Lots of varying interpretations of this song! Not unusual for a New Order song, but somewhat unusual for a song that has a relatively straightforward narrative, for a New Order Song. I always interpreted this song to be about a different 'bizarre love triangle' where the narrator stole Johnny's wife and the two became estranged "I used to think of him, he used to think of me." Johnny surprises his friend by showing up at his house on his birthday "he was so very nice...to think of me at this point in time." But all is not forgiven as Johnny pulls a gun on him and then presumably shoots him. For me, this is supported by the lines in the following verse about the love affair where the love had gone and "she (the ex-wife) used to think of him, he used to think of her."
I suppose the interpretation about the wife could work as well. It just seems odd to me that she would be surprised at Johnny giving her a gift on her birthday and thinking of her. But it's possible that she left him, they became estranged and he came back to kill her because he felt she metaphorically killed him by leaving him. The line of the song that is somewhat comical line to me in an otherwise horrifying context is "Though he was ashamed that he had took a life, Johnny came back with another wife"- Johnny's reaction is so offhanded to murder, like I feel bad about it, but time to move on!
The ending of this song is so poignant with Peter Hook's gently strummed guitar line and the narrator expressing sorrow and lament, while at the same time finally feeling liberated of the torment of the moment and sense of guilt. The song structure is relatively simple for a NO song of this period (though beautifully effective), the compelling narrative definitely makes this song stand out.
Lots of varying interpretations of this song! Not unusual for a New Order song, but somewhat unusual for a song that has a relatively straightforward narrative, for a New Order Song. I always interpreted this song to be about a different 'bizarre love triangle' where the narrator stole Johnny's wife and the two became estranged "I used to think of him, he used to think of me." Johnny surprises his friend by showing up at his house on his birthday "he was so very nice...to think of me at this point in time." But all is not forgiven as Johnny pulls a gun on him and then presumably shoots him. For me, this is supported by the lines in the following verse about the love affair where the love had gone and "she (the ex-wife) used to think of him, he used to think of her."
I suppose the interpretation about the wife could work as well. It just seems odd to me that she would be surprised at Johnny giving her a gift on her birthday and thinking of her. But it's possible that she left him, they became estranged and he came back to kill her because he felt she metaphorically killed him by leaving him. The line of the song that is somewhat comical line to me in an otherwise horrifying context is "Though he was ashamed that he had took a life, Johnny came back with another wife"- Johnny's reaction is so offhanded to murder, like I feel bad about it, but time to move on!
The ending of this song is so poignant with Peter Hook's gently strummed guitar line and the narrator expressing sorrow and lament, while at the same time finally feeling liberated of the torment of the moment and sense of guilt. The song structure is relatively simple for a NO song of this period (though beautifully effective), the compelling narrative definitely makes this song stand out.