Spencer Graham is collecting photos from around the world of people who own the 1983 Qwest 12” pressing of New Order’s classic dancefloor filler “Blue Monday”. Let’s set aside for a moment that it’s the perfect pop song by a gloomy Manchester band that had a few too many turns at the disco. I’m also ignoring that this version is the best selling 12” remix all time, meaning that the synthi-glory plays out even longer. I’m not even talking about the colored blocks on the side that are a secret code who’s key is on their 1983 LP’s sleeve. All that should be cool enough, but what makes this special is that the sleeve is die cut to look like a giant floppy disk.
The inner jacket is a matte black vinyl (other countries had a silver jacket) that pokes through the slots in the sleeve to genuinely resemble a massive floppy (probably holds at least 150K). The record’s comparative rarity might be the rumored expense of the packaging, so much so that that Factory Records lost money on every purchase. The record was quickly reissued with a more standard sleeve, so having one of these rare versions is the key to entering the Blue Monday Owners Club.
Spencer found that nearly every owner he knew kept this record in a special spot, and his project is to explore the reasons why.
