Peel Sessions 1979-1983

RSD 2025

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), founded by Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys, emerged from Liverpool in the late ‘70s and are rightly regarded as one of the original synth-pop outfits of the following decade. Notably also one of the more successful, they have enjoyed at least 20 hit singles and over 40 million records sold to date. Their early years were highly influential and the Peel Sessions 1979-1983, acclaimed by many fans as the band at the height of their powers, provides a snapshot of OMD at arguably their most vital, focused and interesting; full of highly imaginative, slightly left-field, awkward but accomplished pop, captured by the BBC in four different sessions (one in 1979, two in 1980 and one in 1983). While this is the first time any of these tracks have been pressed on vinyl, it is also the first time that every single track from their sessions with John Peel have been issued together. The original CD version of this collection, issued in 2000, omitted the second recording of “Bunker Soldiers,” recorded as part of the 1983 session.

Mastered (where necessary) and cut to lacquer by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios, for Record Store Day 2025.

A1 Bunker Soldiers
A2 Julia’s Song
A3 Messages
A4 Red Frame/White Light
A5 Pretending To See The Future
A6 Enola Gay
A7 Dancing
B1 Motion And Heart
B2 Annex
B3 The Misunderstanding
B4 The More I See You
B5 Genetic Engineering
B6 Of All The Things We’ve Made
B7 ABC Auto-Industry
B8 Bunker Soldiers