Joy Division: Piece By Piece -
Paul Morley
Published: 15 November
2007
Author: Paul Morley
Paperback 384 pages
Price £10.49
Joy Division are the
perennial cult post-punk band. Author/TV broadcaster
Paul Morley is the man who knew Joy Division best - he
was the only journalist permitted to view Curtis'
corpse, was present when Curtis suffered his near fatal
epileptic seizure following a London concert in April
1980, and wrote extensively and evocatively of the
'mood, atmosphere and ephemeral terror' that enveloped
this unique group and their doomed front man.
These are his complete writings on Joy Division, both
contemporary and retrospective. As he says, 'The more
that time moves on, the more I have to say about them.'
In addition to collecting all Morley's classic works
about the band from the late 1970s/early 1980s, this
unique book includes his eloquent Ian Curtis obituary
and his hindsight pieces on the significance of the
group, framed by an extensive retrospective essay.
Contemporary elements include Morley's critique of the
films "24 Hour Party People" - which told the story of
the band's record label, "Factory" - and "Control", a
new movie recounting the brief life of Ian Curtis, for
which the author visited the set during production. Most
movingly, Morley includes the original text that grew
into his literary work, nothing, which parallels the
suicide of Curtis with that of his own father. He also
evokes the zeitgeist and the 'psycho-geography' of
Manchester, which combined to produce the most uniquely
intense rock group ever.
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