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TITLE. LYRICS

Later studio version

Shadowplay

To the centre of the city where all roads meet, waiting for you
To the depths of the ocean where all hopes sank, searching for you
Moving through the silence without motion, waiting for you
In a room with a window in the corner, I found truth

In the shadowplay, acting out your own death, knowing no more
As the assassins all grouped in four lines dancing on the floor
And with cold steel, odour on their bodies, made a move to connect
But I could only stare in disbelief as the crowds all left

I did everything, everything I wanted to
I let them use you for their own ends
To the centre of the city in the night, waiting for you

ALTERNATE LYRICS

Earlier studio version | Concert version | TV version

Translations: Español | Français | Italiano | Português

DETAILS

Line-up: Ian Curtis | Peter Hook | Stephen Morris | Bernard Sumner

STUDIO RECORDING. NOTES

Earlier studio recording | Live recordings | TV recording

Date: Friday 30 March–mid April 1979
Studio: Strawberry Studios – Stockport (UK)
Duration: 3.47
Availability on record: Heart And Soul | Permanent | Unknown Pleasures

MEMORIES

Classic songs like Shadowplay jostled for position against amateurish compositions like Novelty, which were written before each member of the band had discovered his own particular forte within the group's collective structure
(Source: Deborah Curtis – Touching from a distance)