The group was founded in 1978 by Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys, after they had been involved in several bands, including The Id. Later drummer Malcolm Holmes and saxophonist Martin Cooper joined. McCluskey and Humphreys formed the core of the outfit until 1989, when the group split in two. McCluskey retained the name and continued to record and tour as OMD with a new line-up until 1996, while Humphreys, Holmes, and Cooper formed "The Listening Pool".
According to Songfacts, Enola Gay was the first of 7 Top 10 UK singles for the group; their only US hit was If You Leave, which was written for the 1985 movie Pretty In Pink.
In late December 2005, OMD's official website announced a 2006 reformation, for both live performances and a new album, with rehearsals beginning in summer 2006. The line up features the original 1980's members (Andy McCluskey, Paul Humphreys, Malcolm Holmes and Martin Cooper). The "Architecture & Morality" tour for late 2006 was postponed until the beginning of 2007.
The tour finally took place in the spring of 2007 featuring "Architecture & Morality" played in its entirety plus a 'greatest hits' set, although each concert famously ended with stirring rendition of B side/album track and fan favourite "The Romance of the Telescope".
Plans are now ahead for the release of a documentary DVD (since released and available here), a live DVD of the 2007 tour (release postponed until 2008) and a new studio album released in 2010, entitled "History of Modern".
The group's 12th studio album, English Electric, was released on 5 April 2013. The group's 13th studio album, The Punishment Of Luxury, was released on 1 September 2017. The group's 14th studio album, Bauhaus Staircase, was released on 27 October 2023.
Official OMD website: http://www.omd.uk.com
Red Frame/White Light
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Six three two three double 'O' three
Red frame white light
Telephone box
Red on gray
Red frame white light
You have a gray book
On a metal shelf
Numbered calls
Selected places
Red frame white light
Six three two three double 'O' three
Red frame white light
Telephone calls
Black and white
Red frame white light
You have a yellow book
With adverts
Red frame white light
Telephone box
Red on gray
Red frame white light
Six three two three double 'O' three
The song "Red Frame White Light" by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark is a reflection of the impersonal communication in the modern world. The "Red frame white light" refers to a telephone box, which signifies the detached and mechanical nature of communication in a fast-paced world. The repetition of "Six three two three double 'O' three" emphasizes the sense of uniformity and anonymity that comes with calling from a public telephone booth. In this context, the use of the colors red, gray, black and white, and yellow contrast with the mundanity of everyday life, highlighting how emptiness and mechanization have taken over human connection. The reference to a "gray book" and a "yellow book with adverts" may reflect the commercialization of communication and the commodification of relationships.
The song also touches upon the theme of distance and longing, as indicated by the "numbered calls" and "selected places" in the song. The lyrics suggest that the singer has to rely on a machine to connect with someone who might be far away, adding to the sense of alienation and disconnection. The song's repetitive structure further emphasizes this coldness and monotony, as if communication has lost its soul and become an automated process.
Line by Line Meaning
Red frame white light
The striking visual of a telephone box with a bright red frame and a white light on top is the focus of attention.
Six three two three double 'O' three
The telephone number that everyone knows by heart and can easily remember.
Telephone box
A small, enclosed booth that houses a public telephone, often found on busy street corners.
Red on gray
The bold contrast of the bright red frame against the dull gray of the telephone box.
You have a gray book
On a metal shelf
A directory of phone numbers, listing people and businesses, kept on a metal shelf inside the telephone box.
Numbered calls
Selected places
The ability to make specific phone calls to pre-selected locations by dialing the corresponding number on the directory.
Telephone calls
Black and white
The communication between people via phone, often described as a black and white exchange of words.
You have a yellow book
With adverts
A phone book with advertisements for businesses, usually found inside the telephone box.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: ANDREW MC CLUSKEY, PAUL DAVID HUMPHREYS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@federalbureauofinvestigati721
I have this song’s album on CD. One of their best albums in my opinion alongside Architecture & Morality. This was heavily influenced by my mother. I’m young though, and not a lot of people would expect people my age to like stuff like OMD. I’m in my late 20’s
@stuartrussell3490
No I was young in the period but people still listened to the Beatles The Beach Boys and others. I think it's interesting when music can cross- generations. on OMD I think they would have liked to have been more experimental on new wave but Dazzle Ships album nearly broke them. Also were governed on record companies and deadlines. So late eighties they played mainstream safe on dance numbers but did it very well rolling out one great tune after another
@markhasselholdt1058
Ridiculously good... how this didn't make their Greatest Hits album I'll never know
@Supersweetguy
+Mark Hasselholdt This was included in their 2008 CD/DVD album called Messages, in which they celebrated their 30th anniversary.
@Supersweetguy
+Mark Hasselholdt I just wish they would convert it to blu-ray.
@roberthadnagy
I still don't understand why it wasn't on the CD, as it was a single. It would've been such a good addition.
@ricksuegreen1753
Hi. The people who do these compilations often know NOTHING about the band.
This record is great. So memorable. Simple and so effective.
@brody5211
Rick Suegreen you’d think they would surely ??
@PabloDeModeOfficial
Their best stuff. I mean I love almost every album of them but this is the sound they created as fresh and new.
@benedettobruno1669
Always and forever, thank you to Great Britain and the British people whose creativity, since the 1960s, has given the rest of the World hundreds of unique bands such as the Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark and music of unparalleled beauty, quirkiness and atmosphere.
What would our lives have been without British bands?