Pioneers of dance music in the 1980s and one of the first bands to effectively and popularly synthesize keyboard- and guitar-based music, New Order's members hailed from Salford and Macclesfield, England out of the ashes of Joy Division, are noted as being one of the first bands to bridge the gap between Post-Punk and Dancefloor. They were Factory Records' highest selling artist. They also funded Factory's famous Manchester club, The Haçienda. The band partnered with Quincy Jones's American label Qwest, recorded with legendary hip-hop producer Arthur Baker (on 1983's single "Confusion" and 1984's "Thieves Like Us"), and they embraced Ibizan club culture on the album, Technique.
The band was formed in 1980 by the three surviving members, Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris of Joy Division after the lead singer Ian Curtis committed suicide. Morris' girlfriend (and later wife) Gillian Gilbert joined in October 1980 on keyboards and occasional guitar shortly after contributing guitar to the second release of New Order's first single "Ceremony". Their early music followed in the same vein as Joy Division, most notably on debut album Movement. This is mostly seen now as a 'transitional' album where the new 4-piece band was trying to find a new identity.
They continued to develop their music and their identity with tracks such as "Procession" and "Temptation" until 1983 when, under the influence of early electro funk and Italo-Disco tracks (most notably Klein & MBO's Dirty Talk), they released "Blue Monday", arguably their most famous song and the biggest-selling 12" single of all time. This came in such a detailed Peter Saville-designed sleeve (replicating a floppy disc) that it is claimed by some that the band's record company, Factory, lost money on every copy sold.
The release of "Blue Monday" coincided with the album Power, Corruption & Lies which further developed their dance/rock crossover. Other albums followed in 1985 (Low-Life), 1986 (Brotherhood) and 1989 (Technique, influenced heavily by Ibiza's acid house scene). In 1990 the band scored their sole number 1 hit with a song written by Keith Allen and performed with the England football team, "World in Motion", the official England World Cup song. One more album, Republic followed in May 1993, which was released by London Records after the collapse of Factory in November 1992.
The band effectively split in 1993 to pursue solo projects, but returned with a triumphant gig at the Reading Festival in 1998. After the recording of 2001's Get Ready album Gillian Gilbert left the band amicably for family reasons - her and Stephen's daughter Grace had been diagnosed with Transverse myelitis and she came to the decision that it would be easier for the band to replace her than her husband. They have since gone on to produce one more album with the help of Phil Cunningham of Marion when they released their last album, Waiting For The Sirens' Call.
Hook left acrimoniously in 2007 and according to him, the band has effectively broken up. However, Sumner, Cunningham and Morris repeatedly denied that the band was over, and that if Hook no longer wanted to be in the band, that was his choice. Hook has since threatened to take legal action if they attempt to continue as New Order. In 2009, Sumner, Morris and Cunningham announced that they did not plan on continuing on as New Order without Hook. However, in September 2011 it was announced that they will reform as New Order for two concerts in October (Brussels and Paris), without Hook but with Gillian Gilbert. Hook's replacement is Tom Chapman, who is also in Bad Lieutenant with Sumner, Morris and Cunningham. The charity gigs in Brussels and Paris were very successful and New Order decided to go on tour in 2012. They played various concerts all over the world and also some big festivals in the summer.
Discography (studio albums):
Movement (1981)
Power, Corruption & Lies (1983)
Low-Life (1985)
Brotherhood (1986)
Technique (1989)
Republic (1993)
Get Ready (2001)
Waiting for the Sirens' Call (2005)
Lost Sirens (2013)
Music Complete (2015)
Collaborations and other projects:
Shortly after the split, Sumner and Cunningham formed Bad Lieutenant. The band's debut album Never Cry Another Tear, released in 2009, features Morris on drums on several tracks, although he is not an official member of the band and has committed to continue musical projects with Gillian Gilbert. The band's various solo projects understandably seemed to contain elements of the New Order 'sound', and gave some clues as to each member's contribution to the band.
Bernard Sumner worked with Johnny Marr (formerly of The Smiths) and Neil Tennant (of The Pet Shop Boys) in the 'supergroup', Electronic. Peter Hook formed the bands Revenge and, later, Monaco. These projects gained some commercial success. Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert recorded two albums of songs as The Other Two, and also did scoring work for film and television.
Each of New Order's four original members have, at various times, acted as producers and/or guest musicians under the moniker of Be Music for a myriad of Factory labelmates and other artists, including: Section 25, A Certain Ratio, Happy Mondays, Paul Haig, The Stockholm Monsters, The Stone Roses, and Stanton Miranda.
People on the High Line
New Order Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I will come and make it right
I need your love, I want your love
When you're not there, I think of us
We're like the sun, we're burning bright
We've gotta try to get it right
I need your love, I want it now
We've got to make it work somehow
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
This time we'll get it right
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
I'll keep trying
The ghost of you is in my heart
Sometimes it feels we're worlds apart
I look back to the day we met
When first you got inside my head
I need your love, I need your love
It's everywhere and it's for us
If you love me in the night
I'll come to you, I'll make it right
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
This time we'll get it right
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
So come with me tonight
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
This time I thought
It would be eternal
I'll keep trying
I'd open the door
I've been here before
And here I stand
I'm a shadow of a man without your love
I'll keep trying
The lyrics to New Order's song People on the High Line seem to be about a couple struggling to make their relationship work. The singer pleads with their lover to show them love and make things right between them. The chorus is a repeated mantra of "I'll keep trying, it's all gonna be alright," suggesting that the singer is determined to make things work with their partner, regardless of the challenges they face. The line "I'm a shadow of a man without your love" indicates that the singer relies on their lover for their sense of self, and losing that love would leave them feeling incomplete.
The song also incorporates some imagery of light and heat, with the reference to the couple being "like the sun, burning bright." This could suggest that the passion between them is strong but also unstable, liable to burn out if not handled carefully. The phrase "The ghost of you is in my heart" implies that the singer is haunted by memories of their partner, even when they're apart.
Overall, the lyrics to People on the High Line paint a picture of a relationship that is both intense and fragile, with the singer struggling to maintain their connection with their partner in the face of distance and doubt.
Line by Line Meaning
If you love me in the night
If you can support me when times are tough
I will come and make it right
I'll do everything to make our love work
I need your love, I want your love
I need and want your love to be with you
When you're not there, I think of us
Thinking of our relationship keeps me going when you are away
We're like the sun, we're burning bright
Our relationship is passionate, intense and full of life
We've gotta try to get it right
We need to work hard and do our best to make our love work
I need your love, I want it now
I need your love and I want it as soon as possible
We've got to make it work somehow
We need to find a way to make our love work
I'll keep trying
I won't give up on our relationship
It's all gonna be alright
Everything is going to be okay in the end
This time we'll get it right
We will learn from our mistakes and make things work this time
I can't get any higher
I am already giving my all to our relationship
There's nothing I desire
All I want is to be with you and make our love work
The ghost of you is in my heart
I still have feelings for you even when we're not together
Sometimes it feels we're worlds apart
Our differences can make it hard for us to connect
I look back to the day we met
I remember the day when we first fell in love
When first you got inside my head
When I first started to fall for you
It's everywhere and it's for us
Love is all around us and it's meant for us
So come with me tonight
Let's spend the night together
This time I thought it would be eternal
I hoped our love would last forever
I'd open the door
I am willing to open myself up to you
I've been here before
I have experienced heartbreak before
And here I stand
But I still stand here, hoping for a better outcome with you
I'm a shadow of a man without your love
Without your love, I am incomplete and lost
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BERNARD SUMNER, GILLIAN LESLEY GILBERT, PHILLIP CUNNINGHAM, STEPHEN PAUL DAVID MORRIS, THOMAS LOUIS CHAPMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Lost Soul
If you love me in the night
I will come and make it right
I need your love, I want your love
When you're not there, I think of us
We're like the sun, we're burning bright
We've gotta try to get it right
I need your love, I want it now
We've got to make it work somehow
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
This time we'll get it right
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
The ghost of you is in my heart
Sometimes it feels we're worlds apart
I look back to the day we met
When first you got inside my head
I need your love, I need your love
It's everywhere and it's for us
If you love me in the night
I'll come to you, I'll make it right
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
This time we'll get it right
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
So come with me tonight
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
This time I thought
It would be instrumental
I'll keep trying
I'd open the door
I've been here before
And here I stand
I'm a shadow of a man without your love
I'll keep trying
maxdamiann
Fucking brilliant. From Warsaw to this. These guys are on another planet. They're almost 60 and they're still making us dance. They had the balls to do something totally different. Simply fantastic...
jason b
lost my shit when they played this live STRAIGHT AFTER Tooti Fruity .. Sydney Opera House with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, what a fucking unbelievable experience
john sullivan
How many of us who have been with them since the beginning thought that they'd still be going strong now? There not just another oldies band and this album proves it.
davethebrave
I am going through this playlist with my jaw on the ground. I can't believe this. This album is impossibly good so far.
Busi man
man, I just found this album.. and it just rocks!.. amazing vibes.. delightful music and magical lyrics.. new order rocks!
Lost Soul
If you love me in the night
I will come and make it right
I need your love, I want your love
When you're not there, I think of us
We're like the sun, we're burning bright
We've gotta try to get it right
I need your love, I want it now
We've got to make it work somehow
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
This time we'll get it right
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
The ghost of you is in my heart
Sometimes it feels we're worlds apart
I look back to the day we met
When first you got inside my head
I need your love, I need your love
It's everywhere and it's for us
If you love me in the night
I'll come to you, I'll make it right
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
This time we'll get it right
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
I'll keep trying
It's all gonna be alright
So come with me tonight
I'll keep trying
I can't get any higher
There's nothing I desire
This time I thought
It would be instrumental
I'll keep trying
I'd open the door
I've been here before
And here I stand
I'm a shadow of a man without your love
I'll keep trying
MrLobster65
Comencé escuchando Plastic y es un track fantåstico. Y éste no se queda atrås. Gran dominio de los ritmos. THANK YOU FOR COMING BACK NEW ORDER!!!
Fdo Retam
The acid house piano, the bassline, Elly Roux's backing vocals... all awesome but my favorite moment must be that part only present from 2:39 to 2:49 ("I need your love..."). I love those little details NO imprints in their songs, those wacky, great parts they give you for like 10 seconds and then discard completely because they're cool like that (see: goat and frog samples).
Stephen Noodlez
I didnât notice that part but I love! The electronic almost video game sound đ€©đ€©đ€©
MashMaloCircus
probably the best song in this album