New Order arose from the ashes of Joy Division, one of the most influencial bands in the alternative music scene in the late 70's and early 80's. Joy Division were Ian Curtis, Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, and Stephen Morris, four young men from Manchester, England. Just before Joy Division was to embark on their first North American tour, Ian Curtis, the band's singer and lyricist, hung himself in his home on Sunday the 18th of May 1980. The remaining members continued on as New Order, adding a new female member, Gillian Gilbert

After several "try-outs" by the individual band members, it was finally decided that Bernard Sumner would take over as the singer and the primary lyricist. New Order finally broke new ground with their 4th single, "Blue Monday". It was released only as a 12" single and was a huge dance hit in clubs. It was, and still remains, the best-selling 12" single of all time. It was with "Blue Monday" that the band was finally developing it's own image, to identify itself as a separate entity from it's predecessor, Joy Division. At times, their music was called "the thinking man's dance music." New Order's musical influence spanned from the alternative scene to the dance scene, paving the way for the introduction of techno and house to dance clubs. In a way, New Order helped make dancing cool again. Of course, New Order took all of this in stride. New Order was known as the quite ssential singles band of the 80's, releasing songs that weren't on any albums, or at least remixing them from the albums.