An Evening of Unknown Pleasures with Peter Hook
Last night, in Norwich, I got to spend an evening in the company of Peter Hook, Howard Marks and about 200 other guests! 
Upon entering the venue, the stage was set up with two armchairs surrounded by loads of memorabilia. On display were a selection of guitars, original artwork, posters, paintings, a couple of Hooky’s leather jackets and a couple of display cases with various bits of smaller things (see photos below). Hanging above the stage were two inflatable Factory balloons with the famous logo emblazoned on them.
We were invited to walk on stage and peruse all of this fascinating stuff first hand, take pictures and linger pretty much as long as we liked. Pretty unprecedented, totally appreciated and fantastically well observed by all those that attended.
The show itself opened with a short compilation of films, video clips and pictures, many of which were previously unseen. And then Howard Marks took to the stage, introducing himself in that awesome, deep Welsh baritone voice of his. Think what you like about this man, he has the same engaging qualities as his fellow countrymen Burton & Hopkins. And then Peter took to the stage, promptly sat down in front of his Trace Elliot stack and knocked out two numbers. The first, “Elegia“, an instrumental from the Low Life album by New Order and the second, the famous “never released” track, “The Happy One“, much loved by Hooky, Tony Wilson and fans alike….
And then, the two chaps sat down and started to chat. You’d think that there may have been some scripting or pre-rehearsed stuff at this point, but the conversation seemed pretty off the cuff, talking about Norwich and previous visits (Howard once stood here for MP in 1997 in both city constituencies!). And then it swiftly moved on to answering questions from the audience which we had submitted in writing earlier.
I shan’t bore you with all the details, but suffice to say, it was frank, honest and open discussion about Joy Division, New Order, Factory, The Hacienda, Manchester and Hooky’s contemporaries.
After a brief interval (much welcomed as the seats were bloody awful!) the guys returned to the stage, answering more questions, involving the audience much more and wrapping up with a final performance of “Dark Starr“, a track from the new FreeBass EP, “Two Worlds Collide” featuring Howard on vocals. A truly cracking piece!
And then it was over. Hooky then re-emerged to willingly oblige the very long queue of fans with autographs and photos, as did Howard.
A thoroughly enjoyable evening and I have to say that whilst many people say you should never meet your heroes, chatting with Peter after the show, he was so incredibly friendly, accommodating and genuine. Some people think that he speaks too much these days, that he trades of the past too much, but the impression O got of this man last night was that he really enjoys what he does and is genuinely grateful for everything that has happened to him. He openly admits how fortunate he has been and he is incredibly willing to give whatever he can back to the fans that have granted him this good fortune.
Tony Wilson’s personal record collection for sale!
In one of those “once in a lifetime” opportunities, a portion of the late, great Tony Wilson‘s record collection has come up for sale on eBay! Tony Wilson is probably best known for being co-founder of Factory Records and the Haçienda nightclub.
Contained for sale are some absolute gems that I’m sure will achieve vast sums of cash.
Here is a copy of Joy Division’s Transmission/Novelty – FAC 13, signed by Ian Curtis!
Click here to browse what is currently on offer and there is more to come apparently!
Peter Hook to play Joy Division’s ‘Unknown Pleasures’ live in its entirety!
Peter Hook to play Joy Division’s ‘Unknown Pleasures’ live in its entirety
Bassist to perform seminal album in Manchester on the 30th anniversary of Ian Curtis’ death
Peter Hook has announced plans to perform Joy Division’s debut album live in its entirety to mark the 30th anniversary of the death of late singer Ian Curtis.
The ex-New Order bassist will be joined by a host of guests at the newly refurbished former Factory Records site FAC51 in Manchester on May 18, the same day Curtis hung himself in the kitchen of his home in Macclesfield.
Before that, Hook will showcase previously-unseen Joy Division and New Order footage as part of a new show set to tour the UK in April.
Billed ‘An Evening Of Unknown Pleasures’, the nights will see Hook give talks on his past bands and Factory Records along with the footage, plus live music. Fans will be able to quiz the bassist as part of the evening.
I’m there!!
Factory: The Story Of The Record Label by Mick Middles
A little while back, I finished reading “Factory: The Story Of The Record Label” by Mick Middles and I have to say, I haven’t read such a rich, detailed and thorough account of a music scene as this and yet it still remains a personal account too.
Mick used many of his own recordings made at the time in his capacity as a journalist for such tomes as the NME. This gives much authority to the tales recounted, and this is reassuring as many of the tales told about Factory, Tony Wilson, Joy Division, New Order and everything else about the Manchester music scene that kicked off in 1976 and went on to be the heavyweight force it is today, are coloured by time, chemicals and the effect of chinese whispers
Mick speaks to all the movers and shakers, those alive at the time of writing, and this edition of the book featured an update to take into account the passing of the late, great co-founder of Factory, Tony Wilson.
All the staple stories are here but with Mick’s take on events instead of the myth, supported by his journalistic evidence. And this book really does cover everything. Quite often I found myself rediscovering many Manchester acts that I had forgotten about such as The Distractions & X-O-Dus. Thankfully, Spotify came to the rescue on a number of occasions
This is a great book for any music lover, especially those of my generation who remember the new wave movement that kicked off the whole thing, through the turbulent Joy Division/New Order times, through to Madchester and the Hacienda and on to the now well established Mancunian acts such as Elbow.
I spoke to Mick very briefly online the other week and thanked him heartily for this book for which he was most grateful. It is worth also checking out his other books about the era, especially his book on Ian Curtis, “Torn Apart”, written in conjunction with Lindsey Reade, Tony Wilson’s ex-wife.
Links:
Essential Spotify listening for Factory found here.
Excellent unofficial Factory fansite, CerysmaticFactory.
New club, FAC251, founded by Peter Hook, and site full of Hacienda stuff.
Unknown Pleasures: An Evening with Peter Hook
I mentioned a while back that I had intended on getting tickets to Unknown Pleasures: An Evening with Peter Hook and I did!
It takes place on April 30th and will be compered by the legendary Howard Marks as well as featuring an exhibition beforehand, so this is shaping up to be a top night.
I am in the middle of reading Pete’s book, “The Hacienda: How Not To Run A Club”, which is a unique insight into the whole Madchester era.
Expect a detailed post after the event 
And if you’re up Manchester way, be sure to check out Pete’s new club, FAC251, which opened recently and promises to be more stable and successful, if not as influential, as the original FAC51 on Whitworth St.
New Order/Peter Hook – The Happy One (aka Spot the synths!)
Just lately I have been re-immersing myself in the whole world that is Joy Division/New Order/Factory Records/etc.. in fact, anything from that golden age of musical renaissance that was the New Wave revolution of circa 1979. This has involved re-purchasing Joy Division back catalogue, books, documentaries and films, as well as scouring the interwebs for anything remotely JD/NO related. I’ve even bought myself a ticket to go see Peter Hook give a talk on his life & times as bassist with the aforementioned bands as well as being part owner of the legendary yet doomed Hacienda night club in Manchester.
Anyway, whilst pootling about the web tonight, I came across the following video that, albeit in poor quality, shows us the legend that is Tony Wilson (co-founder of Factory) presenting a segment on a show (The Other Side Of Midnight) that has Peter Hook playing a track called “The Happy One” live, along with a bunch of synth geekery behind him. See if you can spot anything that I haven’t already seen.
I can make out an E-MU Emulator EII, a Roland D-50, Apple Macintosh SE/30, Yamaha TX-816 & Akai S900
Synth Britannia – BBC4 – UK – 16/10/09 9pm
I mentioned this before, but it’s worth mentioning again, as it’s only 5 days away! As part of BBC4′s Electric Revolution season, this Friday at 9pm, a documentary called Synth Britannia will be shown featuring a plethora of British electronic musicians. Here’s the blurb…
Documentary following a generation of post-punk musicians who took the synthesiser from the experimental fringes to the centre of the pop stage.
In the late 1970s, small pockets of electronic artists including the Human League, Daniel Miller and Cabaret Volatire were inspired by Kraftwerk and JG Ballard and dreamt of the sound of the future against the backdrop of bleak, high-rise Britain.
The crossover moment came in 1979 when Gary Numan’s appearance on Top of the Pops with Tubeway Army’s Are Friends Electric heralded the arrival of synthpop. Four lads from Basildon known as Depeche Mode would come to own the new sound whilst post-punk bands like Ultravox, Soft Cell, OMD and Yazoo took the synth out of the pages of the NME and onto the front page of Smash Hits.
By 1983, acts like Pet Shop Boys and New Order were showing that the future of electronic music would lie in dance music.
Contributors include Philip Oakey, Vince Clarke, Martin Gore, Bernard Sumner, Gary Numan and Neil Tennant.
And the tracklisting looks amazing too…
1.
Depeche Mode — New Life
2.
Wendy Carlos — William Tell
3.
Wendy Carlos — Clockwork Orange Main Title
4.
Kraftwerk — Autobahn
5.
The Clash — White Riot
6.
The Normal — Tvod
7.
The Normal — Warm Leatherette
8.
The Future — 4 Jg
9.
The Human League — Being Boiled
10.
Donna Summer — I Feel Love
11.
Cabaret Voltaire — Seconds Too Late
12.
Cabaret Voltaire — Nag Nag Nag
13.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark — Messages
14.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark — Enola Gay
15.
Joy Division — Atmosphere
16.
John Foxx — Underpass
17.
Throbbing Gristle — Still Walking
18.
Throbbing Gristle — Hot on the Heals of Love
19.
Fad Gadget — Back to Nature
20.
Silicon Teens — Memphis Tennessee
21.
Gary Numan — Are Friends Electric?
22.
Gary Numan — Cars
23.
Visage — Fade to Grey
24.
The Flying Lizards — Money
25.
Depeche Mode — New Life
26.
Depeche Mode — Just Can’t Get Enough
27.
The Human League — Don’t You Want Me
28.
Heaven 17 — Penthouse & Pavement
29.
Cabaret Voltaire — Landslide
30.
Soft Cell — Tainted Love
31.
Yazoo — Only You
32.
Yazoo — Don’t Go
33.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark — Maid of Orleans
34.
Eurythmics — Sweet Dreams
35.
Ultravox — Vienna
36.
Kraftwerk — The Model
37.
Depeche Mode — Everything Counts
38.
Depeche Mode — Master and Servant
39.
Pet Shop Boys — West End Girls
40.
New Order — Ceremony
41.
New Order — Blue Monday
42.
Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder — Together in Electric Dreams
But once this programme has finished, DON’T TOUCH THAT DIAL!!!
The next show is Synth Britannia at the BBC.
With Moogs turned up to 11, a 1970s/80s journey through the BBC’s synthpop archives from Roxy Music to New Order.
Roxy Music — Do the Strand
Tubeway Army — Are ‘Friends’ Electric?
Sparks — Beat the Clock
The Human League — The Path of Least Resistance
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark — Messages
Ultravox — Vienna
Depeche Mode — New Life
New Order — Temptation
Soft Cell — Say Hello, Wave Goodbye
Japan — Ghosts
Yazoo — Don’t Go
Tears for Fears — Mad World
Eurythmics — Love is a Stranger
Heaven 17 — Temptation
Howard Jones — What Is Love?
Pet Shop Boys — Opportunities
A proper synth wank fest guaranteed to have you shooting your man spackle all over the shop!!!
