Temptation

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"Temptation"
Single by New Order
B-side	"Hurt"
Released	10 May 1982
Format	7", 12"
Genre	Post-punk, Electropop, New Wave, Synthpop
Length	5:21 (7") 8:47 (12")
Label	Factory - FAC 63
Writer(s)	Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, Stephen Morris, Gillian Gilbert
Producer	New Order
New Order singles chronology
"Everything's Gone Green" (1981) "Temptation" (1982) "Blue Monday" (1983)

"Temptation" is a stand-alone single released by British band New Order on Factory Records. The single reached #29 in the UK singles charts on its release in 1982.

Original release

The 7" version is a more structured version with a commercial synthpop feel; the 12" is more chaotic with the emphasis on electronic rhythms rather than melody. The 7" version plays at 33.3rpm to accommodate its length of around five and a half minutes. Both versions bear the same catalogue number "FAC 63" despite these differences.

The 12" versions of both "Temptation" and its b-side, "Hurt", appear on New Order's mopping up EP 1981-1982, released a few months after the single itself.

Neither version mentioned the band's name or the song titles on release; instead the catalogue number FAC 63 was embossed into the front of the sleeve.

The vocal track on the original 12" version features an audible scream during the song's intro. Vocalist Bernard Sumner has since explained that the scream was from him due to fellow bandmates thrusting a snowball down his shirt during recording.

Track listing

7" version - FAC 63

1. "Temptation" – 5:21
2. "Hurt" – 4:47

12" version - FAC 63

1. "Temptation" – 8:47
2. "Hurt" – 8:13

Other versions

The song was completely re-recorded and released on 1987 singles compilation Substance, sometimes known as "Temptation '87". This version is now one of New Order's best-known recordings, partly due to its appearance on the best-selling Trainspotting soundtrack; in the film the lyrics are sung by Diane while she's taking a bath, heard very faintly in the background during breakfast not much later and again during the scene where Renton is locked in his room.

Later, after five years of inactivity, another new version of "Temptation" was recorded by the band in 1998. This recording is similar to the earlier 1987 version, but omits the long intro. Running at 4:08, this version is known as "Temptation '98" and eventually saw official release on the Retro boxset.

"Temptation" is also the song New Order have played live more than any other. The song often goes on for over ten minutes when performed live, due to the fusion of the two different 7" and 12" versions.

Cover versions

• The Affordable Floors (All the Things I Meant to Be, 1992)
• Moby (Hotel, 2005)
• The Weakerthans incorporated some "Temptation" lyrics in their song "Wellington's Wednesdays" on their debut album Fallow.
• During live sets, The Chemical Brothers have mixed "Temptation" (particularly, samples of the guitar riff from the 12" version) with the beginning of their song Star Guitar. A live recording from a performance at the Brixton Academy was officially released on AmericanEP.
• During live sets, Hot Chip sing the chorus to "Temptation" for the last two minutes of their song "No Fit State".
• Jeremy Warmsley recorded a cover of "Temptation" which appears on the B-side of the 7" single for "The Boat Song".
• The postmodern cabaret duo Kiki & Herb performed the song in their Carnegie Hall concert, released on CD as Kiki & Herb Will Die For You.
• Jukebox the Ghost recorded a cover which appears as a bonus track on the vinyl re-release of their 2008 Let Live & Let Ghosts.

Remixes

• An updated remix of "Temptation" by CJ Bolland appears on some versions of the 1995 remix compilation The Rest of New Order.
• Another remix by Secret Machines was released as the b-side of the "Waiting For The Sirens' Call" single in September 2005.
• The Handsome Furs make reference to "Temptation" in their song "All I Want, Baby, Is Everything" off their album Face Control. The lyrics are, at some points, structurally and technically similar to "Temptation" and the beat broadly resembles "Temptation."

Availability

Both the 7" and 12" versions of "Temptation" can now be found on the 2008 Collector's Edition of New Order's 1981 album Movement.

Chart positions