| "Electricity" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | ||||
| from the album Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | ||||
| B-side | "Almost" | |||
| Released | 21 May 1979 (see release history) |
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| Format | 7" vinyl | |||
| Recorded | Cargo Studios, Rochdale Henry's Studio, Liverpool |
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| Genre | New Wave, synthpop | |||
| Length | 3:39 | |||
| Label | Factory - FAC 6 (1st release) DinDisc (2nd & 3rd releases) |
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| Writer(s) | Paul Humphreys, Andy McCluskey | |||
| Producer | Martin Zero Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and Chester Valentino |
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| Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark singles chronology | ||||
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"Electricity" is the debut single of the New Wave and synthpop group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. It is notable for having been recorded numerous times. The earliest versions are live recordings by Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys' previous group The Id. The song is one of the OMD's most popular and recognisable songs even though it never became a hit. The three attempts at scoring a hit only achieved the lowly (but significant for the group at the time) #99 in 1979.[1] "Electricity" would later appear on OMD's debut album and is regularly featured on OMD compilations.
All incarnations of the "Electricity" single were backed by the B-side and fellow debut album track "Almost." This song was inspired by The Teardrop Explodes' song "Camera, Camera"[2] and the Kraftwerk song "Radioactivity." [3]
Contents |
There are many different versions of the two songs that were present on OMD's debut single. After the band left Factory Records, DinDisc attempted twice to score a hit with "Electricity". Consequently, four versions of "Electricity" and three of "Almost" exist.
Version I: "Electricity" and "Almost" were originally recorded at Cargo Studios, Rochdale and produced by Martin Hannett under the moniker Martin Zero, to be released by Factory Records.
Version II: The band felt Hannett had overproduced their songs somewhat, so they recorded new versions at Henry's Studio, Liverpool. These versions were produced by themselves and band manager Paul Collister under the moniker Chester Valentino.
A compromise was reached for the versions used on the single. This first Factory single contains the band's version of "Electricity" and the Hannett version of "Almost".[2]
Version II of "Almost" remained unreleased until appearing on the 2001 Navigation compilation.
Version III: The album versions of "Electricity" and "Almost" differ from the previous versions, and were used for the third and final release of the single. "Electricity" was remixed from the original Hannett version. It's also the version used on the 1988 Best Of and the 1998 Singles collections and is the best known version of the song.[1] The album version of "Almost" is similarly a remix of Hannett's version.
Version IV ("Electricity" only): A fourth mix of "Electricity" was produced by Mike Howlett. This version of "Electricity" was recorded during the Organisation sessions when the band fancied extending the instrumental section in the middle of the song. It was initially released on the Dindisc 1980 compilation album in 1980.[4] In 2003 it was released on CD as a bonus track on the re-issue of Organisation.
The following singles were released:
| Date | Catalogue | "Electricity" | "Almost" | Sleeve | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 May 1979 | Factory FAC6 | Version II | Version I | Special 'black on black' sleeve, limited to 5000 copies. | OMD's first single.[2] |
| 28 September 1979 | DinDisc DIN2 | Version I | Version I | Standard white on black printing, with studio details on back of sleeve. | The single is re-released to coincide with the band signing to DinDisc.[5] |
| 31 March 1980 | DinDisc DIN2 | Version III | Version III | Standard white on black printing, without studio details on back of sleeve. | Third attempt at achieving a hit, which finally resulted in reaching the charts.[1] |
"Electricity" and "Almost" were released on the following OMD albums:
| Date | Album | Song | Version | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 February 1980 | Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | "Electricity" | Version III | |
| "Almost" | Version III | |||
| 12 March 1988 | The Best of OMD | "Electricity" | Version III | |
| "Electricity" | music video | on the VHS version of the album | ||
| 28 September 1998 | The OMD Singles | "Electricity" | Version III | |
| 24 April 2000 | Peel Sessions 1979–1983 | "Electricity" | Version II | Bonus track, subtitled "Factory Version 1979" |
| 14 May 2001 | Navigation: The OMD B-Sides | "Almost" | Version II | |
| December 2002 | The Id | "Electricity" | A 1978 recording by The Id, the pre-OMD band. | |
| 10 March 2003 | Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark reissue | "Electricity" | Version III | |
| "Almost" | Version III | |||
| "Electricity" | Version I | Bonus track, subtitled "Hannett/Cargo Studios Version" | ||
| "Almost" | Version I | Bonus track, subtitled "Hannett/Cargo Studios Version" | ||
| 10 March 2003 | Organisation reissue | "Electricity" | Version IV | Bonus track, subtitled "Dindisc 1980 Version" |
| 10 March 2003 | Messages: Greatest Hits | "Electricity" | Version III | |
| "Electricity" | music video |
The sleeve was designed by Factory's designer Peter Saville. The band and Saville met in a Rochdale pub and exchanged ideas. Saville told them about a book of avant-garde musical scores which he'd come across. Andy McCluskey said that he sometimes wrote down the tunes he composed in a similar shorthand. This led to the unusual graphics that feature on the sleeve. Saville suggested to use shiny black ink on black paper. Both OMD and Tony Wilson didn't believe it could be done, but Saville persuaded a printer to do the job. The thermographic printing was a success, but the place set on fire three times, so eventually only 5000 sleeves were printed.[6] The reissue sleeves were standard white on black printed sleeves.
| Year | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Apoptygma Berzerk | 7 |
| 2002 | NOFX | 45 or 46 Songs That Weren't Good Enough to Go on Our Other Records |
| 2004 | Popvert | Drive Thru Happiness EP |
| 2008 | Party Animals | - |