MADCHESTER UNITED...

New Order, Happy Mondays & Stone Roses among the acts that changed a generation

- BY FRAN BOWDEN

IT'S been 50 years since childhood pals Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook were so inspired by a Sex Pistols gig that they formed a band with mate Terry Mason, who'd also seen the show.

By early 1978 the band's name had been changed from Warsaw to Joy Division - after the sexual slavery wing of a Nazi concentration camp - with a lineup now consisting of Stephen Morris, Ian Curtis, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris.

But it was in 1980, following their official split - prompted by the death of their lead singer - that their hit Love Will Tear Us Apart really put them on the map.

It reached number 13 in the UK singles chart, remaining an anthem for generations of fans to this day.

In the late 1970s, Joy Division became precursors to a music scene dubbed Madchester - a combination of indie rock, acid house, psychedelia and 1960s pop.

Nestling between punk and Britpop, Madchester was driven by bands like Stone Roses, Happy Mondays and New Order - formed by Joy Division's remaining members, together with Gillian Gilbert, later in 1980.

Describing Madchester as "a story that rewired British youth culture," DJ Steve Lamacq says: "In Manchester, as the 80s turned into the 90s, indie guitars collided with dance music. Rave culture flooded the city, and ecstasy reshaped the dance floor."

Speaking on BBC Radio 2 series The Rise And Fall Of Madchester, he continues: "Madchester was an insane time. It was madness.

"Madchester changed how a generation moved, dressed and sounded. But it was also the sound of a city worn down by years of social and economic decline, rising defiantly to reclaim its voice and leave a legacy impossible to ignore."

An iconic 1989 broadcast of Top Of The Pops on a Thursday night, featuring The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, with special guest Kirsty MacColl, took Madchester into the mainstream.