<insert obligatory comment triggering a debate over whether "Ceremony" is really a Joy Division song or a New Order song/>
"Disorder" might be my favorite Joy Divison song.
Hard to pick a favorite New Order song since they had so many different eras and styles. "Ceremony" is the best of their classic post-punk works. "True Faith" was an incredibly influential song musically despite being less-known. "Temptation" and "Sub-Culture" are works of art.
Picking favorite New Order tracks is especially difficult since many of their singles have multiple mixes, with substantial differences. For example I always prefer the gothier 12" remix of Sub-Culture, or the dancier Shep Pettibone remix of "True Faith". And meanwhile with some hits like "Bizarre Love Triangle" there are far too many versions to even keep track of...
There are a lot of great covers of the tune. I love Dean Wareham's. Every time he plays it, he seems to find something new.
His cover tends toward melancholy. Peter Hook's, a little angry, sometimes triumphant. There's a cover by Day Wave that's almost happy. Several ambient covers that range from, I dunno, anhedonic to transcendent.
> Interesting, never heard this version. Heard only another Joy Division recording of it and New Order's. Digging the lower tempo
It was written as a Joy Division song; Ian Curtis wrote the lyrics just a few weeks before he died. There are three Joy Divison recordings of it: one performed live (at what ended up being their final concert, though nobody knew it at the time), one studio recording, and one bootleg recording of a soundcheck for the aforementioned concert.
Because Curtis died before Joy Division finished the studio recording, all three recordings are unfortunately of suboptimal quality. Which is quite a shame - it would be nice to have an album quality recording of that final song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zPIod2wjYE