Regret (New Order song)

"Regret" is a song by British alternative rock band New Order. It was released in April 1993 as the lead single from their album of the same year, Republic. Stephen Hague is credited as both the producer and as a co-writer. It was the band's first single released on CentreDate Co Ltd (through London Records)[2] following the collapse of Factory Records.

"Regret"
Single by New Order
from the album Republic
Released	5 April 1993
Recorded	1992
Length	4:08
Label	CentreDate Co Ltd/London
Songwriter(s)	Bernard Sumner Peter Hook Stephen Morris Gillian Gilbert Stephen Hague[1]
Producer(s)	New Order Stephen Hague
New Order singles chronology
"World in Motion" (1990) "Regret" (1993) "Ruined in a Day" (1993)

The song was a critical and commercial success, reaching the top 10 in Canada, Ireland, Portugal and the United Kingdom. It peaked at number 28 on the US Billboard Hot 100—New Order's highest placement on that chart—and reached number one on two other Billboard charts. Peter Care directed a music video for the song; the video appears on the "Regret" promotional VHS, as well as a DVD collection.

Release

The single was released worldwide in a variety of formats. The B-side of the single differed in the various releases, but all were remixes of the A-side, including the "Fire Island Mix", and "Junior Dub" by Pete Heller and Terry Farley, and two Sabres of Paradise mixes.

Critical reception

In 2010 Pitchfork Media included the song at number 34 on their Top 200 Tracks of the 90s.[3] Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger also named it his 37th favourite single of the 1990s.[4] John Bush of AllMusic described it "as sublime a balance of obtuse lyrics, just barely emoted vocals, vague club leanings, and grooving synth melodics as their classic material."[5] Peter Hook has said that "Regret" was the "last good New Order song".[6]

Chart performance

The song reached number four on the UK Singles Chart, the last time the band had a top five hit. "Regret" also peaked at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100, thus becoming the band's highest-charting single in the United States. The song also appeared on several other charts in the US, including two terms at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart (now the Alternative Songs chart). During its second term at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, "Regret" also topped the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart on the strength of its remixes. At the end of 1993, the song came in at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks' year-end chart. On Canada's RPM Top Singles chart, the song debuted at number 80 on 15 May 1993 and climbed to its peak of number six on 3 July, staying there for two weeks and spending six weeks in the top 10. It also reached number five on the RPM Dance chart on 17 July.

Live performances

In 1993 New Order filmed a live performance of the song for Top of the Pops in Venice Beach, California as part of an episode of the hit TV series Baywatch, featuring David Hasselhoff and various background actors and bikini-clad actresses dancing and playing on the beach. The band's performance was directed by notable music video and feature film director Thomas Mignone and was broadcast via satellite to the United Kingdom.[7]

Track listings

All tracks are written by Gillian Gilbert, Stephen Hague, Peter Hook, Stephen Morris and Bernard Sumner.

7-inch: NUO 1 / Cassette: NUOMC1 (UK and Europe)[8]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Regret" (The 7-inch version)
2.	"Regret" (The NewOrder Mix)

12-inch: NUOX1 (UK and Europe)[9]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Regret" (Fire Island Mix)
2.	"Regret" (Junior Dub Mix)
3.	"Regret" (Sabres Slow 'n' Lo)
4.	"Regret" (Sabres Fast 'n' Throb)

Maxi-CD: NUOCD1 (Germany)[10]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Regret" (7-inch version)	4:07
2.	"Regret" (The NewOrder Mix)	5:10
3.	"Regret" (The Fire Island Mix)	7:15
4.	"Regret" (Junior Dub Mix)	7:44

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1993) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[10] 26 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[11] 6 Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[12] 5 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[13] 14 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 11 Germany (Official German Charts)[15] 39 Ireland (IRMA)[16] 5 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[17] 30 Portugal (AFP)[18] 3 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 19 UK Singles (OCC)[20] 4 US Billboard Hot 100[21] 28 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[22] 1 US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[23] 1 US Hot Dance Singles Sales (Billboard)[24] 3 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[25] 7

Year-end charts Chart (1993) Position Canada Top Singles (RPM)[26] 51 Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[27] 44 US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[28] 1

Cover versions

The song was covered by the American rock band The Get Up Kids and released on their compilation album Eudora in 2001. It was also covered by Greek synthpop band Marsheaux on their 2006 album Peekaboo. Previously it was covered by The Afghan Whigs. The band started playing the song live around 1994 and subsequently recorded it during the making of their 1996 album Black Love. The latter was included on the 2016 re-release called Black Love (20th Anniversary Edition).

In popular culture

The video for "Regret" appears in the PSP game Lumines II.

The American Television Show 13 Reasons Why features this song in the Original Soundtrack for the third season.

See also

• List of number-one dance singles of 1993 (U.S.)
• Number one modern rock hits of 1993

References

1. Ascap entry
2. https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/25394/new-order/
3. Pitchfork Top 200 Tracks of the 90s
4. Ewing, Tom. "Tom Ewing's Top 100 Singles of the 90s". Freaky Trigger. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
5. Bush, John. "New Order – Regret". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
6. MTV Hive: Peter Hook on Life After Joy Division and Why "Regret" Was the Last Good New Order Song
7. "Flashback; New Order Hang with the Hoff". Rolling Stone. 5 August 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
8. Regret (UK & European 7-inch single sleeve). New Order. London Recordings. 1993. NUO 1, 857120.7.CS1 maint: others (link)
9. Regret (UK & European 12-inch single sleeve). New Order. London Recordings. 1993. NUOX1, 857121.1.CS1 maint: others (link)
10. "Australian-charts.com – New Order – Regret". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
11. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 1000." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
12. "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 2173." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
13. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10 no. 18. 1 May 1993. p. 23. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
14. Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
15. "Offiziellecharts.de – New Order – Regret". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
16. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Regret". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 2 October 2008.
17. "Charts.nz – New Order – Regret". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
18. "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10 no. 20. 15 May 1993. p. 24. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
19. "Swedishcharts.com – New Order – Regret". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
20. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
21. "New Order Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
22. "New Order Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
23. "New Order Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
24. "New Order Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
25. "New Order Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
26. "The RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1993". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
27. "The RPM Top 50 Dance Tracks of 1993". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
28. "Billboard Music Awards". The Hollywood Reporter. VNU Publications. 9 December 1993.

External links

• A video of "Regret" on YouTube
• Top of the Pops performance for "Regret" on YouTube
• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics