “Temptation” – 12″ Version
3. “In A Lonely Place” – 7″ Version
4. “Everything’s Gone Green” – 12″ Version 5. “Procession” – 7″ Version
6. “Cries and Whispers”
7. “Hurt” – 12″ Version
8. “Mesh”- 12″ Version
9. “Ceremony” – Alternate Version
10. “Temptation” – Alternate 12″ Version

POWER, CORRUPTION & LIES

Disc One

1. “Age Of Consent”
2. “We All Stand”
3. “The Village”
4. “5 8 6″
5. “Your Silent Face”
6. “Ultraviolence”
7. “Ecstacy”
8. “Leave Me Alone”

Disc Two

1. “Blue Monday” – 12″ Version
2. “The Beach” – 12″ Version
3. “Confusion” – 12″ Version
4. “Thieves Like Us” – 12″ Version
5. “Lonesome Tonight” – 12″ Version
6. “Murder” – 12″ Version
7. “Thieves Like Us” – Instrumental
8. “Confusion” – Instrumental

LOW-LIFE

Disc One

1. “Love Vigilantes”
2. “The Perfect Kiss”
3. “This Time Of Night”
4. “Sunrise”
5. “Elegia”
6. “Sooner Than You Think”
7. “Sub-Culture”
8. “Face Up”

Disc Two

1. “The Perfect Kiss” – 12″ Version
2. “Sub-Culture” – 12″ Version
3. “Shellshock” – John Robie Remix, 12″ Version 4. “Shame Of The Nation”
5. “Elegia”
6. “Lets Go (From Salvation)”
7. “Salvation Theme”
8. “Dub Vulture”

BROTHERHOOD

Disc One

1. “Paradise”
2. “Weirdo”
3. “As It Was When It Was”
4. “Broken Promise”
5. “Way Of Life”
6. “Bizarre Love Triangle”
7. “All Day Long”
8. “Angel Dust”
9. “Every Little Counts”
10. “State Of The Nation”

Disc Two

1. “Bizarre Love Triangle” – 12″ Version 2. “1963″ – 12″ Version 3.
“True Faith” – Shep Pettibone Remix, 12″ Version 4. “Touched By The Hand
Of God” – 12″ Version 5. “Blue Monday ‘88″
6. “Evil Dust”
7. “True Faith” – True Dub
8. “Beach Buggy”

TECHNIQUE

Disc One

1. “Fine Time”
2. “All The Way”
3. “Love Less”
4. “Round & Round”
5. “Guilty Partner”
6. “Run”
7. “Mr. Disco”
8. “Vanishing Point”
9. “Dream Attack”

Disc Two

1. “Don’t Do It” – 12″ Version
2. “Fine Line” – 12″ Version
3. “Round and Round” – 12″ Version
4. “Best & Marsh” – 12″ Version
5. “Run 2″ – 12″ Version
6. “MTO”
7. “Fine Time” – Silk Mix
8. “Vanishing Point” – Instrumental, 12″ Version 9. “World In Motion” -
Cabinieri Mix, 12″ Version

New Order Online

Sony BMG presents…’Paul Young: No Parlez’. Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the smash hit #1 album.

With the release of this debut album in 1983, Paul Young was immediately hailed as an intriguing synthesis of the old and the new. Blessed with a classic blue-eyed-soul voice, in the Bobby Hatfield/Daryl Hall tradition, Young pays homage to R&B tradition with respectful covers of Marvin Gaye’s “Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home)” and Booker T and the MG’s’ “Iron Out the Rough Spots”. Laurie Latham’s sparkling production is absolutely of-the-moment.

25 years on it still sounds fantastic – Paul’s own songs are quirky and New Wave-influenced while his choice of covers is rather interesting. He covers Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” and three songs by Jack Lee (of LA’s pop-punk Nerves) among them the exquisite hit single, “Come Back and Stay”. In retrospect, ‘No Parlez’ is unmistakably a product of the early ’80s but Young’s voice and those inescapable pop hooks remain timeless.

The album was also a commercial success – the single “Wherever I Lay My Hat” maintained the number 1 spot for most of the summer of 1983. This was followed by “Come Back And Stay” which also shot to the top of the charts.

Paul Anthony Young was born January 17th 1956. His interest in music dates back to when he was very young, when he learnt to play the piano and then the guitar. On leaving school he worked with his father for Vauxhall Motors and played in various bands at night. He played Bass guitar in his first band but eventually lack of demand for bass players led him back to his first passion, singing. These were lean times musically because his preferred style of music; Soul, was not particularly popular. However he managed to sing in various bands such as Kat Kool & The Kool Kats and later in the better known Street band. In December of ‘79 the Street band broke up and Paul went on to form the Q-Tips.

During the next two years Paul introduced himself to more and more of the British public through the Q-Tips extensive touring playing 700 shows all over the UK. This period of intense activity gave Paul the chance to develop his unique voice and stage persona. The Q-Tips went their separate ways at the end of ‘82 and Paul signed as a solo artist with CBS/SONY Records. With the release of his second album ‘The Secret Of Association’ and the success of “Every Time You Go Away”, his status as a world star was confirmed.

More recently, last year Paul featured in the hit ITV show Hell’s Kitchen, coming in third place. Paul still continues to write, record and play live and can be seen on the Here & Now Tour this summer 2008.

‘No Parlez’ tracklisting:

Disc 1

1. Come Back And Stay
2. Love Will Tear Us Apart
3. Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home)
4. Ku Ku Kurama
5. No Parlez
6. Love Of The Common People
7. Oh Women
8. Iron Out The Rough Spots
9. Broken Man
10. Tender Trap
11. Sex

Disc 2

Come Back And Stay – 12″ Mix
Iron Out The Rough Spots – 12″ Mix
Love Of The Common People – 12″ Mix
Behind Your Smile
I’ve Been Lonely For So Long
Yours
Sex (Demo)
Pale Shelter (Demo)
Better To Have And Don’t Need – Live
Wherever I Lay May Hat (That’s My Home) – Live

Paul Young: No Parlez – 25th Anniversary Edition on amazon.co.uk

Paul Young Official Website

New Order Live in Glasgow DVD Includes Highlights from 2006 Glasgow Concerts, Including Rare Performances of Joy Division Songs, Plus a Bonus DVD Featuring Unreleased Footage From the Band’s Personal Archives, Spotlighting Shows from 1981-2006.

Available June 24, 2008 From Warner/Rhino.

After sitting out much of the late ’90s, New Order came back in a big way in 2001 with Get Ready. On tour for the band’s 2005 follow-up, Waiting For The Sirens’ Call, the influential synth-pop group made a rare two-night stand at Glasgow’s Carling Academy in October 2006. The celebratory shows were filmed, capturing songs that span the band’s extraordinary career, including several rare performances of Joy Division favorites. Rhino highlights the very best moments from the shows with LIVE IN GLASGOW.

The collection also contains a bonus disc of unreleased footage from the band’s personal archives, including classic live performances filmed between 1981 and 2006. On June 24, this two-disc DVD set will be available from Rhino at all physical outlets, including www.rhino.com, for a suggested list price of $19.99.

Featuring 5.1 Surround Sound, LIVE IN GLASGOW highlights songs from New Order’s entire career, from the band’s first single “Ceremony” and its biggest hits: “Blue Monday,” “Temptation” and “Bizarre Love Triangle,” to a trio of Joy Division classics: “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” “Transmission” and “Shadowplay.”

Interspersed with the live footage are short interviews with the three band members, filmed exclusively for this DVD. This release follows hot on the heels of the acclaimed Joy Division documentary, biopic Control and the recent Best Of Joy Division release from Rhino.

The bonus DVD is a treasure trove for the New Order’s longtime fans, containing tracks selected from the band’s archive by its drummer, Stephen Morris. Favoring shows from the band’s first decade, the collection includes performances from eight different concerts, including six songs recorded at festivals in 1981 – just a year after the untimely death of Joy Division singer, Ian Curtis. Three tracks — “Senses,” “Procession” and “The Him” — are taken from New Order’s first appearance at the Glastonbury Festival.

Four more concerts from the ’80s are represented on the bonus disc, such as “Ultraviolence” from Rome in 1982; “Everything’s Gone Green” from the following year in Cork; seven songs from New Order’s 1985 shows in Rotterdam and Toronto, including “The Village,” “Age of Consent” and “Temptation”; as well as “Dream Attack” and “1963″ from the band’s 1989 stop at Shoreline. The bonus disc concludes with a pair of songs from the band’s stunning headlining appearance at Hyde Park in 2006, including “Run Wild” and Joy Division’s “She’s Lost Control.”

In 1980, New Order rose from the ashes of Joy Division — one of the most important British bands of all time. In the face of adversity, and against all odds, New Order went on to release eight seminal, era-defining albums.

LIVE IN GLASGOW

DVD Track Listing:

Disc 1

1. “Crystal”
2. “Turn”
3. “True Faith”
4. “Regret”
5. “Ceremony”
6. “Who’s Joe”
7. “These Days”
8. “Krafty”
9. “Waiting For The Sirens Call”
10. “Your Silent Face”
11. “Guilt Is A Useless Emotion”
12. “Bizarre Love Triangle”
13. “Temptation”
14. “Perfect Kiss”
15. “Blue Monday”
16. “Transmission”
17. “Shadowplay”
18. “Love Will Tear Us Apart”

Disc 2

Celebration 1981

1. “Ceremony”
2. “I.C.B.”
3. ” Chosen Time”
Glastonbury 1981
4. “Senses”
5. “Procession”
6. “The Him”
Rome 1982
7. “Ultraviolence”
8. “Hurt”
Cork 1983
9. “Leave Me Alone”
10. “Everything’s Gone Green”
Rotterdam 1985
11. “Sunrise”
12. “As It Is When It Was”
13. “The Village”
14. “This Time Of Night”
Toronto 1985
15. “We All Stand”
16. “Age Of Consent”
17. “Temptation”
Shoreline, Bay Area 1989
18. “Dream Attack”
19. “1963″
Hyde Park, London, 2006
20. “Run Wild”
21. “She’s Lost Control”

Watch Videos:

True Faith

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WMV

Crystal

QT
WMV

New Order – Live in Glasgow on amazon.com

New Order – Live In Glasgow on amazon.co.uk

New Order / Joy Division Online