Hooked on this Halloween selection from Peter Hook

SINCE moving on from New Order and Joy Division, Peter Hook is busier than ever.

Both bands will always be a part of him and his band Peter Hook & The Light have just announced a tour of North America on top of a plethora of UK and European dates where they perform music from both the iconic groups.

You can catch them this weekend at Halloween Town Festival, which lands in Bedford for a three-day immersive experience featuring a host of other music stars. They include Andy C, David Rodigan, Shy FX and Craig David.

Peter & The Light will take to the stage on Sunday alongside indie legends The Levellers.

Other gigs forthcoming in the UK include Peter’s appearance at the Hacienda Classicals final show of the year with The Warehouse Project on Saturday 13th November with DJs David Morales and Roger Sanchez and at the Tomorrow’s Ghost Festival in Whitby on Saturday 30th October for Peter Hook & The Light. But fear not if you can’t get to any of these shows as you will be able to catch them next year as they embark on a UK and Ireland tour. Check the tour dates below.

When we caught up with Peter this week, we asked him to compile and talk us through a Halloween-themed playlist. Listen and read what he had to say about music from the likes of New Order, Bauhaus, The Specials, The Who, Santana and more below.

Bad Moon Rising – Creedence Clearwater Revival

This is a wonderfully moody, anthemic song, delivered by a fantastic American rock band which has become known all over the planet, although I doubt most people could name the band if you asked them.

Bella Lugosi’s Dead – Bauhaus

Bauhaus were our contemporaries as Joy Division and our bitter post punk rivals at that time. Of course, we managed to outlast them by about thirty-five years. You see we actually accused Bauhaus of ripping “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” off us cos of similarities with

Movement’s “The Him” but then some bright spark pointed out to me that it was written in 1979, two years before “The Him”. Bauhaus played The Hacienda in the early Eighties, and I threw out the lead singer Pete Murphy for not having his pass. He still remembers it to this day. He came to the door and tried to get in and we said, “where’s your pass?” and he said “it’s f****** aint mate” and threw him out. Thirty-five years later I DJ’d with him and I was wondering if he’d remember but he came storming out of the dressing room, right up to me, right in my face. “I remember that night thirty-five years ago at The Hacienda!!!!” He was a nice guy actually.

Black Magic Woman – Santana

A band I loved when I was a kid and still do so today. I actually had “Abraxas” written on my scooter which is one of their album titles. Barney had “Santana” on his so I countered with that. Then I went to see them in Manchester in 1972 which was one of my best ever gigs at only 16 or so.

Boris And The Spider – The Who

Written by John Entwistle, my absolute bass hero. This might not be the greatest Who track ever but for me John Entwistle will also be my hero in bass.

Dracula’s Castle – New Order

To my mind, my mind this is one of the worst titles New Order ever gave a track, but it still stands up as a good number. To me, it has the staples of a classic track by the band.

Ghost Town – The Specials

I’ve always liked Terry Hall immensely and thought The Specials to be a great group. Sadly, these great groups never seem to last but this record made a great impression on early eighties Britain’s eerie depression, crashing straight in at number one and becoming the bands most memorable hit.

I Want Candy – Bow Bow Bow

I love Bow Bow Wow and also the lead singer Anabelle Lwin was fabulous. I always thought Malcolm McClaren created two wonderful bands with Bow Wow Wow and Sex Pistols. They were a great live, playing The Hacienda in 1982 when they brought a load of cockneys up. Their guitarist Matthew Ashman was very talented.

Psycho Killer -Talking Heads

Sharp, arresting and immediate, again this is one of those tunes you wish you’d written. It’s a great dance track that combines fantastic rhythm and great hooks.

Sympathy For The Devil – Rolling Stones

Sympathy For The Devil is just a perfect track, one of the best records ever. It’s one of the very few tracks I wish I had a hand in writing. Keith Richards actually wrote the bassline for it and the track itself is culturally iconic, like The Stones themselves.

There’s A Ghost In My House – R Dean Taylor

It’s one of my favourite Tamla Motown records and they had two R Dean Taylor tracks I love, both of which are superb, “Gotta See Jane” and “There’s A Ghost In My House.” It became a Northern Soul club classic and I danced to it in my late teens at the clubs.

Peter Hook & The Light UK & Ireland Tour dates for 2022