radio live transmission: Joy Division Paris 1979 UPGRADE

I do have quite a few queued items in the "to be blogged" category, but while this one wasn't techically atop the list, we are close enough to its 30th anniversary that I wanted to feature it this week.



One of the better sounding Joy Division live CDs out there is Les Bains Douches, a disc documenting 9 tracks from their 18 December 1979 gig in Paris (with the remaining tracks on that particular CD coming from other gigs).

I had a slight problem with this CD though.

1) The compilers did FAR too much noise reduction on the track intros.

2) Better (DAT) sources existed than what was given the compilers, though you can't fault the compilers for that since I believe the DAT source didn't surface until after this was done.

3) It wasn't a complete document of the gig.

Reasons for all three?

1) I think the original source for the compilers was off cassette;

2) The DAT, the person helping the compilers, and the compilers themselves couldn't get together in time;

3) France Inter radio - in particular DJ Bernard Lenoir - did not broadcast, at least that we are aware of, the entire gig. This gig has been broadcast several times on Paris radio, though each time a different selection of tracks featured. The 1994 broadcast is the source for *most* of the below, it was recorded on 32kHz DAT by a gentleman direct off the air.

Bernard Lenoir has said in the past that the original reels, as recorded for France Inter at the gig, are unusable and safety copies had to be used to source the latter-day broadcasts.

So allow me to present a hodgepodge - though in total, the best document of the gig ever assembled outside of France Inter offices - of this legendary gig.

Lossless FLAC of course!

Source key to follow.


JOY DIVISION
18 December 1979
Les Bains Douches, Paris, France



01 Passover
02 Wilderness
03 Disorder
04 Love Will Tear Us Apart
05 Insight
06 Shadowplay
07 Transmission
08 Day Of The Lords
09 Twenty Four Hours
10 Colony
11 These Days
12 A Means To An End
13 She's Lost Control
14 Atrocity Exhibition
15 Interzone
16 Warsaw

01 from a 2001 broadcast, DAT source
02/10/13/15 from an audience recording
03-09, 11-12 from the 1994 broadcast, from DAT source
14/16 from a unknown-year 1980s broadcast

Grab the 4 RAR's here!