Editing Joy Division (section)

=== Curtis's suicide and aftermath ===
Joy Division were scheduled to commence their first US/Canada tour in May 1980.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.joydiv.org/cancel.htm |title=Joy Division cancelled US / Canada tour 1980 |website=Joy Division: Concerts|access-date=22 November 2019}}</ref> Curtis had expressed enthusiasm about the tour,{{sfn|Reynolds|2005|p=117}} but his relationship with his wife, Deborah, was under strain; Deborah was excluded from the band's inner circle and objected to Curtis being close to Belgian journalist and music promoter [[Annik Honoré]], whom he met on tour in Europe in 1979. He was also anxious about how American audiences would react to his epilepsy.{{sfn|Reynolds|2005|p=117}}

The evening before the band were due to depart for America, Curtis returned to his [[Macclesfield]] home to talk to Deborah. He asked her to drop an impending divorce suit, and asked her to leave him alone in the house until he caught a train to Manchester the following morning.{{sfn|Curtis|1995|pp=131–132}} Early on 18 May 1980, having spent the night watching the [[Werner Herzog]] film ''[[Stroszek]]'' and listening to [[Iggy Pop]]'s 1977 album ''[[The Idiot (album)|The Idiot]]'', Curtis hanged himself in his kitchen. Deborah discovered his body later that day when she returned.{{sfn|Curtis|1995|p=132}}

The suicide shocked the band and their management. In 2005, Wilson said: "I think all of us made the mistake of not thinking his suicide was going to happen&nbsp;... We all completely underestimated the danger. We didn't take it seriously. That's how stupid we were."<ref name="Raftery" /> [[Music critic]] [[Simon Reynolds]] said Curtis's suicide "made for instant myth".{{sfn|Reynolds|2005|p=118}} Jon Savage's obituary said that "now no one will remember what his work with Joy Division was like when he was alive; it will be perceived as tragic rather than courageous".<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Savage |first=Jon |date=14 June 1980 |title=From Safety to Where? |magazine=Melody Maker}}</ref> In June 1980, Joy Division's single "[[Love Will Tear Us Apart]]" was released, which hit number thirteen on the [[UK Singles Chart]].{{sfn|Curtis|1995|p=138}} In July 1980, ''Closer'' was released, and peaked at number six on the [[UK Albums Chart]].<ref name="Mojo 1994" /> ''NME'' reviewer [[Charles Shaar Murray]] wrote, "''Closer'' is as magnificent a memorial (for 'Joy Division' as much as for Ian Curtis) as any post-[[Elvis Presley|Presley]] popular musician could have."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Murrary |first=Charles Shaar |date=19 July 1980 |title=Closer to the Edge |magazine=NME}}</ref>

Morris said that even without Curtis's death, it is unlikely that Joy Division would have endured.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/entertainment/articles/2010-12/17/gq-music-stephen-morris-joy-division-interview|title=An Ideal for Reliving|first=Lee|last=Gale|magazine=[[GQ]]|date=29 March 2012|access-date=19 August 2016}}</ref> The members had made a pact long before Curtis's death that, should any member leave, the remaining members would change the band name.<ref name="Morley, Thrills" /> The band re-formed as [[New Order (band)|New Order]], with Sumner on vocals; they later recruited Morris's girlfriend [[Gillian Gilbert]] as keyboardist and second guitarist. Gilbert had befriended the band and played guitar at a Joy Division performance when Curtis had been unable to play.<ref>{{cite book|last=Rambali|first=Paul|title=A Rare Glimpse into a Private World|publisher=The Face|date=July 1983|page=30}}</ref>

New Order's debut single, "Ceremony" (1981), was formed from the last two songs written with Curtis.{{sfn|Ott|2004|p=112}} New Order struggled in their early years to escape the shadow of Joy Division, but went on to achieve far greater commercial success with a different, more upbeat and dance-oriented sound.<ref name="Ankeny" />

Various Joy Division outtakes and live material have been released. ''[[Still (Joy Division album)|Still]]'', featuring live tracks and rare recordings, was issued in 1981. Factory issued the ''[[Substance (Joy Division album)|Substance]]'' compilation in 1988, including several out-of-print singles.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/substance-mw0000200321 |title=''Substance'' review |last=Raggett |first=Ned |website=AllMusic |access-date=20 July 2013}}</ref> ''[[Permanent (Joy Division album)|Permanent]]'' was released in 1995 by [[London Records]], which had acquired the Joy Division catalogue after Factory's 1992 bankruptcy. The comprehensive box set ''[[Heart and Soul (Joy Division album)|Heart and Soul]]'' was released in 1997.