Joan of Arc

"Joan of Arc" is a 1981 song by English electronic band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), released as the second single from their third studio album Architecture & Morality. It was well-received by critics and became an international hit, reaching the Top 5 in the UK and Canada and number 13 in Ireland. This is the first of two OMD songs written by lead vocalist Andy McCluskey on the subject of the French patron saint Joan of Arc. The second, "Joan of Arc (Maid of Orleans)" was also issued as a single (renamed "Maid of Orleans (The Waltz Joan of Arc)" for its release). Both tracks feature on Architecture & Morality. Reception "Joan of Arc" met with a positive critical response. Face journalist Ian Cranna wrote that the "lush, melodic" track had "obvious" hit potential; he ranked it no. 1 in a 26 November list of his "current listening pleasure". Sunie Fletcher of Record Mirror felt the song has a "tender mood" and is "not particularly striking on first hearing", but allowed that it may be a "grower" akin to previous single "Souvenir". In a retrospective review, AllMusic's Ned Raggett described the track as "a towering heartbreaker, with Andy McCluskey and band in full flight". Critic Dave Thompson observed a "revelation of a single" with a "gorgeous melody", adding that "the power of this song is almost equal to Joan's own". Trouser Press called the track a "magnificent, ethereal hit".