Be One of Us #15 - "Maid of Orleans"

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"And now I know how Joan of Arc felt." But did you really, Morrissey? Did you really? This is Be One of Us, a random 50-song countdown of songs with "of" in the title. We are at #15: "Maid of Orleans" by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. Because that French Saint seems to appear in pop music more than you might think. Hell, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, often just called "OMD,") did two songs about her, "Joan of Arc" in 1981, and this lovely little ditty, fully titled "Maid of Orleans (The Waltz of Joan of Arc.)" OMD vocalist Andy McCluskey must have had a history crush on the legendary martyr for the cause. Must have. He wrote "Maid of Orleans" on May 30th, 1981, the 550th anniversary of Joan of Arc's death. The tune was an international hit, topping the charts in Spain, Germany, Belgium, and the Dutch Singles chart, reaching #2 in Austria, #4 in the UK and Switzerland, #5 in Ireland, and #7 in New Zealand. The song did not chart in the States (if they even released it as a single here,) nor, oddly, in France, where Joan of Arc is kind of a big deal. Which seems kind of odd. It would be akin to a band doing a song about the legend of Frodo Baggins, but not releasing it in Middle Earth. I can see the record exec now: "No, let's not release it there. It'll never sell there. You know where they buy songs about legendary, heroic Hobbits? Detroit, according to my research. Middle Earth. Psssh. Please." Meanwhile, in shires across Middle Earth, Hobbits are all wishing that someone would release songs about Frodo that they didn't have to spend a fortune on buying as imports. Probably the French are wondering the same thing, except with songs about Joan of Arc. Think about it. (Info verified by Wikipedia)