Following the recent release of Big Music Universal Music Enterprises will release a four-disc digital box set of
Simple Minds’ SPARKLE IN THE RAIN on March 31st. It will be the first
time the entire back catalog of this era has been collected together.
Originally released in February 1984, SPARKLE IN THE RAIN (title taken
from a line in ‘Book Of Brilliant Things’) was Simple Minds’ sixth
studio album and, following 1982’s crossover album New Gold Dream, the
one to cement their commercial success. The SPARKLE IN THE RAIN 4-Disc
Digital Box Set includes previously unreleased live concert audio,
rarities and acclaimed remixes. SPARKLE IN THE RAIN will also be
available on 2-CD Deluxe, Pure Audio Blu-Ray and LP.
INCLUDES PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED LIVE CONCERT, RARITIES & ACCLAIMED REMIXES
(ALSO AVAILABLE ON 2CD DELUXE, PURE AUDIO BLU-RAY & LP)
“…the band’s best effort thus far, capturing thick seascapes of illustrious lyrical visions… Sparkle in the Rain is a glimpse of what’s to come from Simple Minds. Kerr’s heart-wrenching vocals soar and such emotion only leads to earning a global following.” – ALL MUSIC
Following the recent release of Big Music Universal Music Enterprises will release a four-disc digital box set of Simple Minds’ SPARKLE IN THE RAIN on March 31st. It will be the first time the entire back catalog of this era has been collected together.
Originally released in February 1984, SPARKLE IN THE RAIN (title taken from a line in ‘Book Of Brilliant Things’) was Simple Minds’ sixth studio album and, following 1982’s crossover album New Gold Dream, the one to cement their commercial success.
SPARKLE IN THE RAIN was initially started on the run with stays in residential recording studios booked during gaps during the New Gold Dream tour. A wintery sojourn at the Old Chapel Studios in Lincolnshire during January 1983 resulted in a number of interesting ideas, but it wasn’t until the summer when the majority of touring had finished, that Simple Minds’ new direction would solidify. ‘Waterfront’ began as a Derek Forbes’ single note bass line which, inspired by nocturnal walks Jim Kerr took along the disappearing River Clyde shipyards in the band’s native Glasgow, became a tribute to the city’s industrial past, and an expression of hope and optimism for the future. The song was quickly knocked into shape the days before the band’s final booked concert at Phoenix Park, and they were so confident with their new song, that they opened their set with it. From day forth, the era-defining song became perhaps the band’s most enduring, still in their set till this day.
Steve Lillywhite became the obvious choice of producer for the album, a man who knew how to handle the band’s dynamic new sound. With touring now complete, SPARKLE IN THE RAIN gradually took shape that September with initial preparatory work at Rockfield Studios in Wales and final recording at the legendary Townhouse, London. Kerr was adamant the resulting album should not be New Gold Dream part 2, but that the band should continue to expand and enhance their sound.
To that end, SPARKLE IN THE RAIN sees the line up of Jim Kerr, Charlie Burchill, Derek Forbes, Mick MacNeil and Mel Gaynor (now a permanent fixture – playing on his first full Simple Minds album) move in a more cohesive, rock-orientated direction, in part, propelled by Gaynor’s powerhouse drumming, though the album still retained traces of their new wave past. As well as the aforementioned ‘Waterfront’, the album featured religious references and symbolism (‘Book Of Brilliant Things’, ‘East At Easter’), a critique on celebrity (‘Up On The Catwalk’ (album’s third single) as well as a cover of ‘Street Hassle’ (featuring Kristy MacColl – also on ‘Speed Your Love To Me’, second single from the album), a homage to one of their biggest influences, the now sadly deceased Lou Reed (whom later guested on the band’s Street Fighting Years album).
The illustrious lyrics and the political and personal love songs were matched by MacNeil’s throbbing synth-beats and piano flourishes, Burchill’s dominating, new wave guitar chimes and Forbes’ swooning bass lines. Kerr’s song writing thrived on the band’s striving amidst a new emerging sound and direction. The album cemented Simple Minds’ reputation as one of the major bands of the 1980s and prepared the groundwork for the worldwide hit album Once Upon A Time.
The SPARKLE IN THE RAIN digital box set consists of four discs. Disc one is a re-master of the original album – re-mastered at Abbey Road Studios by Andrew Walters and overseen by Charlie Burchill. Disc two features rare B-sides, some making their CD debut for the first time. These include: a live version of NGD’s ‘Hunter And The Hunted’, which shows the band’s evolving sound; acclaimed 12” remixes of ‘Waterfront’ (Steve Lillywhite looped the drums to create an extended intro, as well as stripped instrumentation to create a huge, expansive track), ‘Speed Your Love To Me’, ‘Up On The Catwalk’ and ‘A Brass Band In Africa’, and ‘Bass Line’ – the original instrumental that became ‘White Hot Day’. Disc three features a previously unreleased concert recorded at Barrowland in the band’s hometown of Glasgow, on 28th February 1984. The concert continues on disc four, with the rest of the disc completed by a three-track BBC Radio 1 session from September 1983.
The SPARKLE IN THE RAIN re-master will also be available on digital download, a 2 CD version Pure Audio Blu-ray and LP.
Track listings:
SPARKLE IN THE RAIN DIGITAL BOX SET:
DISC ONE: SPARKLE IN THE RAIN REMASTER
Up On The Catwalk
Book Of Brilliant Things
Speed Your Love To Me
Waterfront
East At Easter
Street Hassle
White Hot Day
“C” Moon Cry Like A Baby
The Kick Inside Of Me
Shake Off The Ghosts
DISC TWO
Waterfront – edit
Hunter And The Hunted Live (recorded at Newcastle City Hall, 20th November 1982)
Waterfront- Extended mix
Speed Your Love To Me – edit
Bass Line
Speed Your Love To Me – extended mix
Up On The Catwalk – edit
A Brass Band in Africa
Up On The Catwalk – extended mix
A Brass Band in Africa Chimes
Waterfront – single version
DISC THREE: live at Glasgow Barrowland, 28th February 1984
Shake Off The Ghosts [Intro]
Waterfront
Up On The Catwalk
The Book Of Brilliant Things
Glittering Prize
The American
King Is White And In The Crowd
Speed Your Love To Me
Someone Somewhere In Summertime
DISC FOUR
Live at Glasgow Barrowland, 28th February 1984 continued…
Promised You A Miracle
Big Sleep
New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84) – Take Me To The River [Live] – Light My Fire [Live]
Love Song – Glory [Live]
BBC Radio 1 session – 11th September 1983
Waterfront
Kick Inside
New Gold Dream
——————————————————————————-
SPARKLE IN THE RAIN – 2CD DELUXE
DISC ONE: SPARKLE IN THE RAIN REMASTER
Up On The Catwalk
Book Of Brilliant Things
Speed Your Love To Me
Waterfront
East At Easter
Street Hassle
White Hot Day
“C” Moon Cry Like A Baby
The Kick Inside Of Me
Shake Off The Ghosts
DISC TWO
Waterfront – edit
Hunter And The Hunted Live (recorded at Newcastle City Hall, 20th November 1982)
Waterfront- Extended mix
Speed Your Love To Me – edit
Bass Line
Speed Your Love To Me – extended mix
Up On The Catwalk – edit
A Brass Band in Africa
Up On The Catwalk – extended mix
A Brass Band in Africa Chimes
Waterfront – single version
——————————————————
SPARKLE IN THE RAIN – LP:
SIDE ONE:
Up On The Catwalk
Book Of Brilliant Things
Speed Your Love To Me
Waterfront
East At Easter
SIDE TWO:
Street Hassle
White Hot Day
“C” Moon Cry Like A Baby
The Kick Inside Of Me
Shake Off The Ghosts
——————————————
HD – BLU RAY: features 5.1 Surround Mix, High Res Stereo Mix and Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Mix.
——————————————-
Pre-Orders for the Digital Super Deluxe Box Set will receive an instant download of “Waterfront.”
Have ordered my copy of the blu-ray today and will be ordering the boxset soon :-))
