And The Good News Is – Some People Measure Success Differently

“I am mightier than most. I am ‘the big I am’.” This self-congratulatory twaddle increasingly gets on my wick. You know, someone with a good measure of humility would just acknowledge that it was the 30th anniversary of the album’s release without all of this “we grew a backbone and did what most people can NEVER do.” Righty-o Mr Hero. Do you know what lots of “normal” people CAN do though? Show humility! 

The royal “we” is also getting a bit worn too. I’m assuming it means “we” as in him and Charlie? Like, he’s ALWAYS speaking for the both of them, when the reality is he means himself. Not brave enough to say “I” rather than “we.” (If you want to talk about bravery.) Does Charlie even have any say in it? Does he even care?

I was going to write something about the anniversary of Good News from the Next World but I just couldn’t really drum up the enthusiasm. I used to think quite highly of the album and enjoy it when I listened to it. But now it is marred by the whole “Twinple Minds” element. That is what I have come to think of the band dynamic in recent days – since the Kimmel appearance. I have been calling them Twinple Minds – just those two. Mr Kerr and Mr Burchill. 

I’ve also been wanting to talk about something Mr Kerr said in an interview from YEARS back about blandness. He said something like “I’m scared of love that way because…I’m scared of being content to an extent – because I’m scared of blandness.” And those words keep playing in my mind. Like, I’ll retort in my mind “But you CHASED blandness because you chased success!” (Check the Kerr quote HERE – around 9 minutes into the clip.)

No matter how I try to view it some other way, he just seems really, REALLY content these days – and it shows. It shows itself in performance and reveals itself in the music. It just does.

Going over some of the material of Lostboy! for the book and reading interviews and his descriptions of exactly what he was trying to achieve with the solo project…he actually talks about looking back. There’s always this double-edged sword. Like the past is a dirty thing. It’s a thing that should never be done. But there he is in 2009/2010 looking back to the Jim Kerr of 1978-1982 with the knowledge of how focussed and prolific he was. I feel what came through that was really good material. I really like the Lostboy! work. I feel that he benefited from working with other people during that period. But that’s also part of the problem, for me personally. There is just no sense of loyalty that comes from him. Oh, he certainly commands it from others well enough. He COMMANDS loyalty, but less and less I see him exude it and give it back to others. I’m sure it’s why he loves dogs and has little time for cats – though frankly, Jim Kerr is a cat that surrounds himself with dogs. 

Anyway, back to Good News. It now symbolises for me the birth of “Twinple Minds.” It’s all “me and Charlie against the world” and it’s now getting sullied for me as a result. Most Simple Minds material is becoming sullied in some way or other. And I’m upset that it’s going that way. 

Anyway, that’s enough of that. You know I could say sssooooo much more but it just isn’t worth it. 

So, tonight I will enjoy live music from a band who are very comfortable with the prospect of being “cult” for their career. Not content to compromise their artistic principle in the chase of commercial success. Is that “blandness”? I think not! To me that’s where the real danger is! Knowing that you may never “make it” but you know that by sticking with your own mantra and your own principles you have a measure of success that no money can buy.

So, Field Music at Oran Mor, here I come!