May contain a heavy dose of Jim Kerr
As “the speed of light is moving on“ and we are now less than three weeks away from the anniversary of the release date of Sons And Fascination/Sister Feelings Call, I still have “something to prove and much to present” (to paraphrase the song being highlighted today). So, today I present a special midweek edition…
It is by far the most revered Simple Minds instrumental in their canon. The band have never been one to shy away from putting an instrumental track (or three) on an album. From 1979’s Real To Real Cacophony having instrumentals ‘Cacophony’, ‘Film Theme’ and (the wonderfully off-the-wall and magic mushroom influenced) ‘Veldt’ on it, right…
The song was written at the beginning of 1981 in Edinburgh after a conversation between Jim and John Leckie in which Leckie thought Jim should try his hand at writing a more “traditional” love song. Kerr’s is anything but traditional. In fact, I am firmly of the belief that it is anything BUT a love…
Read full post “Minds Music Monday – Love Song – SAF/SFC 40th Anniversary Celebration” »
“So when I thought Charlie’s guitar in ‘Angel’ sounded like church bells…” – writes Adam Sweeting, having just been given an explanation by Jim of the ideas behind the song. You can read a full extract of that below. I’d be intrigued to know what the book of short stories was. I thought for a…
Read full post “Minds Music Monday – Seeing Out The Angel – SAF/SFC 40th Anniversary Celebration” »
Bass. That Forbes bass. It’s the linchpin to the Simple Minds sound at that time. Those basslines are one of the things that distinguished them from others and made them stand out. And what a bassline that starts the title track to Sons And Fascination. I don’t really know what the sound is that accompanies…
When you consider the tracks on the album that have just gone by – the thumping drum and bass monster of Boys From Brazil and the pre-techno genre Euro dance beat of Love Song – there is a calming and stillness to This Earth. A soft rim shot (that’s what that particular percussive sound is…
You can’t escape it. The thing that hits you when your first hear this song is Charlie’s pedal affected riff that makes it sound for all the world like a cow has entered the recording studio to add a repetitive “mooooo” to the music. It’s a bit of an “in joke” in amongst the Simple…
When a song…and indeed a WHOLE ALBUM starts with the line “for just one moment in time I hear the holy backbeat” – then you know you’re in for something very special. The band were convinced of its merit as the opening track to the album, but Steve Hillage took a bit of convincing. He…
Released in May, 1981 – while the band are still busily recording the Sons And Fascination/Sister Feelings Call albums, the first of the singles of the album is rushed out. But as “rush jobs” go, it has been a mainstay in the Simple Minds live set…well, since even BEFORE it was recorded in the studio…
Read full post “Minds Music Monday – The American – 40th Anniversary” »
Today has been marked as Gray Day – marking the 40th anniversary of the release of Lanark by Alasdair Gray. I read Lanark for the first time last year and fell in love with it and Alasdair. Last October I went to the Oscar Marzaroli exhibition at the Street Level Photoworks on Trongate and had…