First Lyrics to Closing Lyrics (A Series) Pt.5: Atmosphere

It's been a while...here's another one.

Just to recap, this is going to be a part of an occasional series of posts I'm going to make on this blog. This'll be where I compare an early set of lyrics to a later set of lyrics for one Joy Division song. Sometimes I may compare multiple sets of lyrics of just one song to each other. When you couple in a lot of the live variations to certain songs, you can get all sorts of results.

Today's choice is going to be a little bit shorter. Like the very first "First To Closing Lyrics" post, I will only be taking a look at one song's two studio versions: Chance/Atmosphere. 

Often regarded as one of JD's best songs, "Atmosphere" is a time-honored capsule of JD itself. It's one of my personal favorite songs of theirs, like anyone.

Most people nowadays know that the first version of the song was originally called "Chance", as that version was included on the Heart and Soul boxset. The song was an in-studio improvisation, done during the Piccadilly Radio Sessions on June 4, 1979. At the time, no name was given to it, so Martin Hannet dubbed the song "Chance". The lyrics of that early version were pretty different than what they would ultimately become.

The song held its name for live shows, apparently until the gig at Royalty Theatre, Kingsway, London on June 17, 1979. Rob Gretton’s physical set-list from that show was published in 2006 and apparently the name “Chance” was crossed out and replaced with the name “Atmosphere”. Who renamed it, I don't know, but from then on, the song was known by that name.

First version:

Piccadilly Radio Session (June 4, 1979) (First Studio Session) 

Walk in silence 

Walk away in silence 

See the danger, always danger 

Endless talking, life rebuilding 

Don’t walk away 

Face the danger 

Walk in silence 

Don’t walk away in silence 

See the danger, always danger 

Rules are broken 

False emotions 

Don’t walk away 

People like you find it easy 

Always in tune, walking on air 

They’re hunting in pacts, by the rivers through the streets 

It may happen soon, then maybe you’ll care 

Walk away, walk away 

From danger 

I…I’m just crossing the line 

Just crossing the line 

Trying to get by 

Back where I was, back where I was… 

See me crossing the line 

Don’t walk away 

Don’t walk away 

Don’t walk away 

Don’t walk away 

From the danger… 

Just crossing the line… 

Just crossing the line…

(The full version has never been released in any form, unfortunately...the song fades out with the closing "Just crossing the line..." lines.)

Lyrically, "Chance" is a lot longer and more fragile than the later version. Ian sings it with a great deal of insecurity, it seems. I guess he wasn't used to improvising with lyrics (as you can tell in some of the IALP rehearsals). I actually prefer these lyrics. I wish Ian had kept the choruses. FYI, I plan on covering the constant "line" imagery that I keep seeing in Ian's lyrics sometime...

The second, more famous version (that Anton Corbijn's video used):

‘Sordide Sentimental’ Studio Session (October-November 1979)

Walk in silence

Don’t walk away in silence

See the danger, always danger

Endless talking, life rebuilding

Don’t walk away

Walk in silence

Don’t turn away in silence

Your confusion, my illusion

Worn like a mask of self hate

Confronts and then dies

Don’t walk away

People like you find it easy

Naked to see, walking on air

Hunting by the rivers, through the streets; every corner

Abandoned too soon, set down with due care

Don’t walk away in silence

Don’t walk away

And there you have it! Atmosphere's evolution. I plan on covering the many live versions of "Atmosphere" some other time. Ian would change the lyrics and combine these two drafts CONSTANTLY during live shows.

Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading.

-Wallflower