Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division [Hardcover]

Here we have the first memoir of Joy Division by someone who was actually in the group, which, given their importance and achievements, should be greeted with huge enthusiasm by anyone who appreciates the group's work or with an interest in the post-punk era. Sadly, it's been greeted with accusations of "rip-off" or "cash in" in some circles, pathetic knee-jerk reactions that say more about those making them than they do about Hooky and his book. Any surviving member of Joy Division not only has the right to relate their side of the story, they should be encouraged to do so. Though it's hard to picture Barney or Steven coming up with anything more entertaining and revealing than this.

Let's get the negatives out of the way first. Hooky's own account of his life up till the death of Ian Curtis is no-one's idea of great writing. It reads like transcriptions from conversation rather than written prose, and would benefit from some judicious editing to remove repetitive phrasing, vague phrases and lazy cliches. Had such minimal amounts of polish been applied, this would be a five-star review.

Now here are the positives. It may need some editing, but too much would be a disaster, because there's no doubt (unlike previous hack-jobs like the autobiographies of John Lydon and Mark E. Smith) that no ghost-writers are involved. Apart from a few contextual notes to set the scene, this is clearly Hooky's unadulterated voice, and while there may be repetitions and lazy cliches, they're HIS repetitions and lazy cliches. Which means the tone of the book is relaxed, amiable and amusing, and outrageously rude, in all senses of the word (and with particular regard to his former pals in New Order, though he's always quick to praise them as musicians). It's a quick, easy and frequently very funny read. But it's also very touching as it becomes clear that Hook and the rest of the band really didn't know what was going on with Ian Curtis, and Hook is still asking himself lots of "What if?" questions. It may seem implausible, but as Hook rightly points out, young men from that time and place just weren't equipped to realise their mates were having major emotional problems, let alone feel they could and should do something about it.

Anyone interested in reading this probably knows the basic Joy Division story inside out by now. In that sense there's no further enlightenment to be had here (though the detailed chronological notes and comments on the albums will be of interest). What is new and illuminating is the perspective. We see a different Ian Curtis here - the band member, ambitious, fiercely loyal to the band, and also up for the kinds of bad behaviour which very young men on the road will inevitably indulge in. There's lots of that here, and it's in marked and often very amusing contrast to the image those of us reading the music press at the time were presented with (partly, it turns out, because Rob Gretton forbade the "thick ****s" Hooky and Barney from speaking out in interviews).

This new perspective immediately means this becomes one of the three most important Joy Division books, alongside those by Deborah Curtis (showing us Ian as the family man) and Paul Morley (showing us, indirectly of course given the author, Ian the intellectual). What none of them do, of course, is tell us how four ordinary herberts produced music of such emotional power, formal beauty, blazing originality and lasting significance. Probably only one person could tell us that, but, 32 years on, even if there is an afterlife, he's not saying anything.

Everyone has a right to tell their own story. They have the right to give their point of view of their own life. I loved the Hacienda book (which I once saw in a bookstore under the section True Crime). Unknown Pleasures is filled with humour and regret. It's well balanced and shows almost a third-person singular admiration and shock at what happened. It has a collector's obsessiveness and an undercurrent of detective work. It's as if, if you could only figure out the mystery of your past, you could find the moment that would have made it all different. This makes Unknown Pleasures more than a book about a band; it's a book about trying to make a coherent narrative of your own life. Your adult self asks so much more than is possible from your younger and more foolish self.

Unknown Pleasures - Inside Joy Division - Peter Hook

Peter Hook - Unknown Pleasures -Inside joy division, the ultimate, all-encompassing definitive guide into one of the most influential bands of a generation.
Written in the same forthright, tongue in cheek, tell it as it is vein as his previous book "The Hacienda - How Not to Run a Club "Hooky starts this epic tale with stories from his early life to meeting Bernard Sumner at Salford Grammar School, to the formation of the band, from the original recording of An Ideal For Living, the recording of the Unknown Pleasures LP on Factory, right until the untimely death of one of the most charismatic lead singers in the last 40 years.
The book is split into five parts. Timelines are provided at the end of each part with specific dates and years which were pertinent to the band and Peter Hook. The timeline at the end of part one lists the dates and years of birth of anyone important to the Joy Division story. The timeline in the epilogue covers the final two years of the band.

Throughout the book the scene is set with paragraphs about what was happening with the band at that particular point. This is then followed by Hooky's narrative on what was happening from his own perspective. This helps the reader to understand what was happening in terms of gigs, record sales and management and what was happening on the road and behind the scenes with the band themselves.
Closer and Unknown Pleasures are dissected track by track. This gives the reader an insight into Hooky's memories of recording the track and his thoughts on the tracks themselves. This in itself is interesting reading for any Joy Division fan that already has their own thoughts on the albums and individual tracks.
The book also contains never seen before photographs of the band and two pictures from the wedding of Ian and Deborah Curtis.

Hooky is frank in his account of the friendships and fallouts among the band members and those who came into their realm. His honesty is all the more apparent when talking about the death of Ian Curtis and the impact this had on himself and the beginning of the end for Joy Division.
This an easy to read book detailing every aspect of the ups and downs of four young men beginning their journey from humble beginnings in Lancashire to becoming one of the most influential bands of the post punk era.
Steve Smith
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