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How do you rate this 80s band? I'm listening to the Glittering Prize CD and remembering how great they were. Not just Don't You Forget (About Me) either. Sanctify Yourself, Promised You A Miracle, Belfast Child, Alive & Kicking and of course Someone Somewhere in the Summertime, to name just those!
What is Jim Kerr up to these days anyway? Is Simple Minds even STILL around? And didn't Kerr and Peter Gabriel do a duet in the 80s?
Jim got married to Chrissy and that is all she/he wrote 
I loved Simple Minds in the 80's and still listen to them. Haven't heard about them doing anything lately. They could do a come back tour or sumting. I would see them again.
Last I remember of them, they did She's a River back in like '93 or '94. Can't remember anything else since!
New Gold Dream was ace.Didn`t they do an album full of covers a couple of years ago including LWTUA?.
This is the thread I didn't dare to start myself :D .
If you check my profile you will see that I'm Simple Minds fan since 1985 (since Don't you). Jim Kerr was my first love 
.
I saw them live 6 or 7 times...
Yes they are still around and alive. As I heard there will be a new album in autumn. Can't wait for the next concert 
.
Did you know that they made a cover version of "Love will tear us apart" (kind of disco version) ;) ?
I think SM and NO are kind of similar in their history. Both started as punk bands and someday began to use electronics in their music.
Rian wrote: I was a member at this forum, but it has been down for 6 weeks now.
The SM-Forum? I'm registered member there, but I never posted anything... (what kind of fan am I? 
)
I checked it... The whole site is down indeed. What is it? Is the band bankrupt? 
I hope not...
I liked some early stuff - The American, Promised You A Miracle, Waterfront etc.
Jim and Charlie are massive Celtic fans.
Charlie's nephew Mark Burchill played for the club a couple of years ago.
I remember they were on TOTP in the mid 90's and the drum kit featured the Celtic crest.
I do have that Johnny And The Self Abusers single, I play it for a laugh now and then. 
Sorry Bere, this is where we differ, for me, it's been all downhill for SM since New Gold Dream, the sleek stylings of songs like In Trance As Mission and This Earth You Walk Upon had been replaced largely by songs that sounded more like U2, there are a couple of things I like on Sparkle but it became diminishing returns for me. Saw them in 86, I think, and about fell asleep, all the songs were post NGD, except for a perfunctory encore of Love Song. I did like the song See The Lights, that was a good return to their old form, there was a nice performance of that one on the Arsenio Hall show I think.
Damn, gonna have to listen to Fila Brazilia's mix of Themes For Great Cities now.
[darkgreen]Green[/darkgreen] wrote: I do have that Johnny And The Self Abusers single, I play it for a laugh now and then.
Sorry Bere, this is where we differ, for me, it's been all downhill for SM since New Gold Dream, the sleek stylings of songs like In Trance As Mission and This Earth You Walk Upon had been replaced largely by songs that sounded more like U2, there are a couple of things I like on Sparkle but it became diminishing returns for me. Saw them in 86, I think, and about fell asleep, all the songs were post NGD, except for a perfunctory encore of Love Song. I did like the song See The Lights, that was a good return to their old form, there was a nice performance of that one on the Arsenio Hall show I think.
Damn, gonna have to listen to Fila Brazilia's mix of Themes For Great Cities now.
I fell into them through "Don't you" in '85. Imagine a young girl falling in love with the singer of the band 
... I didn't know about their dark past then and I wasn't ready for the punky-stuff (as I wasn't 1987 for New Order's).
I remember... 13.01.86.... The first concert in my life...
Sigh...
michael brown wrote: How good is Glittering Prize 12" Bere?
The instrumental is pukka an all
(btw what is "pukka"?)
Some Distant Memory wrote: And didn't Kerr and Peter Gabriel do a duet in the 80s?
I think I had to know that... No official release if it exists. Perhaps some live stuff?
Bere wrote:
[darkgreen]Green[/darkgreen] wrote: I do have that Johnny And The Self Abusers single, I play it for a laugh now and then.
Sorry Bere, this is where we differ, for me, it's been all downhill for SM since New Gold Dream, the sleek stylings of songs like In Trance As Mission and This Earth You Walk Upon had been replaced largely by songs that sounded more like U2, there are a couple of things I like on Sparkle but it became diminishing returns for me. Saw them in 86, I think, and about fell asleep, all the songs were post NGD, except for a perfunctory encore of Love Song. I did like the song See The Lights, that was a good return to their old form, there was a nice performance of that one on the Arsenio Hall show I think.
Damn, gonna have to listen to Fila Brazilia's mix of Themes For Great Cities now.
I fell into them through "Don't you" in '85. Imagine a young girl falling in love with the singer of the band
When I was 15, I was told that I looked like Jim Kerr.
:D
Well, I must say I was a great fan of the song "Alive and Kicking" when it came out... this was in my pop-bubblegum years, when I was listening to what my sister was listening ;)
I bought Once Upon A Time back in 1997 on vinyl just to put that song to mp3 , how sick is that... then the mp3 revolution caught us all ;)
Last time I heard from them was their cover of Love Will Tear Us Apart...
Simple Minds' music hasn't just faded away like the intelligence of the British & American media.
I felt their 1997 album Neapolis was a disappointment, but they came back strong with their 2001 Neon Lights covers album.
Their 2002 album Cry was outstanding. But like New Order, they made a horrible choice of first single track (the title track Cry) and as a result, the single didn't chart in the UK Top 40.
Disconnected is a sensational song, and The Floating World is an instrumental crying out for reinterpretation (excuse the pun). Or have I said too much already?!?
Rian wrote:
When I was 15, I was told that I looked like Jim Kerr.
:D
Got photos to prove that ?
Anyone know their nearly never released album "Our secrets are the same"? It's a very nice one. Some kind of atypical. Silent and guitary. It's kind of their "Get ready". It comes with the Silver Box.
Bere wrote:
Rian wrote:
When I was 15, I was told that I looked like Jim Kerr.
:D
Got photos to prove that
Yes, I think so. Will have a look in my old boxes.
;)
I heard that Kerr lost it on drugs and sacked the whole band shortly before Live Aid. Now it's just session guys.
ANy truth in that?
BIGINOIL wrote: I heard that Kerr lost it on drugs and sacked the whole band shortly before Live Aid. Now it's just session guys.
ANy truth in that?
You confuse that with Barney...
Seriuosly: I don't know. I never heard of drugs... Today it's just Jim and Charlie left of the original band... They had Drummer Mel Gaynor a long time before and after Live Aid... The bassplayers changed often. On their last tour they had their first one with them (Derek Forbes)...
Rian wrote:
Bere wrote:
Rian wrote:
When I was 15, I was told that I looked like Jim Kerr.
:D
Got photos to prove that
Yes, I think so. Will have a look in my old boxes.
;)
Well, err, I hade to censor it a bit *cough*.
But this is me aged 14 or 15. Taken for over 23-24 years ago.
Not a massive fan of their albums, but they had some cracking singles!!!
Glittering Prize is fookin ace.
Bere wrote:
Well...
Hmmm...
I think they ment how Kerr looked in vidoes for "New gold dream"
Bere wrote:
Perhaps it's easier to tell with the uncensored version
Sorry. Can't show my dick online 
I think everything up to New Goldl Dream was class but everything after is complete shoite.
Mind you I saw em last summer or the summer before in Liverpool. They had Mel Gaynor on drums and were ok live. China Crisis supported em.
not a band I listen to all the time, but I think they're pretty good. Probably a bit under-rated.
i went to womad festival early 80's in shepton mallet to see bunnymen and simple minds and also gabriel were on that day but did nothing together,however a work mate of mine is into minds and he says kerr and gabriel sang beko together at mandela concert.simple minds did a cover version of beko.
I bought Sparkle In The Rain when it came out in 1984 and loved it. I saw them live in that year at a gig with The Police, Big Country and Eurythmics and Simple Minds just towered above them, one of my favourite gigs, but i lost interest in them when (Don't You) Forget About Me came out. However, last month i bought a compilation called Early Gold which as the title suggests contains all their early singles. The tracklisting is:
These songs remind me of what a great band they once were. Last week i bought Sons And Fascination (from 1981) and what a brilliant album it is. My girlfriend has the Glittering Prize compilation and when i here songs like Belfast Child, Let There Be Love, See The Lights and Sanctify Yourself (what does that even mean?) i just cringe. I really think they lost it after SITR, but i will always treasure their early stuff.
I strongly believe that the 1991 'Real Life' album by Simple Minds is one of most captivating, mature and richly intelligent and meaningful albums ever recorded.
I do sincerely hope that:
a) the first single is better than 'Cry' b) the band have allowed plenty of time for some quality remixes, assuming that they still take this seriously.
BufferLow wrote: Last week i bought Sons And Fascination (from 1981) and what a brilliant album it is.
Totally marvellous album...
Empress Touch wrote:
I do sincerely hope that:
a) the first single is better than 'Cry'
Check the link. As I read "Home" will be the first single. There are some nice tracks. "Dolphins" e.g. caught me totally after listening 2 of three times. "Jeweller" is a wonderful song, too. It appeared before on the "never released" album "Our secrets are the same"...
BufferLow wrote:
Bere wrote:
Totally marvellous album...
All 8 tracks are classics, not a dud among them.
You bought the vinyl then? (I own it, too ;) ). The CD contains "Sister feelings" as well... It was meant as double album when the two albums came out...
Bere wrote:
You bought the vinyl then? (I own it, too ;) ). The CD contains "Sister feelings" as well... It was meant as double album when the two albums came out...
Nup, I bought the cassette version at a local op shop for $2, ha! I just downloaded Dolphins and what a beautiful song, the best song of their's i've heard since Ghost Dancing back in '85. Thanx for putting up the link Bere.
BufferLow wrote: Thanx for putting up the link Bere.
Thank the owner of the site I got it from...
