In conversation with Rolling Stone Brasil, the bassist recalled the memory of his friend and Joy Division vocalist, who would have turned 68 this Monday (15): “He always took care of everyone, when ironically he was probably the one who needed the most care”
If he were alive, Ian Curtis would have turned 68 this Monday (15). But not for Peter Hookto whom the memory of the colleague and vocalist of Joy Division remains unchanged: it is at the age of 23 that Curtis will be remembered, both in the show that Hook performs in São Paulo next August, and in an unprecedented podcast, produced by him.
“[suspiro] I don’t think of him at 68, and I never will. I’ll always remember him at 23,” Hook said. “That good friend was one of the most generous singers I’ve ever met. He always wanted you to sing. Most musicians aren’t like that – they want to sing everything and they don’t want you to sing anything. [risos]. He was the exact opposite.”
Remembering his friend, who committed suicide at the age of 23 in 1980, Peter Hook reinforced how different Curtis’s life was from that of the other members of Joy Division – which included guitarist Bernard Summer and the drummer Stephen Morrisbesides himself. Only months older than Curtis, Hook, now 68, recalled what he calls the “sense of responsibility” that set Curtis apart from his peers, still in their 20s:
“He got married at 19 and had a daughter at 20. He had a lot more – I don’t know if that’s the term, but a sense of responsibility than we did. I mean, we were complete idiots, absolute idiots at 23. But he had a baby, a house, and he was trying to hold down a job while playing with the band. And he was epileptic, you know? He was really sick. So he had a lot more responsibility and problems than we did.”
Looking back, Hook’s memory of his bandmate is that of a “cheerleader” for the other members of Joy Division. He says it was Curtis who would offer words of support to the members if any of them were going through a moment of doubt – as he himself did at one point.
“I remember him shaking me when I wanted to quit the band and go back to my job – ‘you’re not going to do any of this, you’re going to stay here, you’re a great bass player, blah blah blah…'”, said the bassist.
“He always took care of everyone, when ironically he was probably the one who needed the most care. But he also hid it better.”
Ian Curtis remembered in podcast
Ian Curtis’ life will be the subject of a podcast produced by Peter Hook in partnership with Kelvin Briggsthe singer’s best friend and best man. As Hook told Rolling Stone Brazilthe project has already been recorded and is in the editing process. The idea, according to him, would be to remember Curtis as the man behind the musician, the young man who was entering adulthood and his passion for music.
“[Kelvin] “Ian was best friends with him from elementary school, through high school, and even being best man at his wedding. He was very, very close to Ian. And I kept saying to him, ‘Before we leave here for the big rock ‘n’ roll concert in heaven, we need to do a podcast about Ian’s life, about what he was like as a young man,'” Hook says.
There are still no details, but the program should speak openly about Curtis’s growing involvement with music and Joy Division, but it should not shy away from the problems and issues that led to his fateful suicide, which happened on the eve of the band’s debut tour in North America in May 1980. In fact, Hook says that he and Briggs speak openly about the death, including the reproduction of an exact copy of the album. The Idiotin Iggy Popwhich was playing on repeat when the vocalist’s body was found.
“When Ian died, his wife donated Ian’s vinyl collection – and the record Ian put on when he committed suicide was Iggy Pop’s The Idiot. When his wife found it, it was playing on repeat. And Kelvin had that record. And he gave it to me during the podcast recording to hold – he’d never let anyone else touch the record, as the last person to touch the album was Ian Curtis,” Hook recalls.
“Oh my God, the chills I got when I played the record… And we played the record on the podcast. I mean, I have chills now, just thinking about what he must have been going through at that moment with that record. That record has never been played again since Ian played it in 1980. So it was just incredible. I’m really excited to finish the edit, because I think people are going to be blown away.”
Peter Hook in Sao Paulo
Ian Curtis is part of the memories that Hook brings with him to the show he performs in São Paulo with his group, Peter Hook & The LightAugust 27th. Accompanied by David Potts (guitar/vocals), Paul Kehoe (battery), Martin Rebelski (keyboards) and Paul Duffy (bass/vocals), he takes to the stage Audio a setlist with the complete list of songs from the compilations Substance (1987), from New OrderIt is Substance (1988), by Joy Division.
In the show, Hook & Co. follow the proposal of their successful albums, which listed in chronological order a series of singles from the two groups that defined post-punk. From Joy Division, tracks such as “Love Will Tear Us Apart”, “She’s Lost Control” and “Transmission” are confirmed, as well as “Bizarre Love Triangle”, “Blue Monday” and “Ceremony”, from New Order – the latter song marking Ian Curtis’ only credit in the band his colleagues made after the dissolution of Joy Division. A memory that, for Peter Hook, remains alive in the voice of the vocalist himself:
“Every time I play Joy Division for you or anywhere, I always remember those words Ian used to say to me: ‘We’re going to play everywhere and they’re going to love us’.”
Peter Hook & The Light
August 27th, at 10pm
Audio (694 Francisco Matarazzo Ave, White Water, Sao Paulo, SP)
From R$ 120
Rating: 18 years.
Tickets on sale through the website Ticket360.
Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
