Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

The book Messages, written by Johnny Waller and Paul Humphreys' brother Mike Humphreys, details the career of the band up to the time of The Best of OMD. There were two official magazines about the band, Telegraph, and, currently, Messages. An album of unreleased material by the band is scheduled to be released in 2005. McCluskey would continue for another decade, joined by Liverpool musicians Lloyd Massett and Stuart Kershaw.

Though Humphreys left the band after The Best of OMD, he collaborated with McCluskey on the songwriting for Universal, the band's 1996 swan song. One of OMD's biggest hits, "If You Leave," (1985) was written specifically for the John Hughes movie Pretty in Pink. By now the band were seeing their critical and public popularity wane in the UK, whilst they struggled to break the US market. This 6 piece line also released The Pacific Age (1986).

With the recording of Crush, (1985) Graham and Neil Weir began playing with the group (on guitar and brass), produced by Stephen Hague. Two laserdiscs, Live at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane (1982) and Crush the Movie (1985) were released only in Japan. 1984's Junk Culture saw a return to a more poppy sound and saw the band using digital sampling keyboards such as the Fairlight CMI and the Emu Emulator. It was recorded by the 4-piece Humpreys/Holmes/Cooper/Mcluskey line-up, and produced by Rhett Davies.

1983 saw the band lose commercial momentum somewhat, with the release of their 'difficult' Dazzle Ships albums, which mixed melancholy synth ballads and uptempo synth pop with musique concrete and short wave radio tape collages. Hit singles Joan of Arc and Maid of Orleans were taken from the album. They used it to add very atmospheric swatches of string, choir and other sounds to their palette. The album's striking sound saw OMD's original synth-pop sound augmented by the mellotron, an instrument previously associated with prog rock bands.

The 4-piece went into the studio with Richard Mainwaring producing, Cooper then temporarily dropping out and being replaced by Mike Douglas, but this changed being reversed by the time the album was released and a tour embarked upon. 1981 would see the release of what many consider OMD's magnum opus (and it was also the peak of their commercial success in the UK and Europe) - the Architecture & Morality album. It ushered in a striking lush choral electronic sound. Howlett then presided over the recording of a further hit single, Souvenir, co-written by Cooper & Humphreys.

The tour for this album saw a 4-piece band line-up, with saxophonist Martin Cooper recruited for keyboard duties. The album spawned the huge hit single Enola Gay, named after the plane which dropped an atom bomb on Hiroshima. It was again produced by Howlett, and saw a rather moodier, dark feel. The second album Organisation followed later that year, recorded as a 3 piece with Humphreys, McCluskey and Holmes.

A tour followed, Winston the tape recorded being ditched for good, and replaced with live drums from Mal Holmes, and Dalek I Love You's Dave Hughs on synths. DinDisc arranged for the song Messages to be re-recorded (produced by Gong bassist Mike Howlett) and released as a single - this gave the band their first hit. It had a simple, raw, poppy, melodic synthpop sound. The eponymous first album (1980) showcased the band's live set at the time, and was basically recorded by the Humphreys/McCluskey duo, although included some guest drums from Id drummer Mal Holmes, and saxophone from Wirral musician Martin Cooper.

Finding themselves on the cusp of an electronic new wave in British pop-music, they released a one-off single with legendary independent label Factory Records (the single sleeve was designed by Peter Saville, whose distinctive graphics provided OMD's public image well into the mid-80s), and were then quickly snapped up by Virgin subsiduary DinDisc. They began to gig regularly as a duo, accompanied on stage by a Revox tape-recorder of backing tracks called "Winston". McCluskey briefly sang with electronic Wirral quartet Dalek I Love You, however eventually rejoined Humphreys, and their VCL XI project was rechristened Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. In 1978, The Id split due to the traditional musical differences.

Meanwhile Humphreys & McCluskey collaborated on a side-project called VCL XI (named after a valve from the diagram on the cover of Kraftwerk's Radio-Activity album), where they pursued their more bizarre electronic experiments, often working with tape collages, home-made kit-built synthesiers, and circuit-bent radios. They had quite a following on the scene, and one of their tracks (Julia's Song) was included on a compilation record of local bands called Street to Street. The group began to gig regularly in the Merseyside area, performing original material (largely written by McCluskey & Humphreys). By 1977, McCluskey & Humphreys put together 7-piece (3 singers, 2 guitars, bass, drums, and keyboards!) Wirral 'supergroup' The Id, whose line-up included drummer Malcolm Holmes and McCluskey's girlfriend Julia Kneale on vocals.

The pair shared a love of electronic music, particularly Brian Eno and Kraftwerk. McCluskey would usually sing and play bass guitar, whilst electronics enthusiast Humphreys initially began as a roadie, graduating to keyboards. As teenagers, Humphreys and McCluskey were involved in several unsigned Wirral bands, including including Equinox, Pegasus, and the short-lived Hitlerz Underpantz.
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McCluskey then retained the name and continued to record and tour as OMD with a new line-up. The group was founded by Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys, and they formed the core of the outfit until 1989, when the group split. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark or OMD were a synth pop group from the Wirral, UK, who recorded for Virgin Records (originally for Virgin's DinDisc subsidiary). The Best of OMD - 1988.

Crush the Movie - 1985. Live at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane - 1982. Crush the Movie - 1985. Live at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane - 1982.

"The OMD Remixes" (5-inch CD single containing remixes of "Enola Gay," "Souvenir" and "Electricity"). "Universal" - 1996. "Walking on the Milky Way" - 1996. "Everyday" - 1993.

"Dream of Me (Based on Love's Theme)" - 1993. "Stand Above Me" - 1993. "Call My Name" - 1991. "The You Turn Away" - 1991.

"Pandora's Box" - 1991. "Sailing on the Seven Seas" - 1991. "Dreaming" - 1988. "Shame" - 1987.

"We Love You" - 1986. "(Forever) Live and Die" - 1986 (also released as picture disc). "If You Leave" - 1986. "La Femme Accident" - 1985 (also released as shaped picture disc).

"Secret" - 1985. "So In Love" - 1985. "Never Turn Away" - 1984. "Tesla Girls" - 1984.

"Talking Loud & Clear" - 1984. "Locomotion" - 1984. "Telegraph" - 1983. "Genetic Engineering" - 1983.

"Maid of Orleans" - 1982. "Joan of Arc" - 1981. "Souvenir" - 1981. "Enola Gay" - 1980.

"Messages" - 1980. "Red Frame/White Light" - 1980. "Electricity" - 1979. Navigation - The OMD B-Sides - 2001.

The Peel Sessions -2000. The OMD Singles - 1998. Universal - 1996. Liberator - 1993.

Sugar Tax - 1991. The Best of OMD - 1988. The Pacific Age - 1986. Crush - 1985.

Junk Culture - 1984 (first copies came with enclosed one-sided 7-inch single, "The Angels Keep Turning (The Wheels of the Universe)"). Dazzle Ships - 1983. Architecture & Morality - 1981. - 1981.

O.M.D. Organisation - 1980. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - 1980.