In June 1980, Lydon and Levene were interviewed on NBC ‘s The Tomorrow Show by host Tom Snyder . The interview was awkward (and combative at times). At one point, Snyder asked Lydon if PiL was a band to which Lydon replied with, “We ain’t no band, we’re a company.…
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The suicide shocked the band and their management. In 2005, Wilson said: “I think all of us made the mistake of not thinking his suicide was going to happen … We all completely underestimated the danger. We didn’t take it seriously. That’s how stupid we were.” Music critic Simon Reynolds…
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Between 1977 and 1980, Ian Curtis , Peter Hook , Stephen Morris , and Bernard Sumner were members of the post-punk band Joy Division , often featuring heavy production input from producer Martin Hannett . Curtis died by suicide on 18 May 1980, the day before Joy Division were scheduled…
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The evening before the band were due to depart for America, Curtis returned to his Macclesfield home to talk to Deborah. He asked her to drop an impending divorce suit, and asked her to leave him alone in the house until he caught a train to Manchester the following morning.…
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On 17 May 1980, the group appeared on the teenage music show American Bandstand at the invitation of host Dick Clark . PiL’s performance was chaotic; they abandoned lip-syncing, invited the audience onto the stage while the music played and Lydon clowned. Clark named the performance among his top 100…
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In May 1980, U2 released ” 11 O’Clock Tick Tock “, their first international single and their debut on Island, but it failed to chart. Martin Hannett , who produced the single, was in consideration to produce the band’s debut album, Boy , but was replaced with Steve Lillywhite .…
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INXS released their first single, ” Simple Simon “/” We Are the Vegetables “, in Australia and France in May 1980.
In May 1980, A&M in the UK released Six Pack , a package containing the five A&M singles (not including “Fall Out”) in their original sleeves plus a mono alternate take of the album track ” The Bed’s Too Big Without You ” backed with a live version of “Truth…
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Joy Division were scheduled to commence their first US/Canada tour in May 1980. Curtis had expressed enthusiasm about the tour, but his relationship with his wife, Deborah, was under strain; Deborah was excluded from the band’s inner circle and objected to Curtis being close to Belgian journalist and music promoter…
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A lack of sleep and long hours destabilised Curtis’s epilepsy, and his seizures became almost uncontrollable. He often had seizures during performances, which some audience members believed were part of the performance. The seizures left him feeling ashamed and depressed, and the band became increasingly worried about Curtis’s condition. On…
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