It's one thing to celebrate the anniversaries
of LP's from my long gone school days; 'The
Slider', 'Ziggy Stardust', 'Exile on Main St'
etc, but quite another to be informed that
Joy Division's 'Unknown Pleasures' turned 35
last week. THIRTY FIVE! This was only seven years after those classics from T.Rex, Bowie
and the Stones, but, viewed from this end of
the telescope, the gap seems far wider. I
demand a recount.
Meanwhile, from a mere 33 years ago, here are
fellow Mancunians and Factory artists, Crispy
Ambulance. The connections don't end there of course. One night in 1980, singer Alan
Hempsall was temporarily called into service
by Joy Division after Ian Curtis suffered an
epileptic fit, just before a show in Derby.
The tune is the frankly magnificent 'The
Presence' and, in one final link, it was produced by the
legendary Martin Hannett.
An edited 'performance' video of the song is
available
here and it's well worth 6½ minutes
of your time, but I make no apologies for
choosing to concentrate on the full 13 minute
version of this masterpiece. Enjoy.
