Unknown Pleasures

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This article is about the album by Joy Division. For the film by Jia Zhangke, see Unknown Pleasures (film).
Unknown Pleasures
Unknown Pleasures cover
Studio album by Joy Division
Released June 15, 1979 (1979-06-15)
Recorded April 1, 1979 (1979-04-01)–April 17, 1979 (1979-04-17) at Strawberry Studios, Stockport, England
Genre Post-punk
Length 39:24
Label Factory - FACT 10
Producer Martin Hannett, Joy Division
Professional reviews
Joy Division chronology
Unknown Pleasures
(1979)		 Closer
(1980)

Unknown Pleasures is the first album by Joy Division, released in 1979. It was produced by Martin Hannett and recorded at Strawberry Studios, Stockport, England.

Contents

[edit] Reception

Unknown Pleasures reached #1 in the UK charts in August 1980 in the aftermath of Ian Curtis's death and also peaked at #1 in New Zealand during June 1981.

In 2000 Q magazine placed Unknown Pleasures at number 19 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. Pitchfork Media placed it at number 9 in its list of the 100 Greatest Albums of the 1970s, and, upon its re-release in 2007, received the rare accolade of 10/10. In his 1995 book, "The Alternative Music Almanac", Alan Cross placed the album in the #8 spot on the list of '10 Classic Alternative Albums'. It is considered to have gained a cult following after Ian Curtis' death

[edit] Reissues

This album, along with Closer and Still has been remastered and was released on September 17, 2007 (2007-09-17). The remaster comes packaged with a bonus live disc, recorded at The Factory, Manchester, on July 13, 1979 (1979-07-13).

[edit] Cover and label

The front cover image comes from an edition of the Cambridge Encyclopedia of Astronomy, and was originally drawn with black lines on a white background. [1] It presents exactly 100 successive pulses from the first pulsar discovered, PSR 1919+21 (often referred to in the context of this album by its older name, CP 1919). The cover design is credited to Joy Division, Peter Saville and Chris Mathan. The back cover of the album contains no track listings, leaving a blank table where one would expect the listings to be.

The original LP release contained no track information on the labels, nor the traditional "side one" and "side two" designations. The ostensible "side one" was labeled Outside and displayed a reproduction of the image on the album cover, while the other side was labeled Inside and displayed the same image with the colors reversed (black-on-white). Track information and album credits appeared on the inner sleeve only.

[edit] Groove Notations

European pressing: Near the inner groove of the Outside is etched in script: "This is the way" and the Inside has "Step inside". Both lines are taken from the song "Atrocity Exhibition" (which would be released on the Closer album, a year later).
US pressing: The Inside reads "I've been looking for a guide", an altered version of the opening line of the song "Disorder".

[edit] Track listing

 Music sample:

"Shadowplay"

Sample of Joy Division's "Shadowplay" from Unknown Pleasures
Problems listening to the file? See media help.

"She's Lost Control"

Sample of "She's Lost Control" from Unknown Pleasures
Problems listening to the file? See media help.

All songs were written by Joy Division.

[edit] Side one: Outside

  1. "Disorder" – 3:32
  2. "Day of the Lords" – 4:49
  3. "Candidate" – 3:05
  4. "Insight" – 4:29
  5. "New Dawn Fades" – 4:47

[edit] Side two: Inside

  1. "She's Lost Control" – 3:57
  2. "Shadowplay" – 3:55
  3. "Wilderness" – 2:38
  4. "Interzone" – 2:16
  5. "I Remember Nothing" – 5:53

[edit] 2007 remaster: Warner / 2564697789 (UK)

[edit] CD One: Unknown Pleasures

  1. "Disorder" – 3:32
  2. "Day of the Lords" – 4:49
  3. "Candidate" – 3:05
  4. "Insight" – 4:29
  5. "New Dawn Fades" – 4:47
  6. "She's Lost Control" – 3:57
  7. "Shadowplay" – 3:55
  8. "Wilderness" – 2:38
  9. "Interzone" – 2:16
  10. "I Remember Nothing" – 5:53

[edit] CD Two: Live At The Factory, Manchester 13 July 1979

  1. "Dead Souls" - 4:25
  2. "The Only Mistake" - 4:12
  3. "Insight" - 3:52
  4. "Candidate" - 2:07
  5. "Wilderness" - 3:31
  6. "She's Lost Control" - 3:47
  7. "Shadowplay" - 3:34
  8. "Disorder" - 3:28
  9. "Interzone" - 2:05
  10. "Atrocity Exhibition" - 6:14
  11. "Novelty" - 4:28
  12. "Transmission" - 3:49

[edit] Personnel

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Joy Division
Ian Curtis • Bernard Sumner • Peter Hook • Stephen Morris
Terry Mason • Tony Tabac • Steve Brotherdale
Albums
Unknown Pleasures • Closer
Compilations
Live albums
Singles and EPs
Related