compilations
discography of martin hannett productions
martinfactory facd 325
(p) 1991 factory communications, ltd.
this collection is a sample of the work of record producer martin hannett from his early work with the buzzcocks until his death in april 1991. martin, as a producer, was the mastermind behind the sound of joy division, and his influential production skills were employed by many of today’s major bands. in later life he produced the stone roses and happy mondays, giving the latter their first hit: ‘wrote for luck’. the final tracks on the album represent some of his more recent work before his death at the age of 41. the proceeds of this album go to his family.
| buzzcocks: | breakdown |
| slaughter and the dogs: | cranked up really high |
| john cooper clarke: | suspended sentence |
| joy division: | she's lost control |
| jilted john: | jilted john |
| a certain ratio: | do the du |
| orchestral manoeuvres in the dark: | almost |
| u2: | 11 o'clock tick tock |
| new order: | everything's gone green |
| happy mondays: | lazyitis |
| world of twist: | she's a rainbow |
| new fast automatic daffodils: | get better |
| the high: | more |
late night, some time in the early 70’s. a room in a house in south manchester. the tv’s finished (it used to in those days) and all but the craziest have gone to bed. a motley crew recline in the room, illuminated by dim lights. ganga smokes snakes its way through the air like a vapour trail, on a mirror crystals glitter. on the turntable a record stops.
"that was amazing man - how on earth did they get that sound?"
"they must have rigged two 16 tracks together"
"impossible! they couldn’t have done that without a flanger or something like that"
"bullshit! it’s double tracked and d.i.’d through an analog delay system"
"recording like that is impossible"
"no it isn’t"
"what’d you say martin?"
"i said, no it isn’t"
"okay then, how would you do it?"
"it’s easy"all eyes are now on martin. he starts giggling and says
"i’d just get stoned."
c.p. lee. 1991
and here is the young man - the production works of martin hannett 1978 - 1991
martin telling me that for every great leap forward in rock 'n' roll that i could name, he would tell me the new piece of technology, the studio location and the genius engineer/producer who at the very same moment changed forever what we hear and what we play. and he then named every single one.
martin taking his place in that role of honour in cargo, strawberry and britannia row with those arps and his beloved amd digital delay; changing forever the way we hear music.
martin explaining that in factory acquiring a jaguar, i was about to come face to face with one of the triumphs of british engineering. not the car, the ashtrays. he was right. of course. they are miraculous. on being asked, he explained succinctly and amusingly how the heavy oil and thick plastic bag creates a truly sexual hinge. he always knew everything.
martin insisting every day on taking the (longer) pulaski skyway route from manhatten to the studio in east orange, new jersey, as we recorded acr, new order and e.s.g. he felt so at home; it was just like trafford park, manchester's then decaying industrial estate. he loved trafford park. he loved industrial decay; maybe he even loved his own decay.
martin sitting in a darkened room with a revolver nestling in his hands while he explained to the film makers how he created factory records - "found a talking head for a front man."
martin inspiring one of the earliest flights of shaun ryder's verbal genius. the first verse of the monday's "tart tart" tells the painful story of the split between martin and his factory partners with all the economy of a james joyce short story; "...with hands ... held out ..palm up...". shaun didn't even know him them - barney had just told him the stories and he made it up from there. and in eight lines caught the whole ******* thing.
martin, years later, working so closely with the boys in the driffield studio, taking on board the house beats drifting from the darkened pool room, and creating more beauty and changing things yet again.
martin, near the end, appearing in a new fads video being wheeled around the dance floor of the hacienda in a shopping trolley, by now grotesquely overweight, head lolling, for all the world like falstaff being driven in state round a cheapside tavern.
and the coffin; such a big coffin. such a big man. changed my life. changed lots of lives.
anthony h wilson.
debutante, cd: 555 976-2, 1998 pic
joy division:
she's lost control (12" mix)
new order:
ceremony
u2:
11 o'clock tick tock
magazine:
song from under the floorboards
happy mondays:
wrote for luck
jilted john:
jilted john
john cooper clarke:
beasley street
the psychedelic furs:
susan's strange
kissing the pink:
don't hide in the shadows
durutti column:
belgian friends
the names:
night shift
esg:
moody
basement 5:
the last white christmas
new fast automatic daffodils:
get better
slaughter and the dogs:
cranked up really high
the high:
more (more madness mix)
world of twist:
she's a rainbow
the durutti column:
second aspect of the same thing
