I see the song being about a dominant/submissive relationship, but from interviews I've read, the relationship to me is that between the dominant live audience and the submissive Sumner. The song was developed (from Video 5-8-6) as the encore to live performances as this is something Sumner (and the rest of the band?) loathed. It was designed so that Gillian had to return to stage and press one key to start it off, and then leave stage. It then evolved lyrics about Sumner's anxiety about being the lead singer in the limelight and became a hit..
"How does it feel to treat me like you do?" ...How do you think I feel about being an adored 'pop star' - I don't actually like it...
"And still I find it so hard to say what I need to say. "...I don't like singing live
"Those who came before me lived through their vocations" ...The previous lead singer was up the the job, I'm not
"But if it wasn't for your misfortune, I'd be a heavenly person today. "...I the previous lead singer hadn't unfortunately died, I'd be enjoying myself towards the back of the stage.
I really don't know what the ship is in the harbour can be all about, other that there is a vehicle leaving that will take me away from this performance?
I don't think it's about war - the 'machine gun' style drum beat is from Donna Summer's Your Love
Great interpretation, Dg...as to the "ship in the harbour" part:
Great interpretation, Dg...as to the "ship in the harbour" part:
For what it's worth, the "ship in the harbour" reference could be Bernard Sumner looking back at the past 3 decades and wondering where he would be had Joy Division's lead singer, Ian Curtis, not committed suicide back in 1980; to him, Joy Division is the ship in the harbour, a ship formerly captained by Curtis but now has been put in Sumner's hands and even though he does an admirable job steering it around in Curtis' absence, he knows it's not his ship, it was Curtis' and to him, while it may never be his ship, he'll do everything he can to steer it right, not just for himself and the other bandmates but for their fans also...
I see the song being about a dominant/submissive relationship, but from interviews I've read, the relationship to me is that between the dominant live audience and the submissive Sumner. The song was developed (from Video 5-8-6) as the encore to live performances as this is something Sumner (and the rest of the band?) loathed. It was designed so that Gillian had to return to stage and press one key to start it off, and then leave stage. It then evolved lyrics about Sumner's anxiety about being the lead singer in the limelight and became a hit..
"How does it feel to treat me like you do?" ...How do you think I feel about being an adored 'pop star' - I don't actually like it...
"And still I find it so hard to say what I need to say. "...I don't like singing live
"Those who came before me lived through their vocations" ...The previous lead singer was up the the job, I'm not
"But if it wasn't for your misfortune, I'd be a heavenly person today. "...I the previous lead singer hadn't unfortunately died, I'd be enjoying myself towards the back of the stage.
I really don't know what the ship is in the harbour can be all about, other that there is a vehicle leaving that will take me away from this performance?
I don't think it's about war - the 'machine gun' style drum beat is from Donna Summer's Your Love
Great interpretation, Dg...as to the "ship in the harbour" part:
Great interpretation, Dg...as to the "ship in the harbour" part:
For what it's worth, the "ship in the harbour" reference could be Bernard Sumner looking back at the past 3 decades and wondering where he would be had Joy Division's lead singer, Ian Curtis, not committed suicide back in 1980; to him, Joy Division is the ship in the harbour, a ship formerly captained by Curtis but now has been put in Sumner's hands and even though he does an admirable job steering it around in Curtis' absence, he knows it's not his ship, it was Curtis' and to him, while it may never be his ship, he'll do everything he can to steer it right, not just for himself and the other bandmates but for their fans also...