The Perfect Song? - Ceremony | GenXplainers Podcast

BY FAR my favorite song of all time. The best thing is that i can actually play the whole song on guitar....

Peter Hook and the light did the best version... after all these years it just makes my hair stand on end

'',Dreams Never End,'' with Peter Hook handling vocals is my other favorite joy division/new order song..

Ceremony is truly a perfect song but you must know that Ian Curtis was the mind behind it. I love all the musical parts and I love that I have introduced this song to many people. But I always preface it as Joy Division’s last song more than New Orders first song. I love it and there is this amazing video on YouTube that I have enjoyed since it came up one day a decade ago on my feed, I absolutely love it and a think they would to… if you’re a fan you have probably seen it, it has a bunch of statues of Angels and such. It always makes me feel it when I watch it.

So crazy hearing guys talk about a song I’ve loved for over 30 years. New Order has so many perfect songs, I don’t know that I could pick a favorite. “Age of Consent” is about as close to perfect as you can get. And how about “Love Vigilantes?” Flawless.

Version 1 of Ceremony is one of my all time favourites even though I heard v2 first. It captures my favourite feel of the 80s before things got overly polished and felt more DIY and organic. Similar songs that manage this are Jumping Someone Else’s Train by the Cure and Stretch Out and Wait by the Smiths. Nothing fancy, just great songs but in a stripped down 80s style.

My Ceremony 7" is in a gold cover...

absolutely love this, one of my favourite songs ever and it's not talked about nearly enough compared to other joy division/new order songs

This song is perfect. It sounds current and nostalgic all at once.

It's a beautiful song, it's impossible not to connect with something sad when you listen to it, but at the same time, it gives you hope, in a way, like the sun is going to rise. It's the bridge song between Joy Division and New Order, reflecting all the individual talents of each with a fierce simplicity. Congratulations on the podcast; I hope the best for you guys

Timeless art evokes emotion every visit.

Heaven knows is not a strange phrase, it's just like saying God knows (cf The Beach Boys "God only knows") so the feelings are so profound it's like a higher power is involved. This song has always been special to me ever since hearing it on John Peel's show, obviously it had a poignant feel to it so soon after IC's suicide. All the best GenX-es from a boomer 🤣😂

I first heard it on John Peel’s ‘Festive 50’ in 1981 when it was the 4th all time favourite of his listeners. It was the green 12” version and it was a moment in time I remember clearly and treasure. Yep that version is my favourite track of all time.

The first recording of Ceremony sounds most like Joy Division. The 2nd version features Bernard and Gillian answering each other on guitar, which Are really like about it. I like not wish the vocals were higher and n that mix though. I suppose Bernard hadn’t quite found his confidence as a vocalist yet and the ambiguous lyrics may have also been a factor in how the vocal track was mixed. It’s a very moving song.

Heaven Knows is a British saying meaning you are hiding nothing everyone can see what you feel

The Joy Division rehearsal version of Ceremony is a wordier version than the final/NO version or even the Birmingham University final JD show version. In the rehearsal version, Curtis is singing about the "Saviour calling" and "we will see him." It is a noticeably different lyric. Clearly, he hadn't finalized this song and, obviously, was a man in deep distress. Who knows what the final JD version might have been had he lived and become healthier? For me, the money line is "Avenues all lined with trees" because it comes out of nowhere. It is just such a simple but brilliant and unexpected line that leads us to the lyrical and emotional climax of watching love grow forever. I don't at all like the "where did he go?" line before the final "forever" that Sumner added at the end and is on...I don't know how many recorded/live versions. It doesn't work at all for me. I like Bernard but he can f things up now and then. The version on Total is probably my favorite (despite the "Where did he go?" which I think it has) because the guitars are mixed in such a way at the end that they almost sound like church bells. I think that suits this extraordinary song very well.

It's a great song. It's so moody, it just changes the entire atmosphere of a room when played.

One of my all time favourites.

Superb choice. You should have included a sample of the solo piano version. Found on YouTube

I am happy they kept going!