[bong]

i ordered two Simple Minds remaster CDs yesterday, so they should arrive next week. i'm just getting into early Simple Minds on the strength of "Someone Somewhere in Summertime," "Promised You a Miracle," and "I Travel," so i ordered New Gold Dream and Empires and Dance. good choices?

given my 80's post-punk fascination, i dunno why i never explored Simple Minds...
can any Simple Minds fan guide me through their early catalog? thanks in advance...

 

[Davey]

Yeah, some of their early stuff up through New Gold Dream is great. A couple years ago when they put out this remaster series in the UK, I picked up the new Early Gold collection (although they didn't really score much gold until the end of those early years). It covers most of the best songs from the days when they sounded more like Wire and Talking Heads than the later radio-friendly pop that made them international stars. Very interesting to listen to the progression of their sound from 1978 to 1982 on this chronological collection. I still love both "Chelsea Girl" and "New Gold Dream", but you probably wouldn't recognize them as being by the same band. Very cool 15-song Virgin UK collection. I didn't much care for their sound as they moved further into pop after New Gold Dream, although I did still like Sparkle In The Rain a lot, but kind of quit following them after that one.

 

[Jahn]

Two songs you need-

"Alive and Kicking" - This sounds like mid-form U2. Very 80's.

"Don't you forget about me" - how can you get more 80's than the Breakfast Club soundtrack? Answer: you can't.

Look for the live double album of Simple Minds Live. It Rocks.

OOH! They remastered this one too! I may have to go pick it up!

 

[DarkAngel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bong i ordered two Simple Minds remaster CDs yesterday, so they should arrive next week. i'm just getting into early Simple Minds on the strength of "Someone Somewhere in Summertime," "Promised You a Miracle," and "I Travel," so i ordered New Gold Dream and Empires and Dance. good choices? given my 80's post-punk fascination, i dunno why i never explored Simple Minds... can any Simple Minds fan guide me through their early catalog? thanks in advance...

New Gold Dream 1982.......is easliy thier best album for me so yes you did good, this is an absolute classic.

Sparkle in Rain 1984
Once Upon Time 1985
Next two albums are solid but step down from "gold", nothing after these is really worthwhile IMO

The 5 early albums before "new gold" are different sound similar to early Ultravox and kinda hit/miss, I would get early compilation like:
Early Gold
to cover this time period and collect the best from early albums. If you like pre "vienna" era Ultravox you may want to get some of early Simple Minds albums.

The expensive 2CD Best of Simple Minds has great 1st CD, but 2nd CD is weak with post 1985 material.

 

[bong]

LOL... yeah Jahn, "Alive and Kicking" and "Don't You Forget About Me" are 80's classics. i still remember the radio playing those two non-stop when i was in elementary school. i've got those two on the US CD version of Glittering Prize compilation i bought a long time ago, which sucks because the UK version has extra songs... including some early pre-pop singles. the US version doesn't even have the song that bears the album title!

truth be told, i never gave Simple Minds a chance because i also pigeonhole them with those two songs, along with 1991's hit "See the Lights" which got some alternative radio airplay at the time... i remember picking up a cassette of the album Real Life around the same time with OMD's Sugar Tax. Simple Minds' early stuff are supposedly much more synthy and experimental.

lately, i've been listening to Glittering Prize again lately and two songs really stood out, "Someone Somewhere in Summertime" and "Promised You a Miracle," both of which are from the album New Gold Dream. i've heard "I Travel" once somewhere else, and i remember it being this really cool, frantic synthy song... imagine if Kraftwerk's "Trans Europe Express" and Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" had a child who was addicted on speed, that's what i remember "I Travel" sounds like.

and thanks for the heads-up on the live album, i'll keep a look-out on that one...

 

[soundboy]

bong,

I see you have SACD/DVD-A capabilities, so go get the hi-rez version of their albums.

I have the 2-disc "The Best of" and "Once Upon A Time" on stereo hybrid SACD and both titles rocks. A couple of titles were just released domestically on multi-channel DVD-As. While the SACDs are imports, you can pick them up relatively inexpensive on ebay.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkAngel New Gold Dream 1982.......is easliy thier best album... Sparkle in Rain 1984 Once Upon Time 1985 Next two albums are solid but step down from "gold"... The 5 early albums before "new gold" are different sound similar to early Ultravox and kinda hit/miss, I would get early compilation like: Early Gold...

Hey, we agree!

You also need to find "Theme From Great Cities", one of the best instrumentals of all time, I can listen to it repeatedly (I have the SACD of their greatest hits collection). Hopefully that's on that Early Gold collection.

 

[SunByrne]

Are the remasters actually any better? I've heard several remasters of stuff from this time period and it sounds like all they did was turn up the gain so it clips. Ugh.

I ask because Live in the City of Light is a really, really great album and if the remaster is actually better, well, now I'm out another 20 bucks.

And I have to concur, New Gold Dream is the highlight, though the combo disc of Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call is very good, and Empires and Dance has some very strong tracks.

I never could get into Real To Real Cacophony or Life In A Day, though.

 

[bong]

thanks for the great help, guys!

being a huge fan of early Cure, Joy Division/early New Order, early OMD, the first two Human League albums, even early Public Image Ltd., i've been told that i would like early pre-Breakfast Club Simple Minds... i just chose New Gold Dream and Empires and Dance on the strength of those three tracks i mentioned above. the same person highly recommended me to pick up Reel to Real Cacophony but i didn't know anything from it. darn... if i had known about Early Gold, i would've ordered that one instead... oh well.

can't wait to hear New Gold Dream!

 

[markl]

I agree with DA, I got Early Gold for the eraly stuff, and then NGD, Sparkle, and Once Upon... The rest is awful, no need for those. Quote:

Are the remasters actually any better? I've heard several remasters of stuff from this time period and it sounds like all they did was turn up the gain so it clips. Ugh.

Simon Heyworth did the remastering on the Simple Minds catalog in both Redbook CD and SACD. He's a fairly reliable guy from the UK, and he does his usual above-average work on these. New Gold Dream was mixed very oddly, it's a murky mix with the vocals absolutely buried, even in SACD it still sounds like mush. Still, consensus is that the remasters are better than the originals.

When Steve Hoffman gets his search engine back up, I had a long thread over there on Simple Minds where I went through all the different discs I bought. Worth digging up for additional commentary from other Members.

By the way, in addition to the CD remasters and their SACD counterparts, there are now DVD-Audio versions of the Simple Minds catalog if that matters to anyone. Not sure who remastered those...

 

[Mr. X]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bong i ordered two Simple Minds remaster CDs yesterday, so they should arrive next week. i'm just getting into early Simple Minds on the strength of "Someone Somewhere in Summertime," "Promised You a Miracle," and "I Travel," so i ordered New Gold Dream and Empires and Dance. good choices? given my 80's post-punk fascination, i dunno why i never explored Simple Minds... can any Simple Minds fan guide me through their early catalog? thanks in advance...

I was doing a Simple Minds search on Google and it took me to this Head-Fi post! Nice!

FIRST OF ALL, People are not giving you the proper direction. The early period is NOT New Gold Dream and Sparkle In The Rain. It's the period that came BEFORE those albums!!!

Bong - We're in the same boat. I'm guessing we're around the same age, and I am just as obsessed with the post-punk period. Recently, I declared Simple Minds to be my favorite Post-Punk band. Better than Joy Division, Gang Of Four, Echo & The Bunnymen; you name it: they top it. There was NO ONE, in my opinion, who were as experimental in that genre. It's a complete tragedy to me that they were always so ignored, and continue to be. Most people have never heard the early stuff, and if they did---they'd have no idea who they are!

You absolutely MUST listen to the album Real To Real Cacophony. It truly is my favorite new wave record, and THE BEST from Simple Minds. Don't listen to the "Alive and Kicking" recommendations...YAWN! It's another example of people who are completely clueless about the first five Simple Minds albums. When New Gold Dream was released (with "Promised You A Miracle") they became a completely different band, eventually turning into arena-fillers. Don't get me wrong, I do like that stuff, but it's weak when compared to the pre-New Gold Dream era.

Empires And Dance is excellent, along with all five of their first. "I Travel" is one of my favorites. I have them all on vinyl, accept for the 4th/5th albums, which was remastered and released on one CD as Sons And Fascination/Sister Feelings Call. It was always hard to find the release of those two albums with the proper tracks and running order. The remastered CD restores both albums in proper running order. Sons And Fascination is second to Real To Real, IMO. Sister Feelings Call is their last great album before they morphed into something totally different.

Look forward to your thoughts on their amazing body of work...

I'm also a HUGE fan of early OMD and Human League. Are you familiar with the pre-Dare Human League? Amazing stuff.

 

[bong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. X Bong - We're in the same boat. I'm guessing we're around the same age, and I am just as obsessed with the post-punk period. Recently, I declared Simple Minds to be my favorite Post-Punk band. You absolutely MUST listen to the album Real To Real Cacophony. It truly is my favorite new wave record, and THE BEST from Simple Minds. Empires And Dance is excellent, along with all five of their first. "I Travel" is one of my favorites. I have them all on vinyl, accept for the 4th/5th albums, which was remastered and released on one CD as Sons And Fascination/Sister Feelings Call. Sons And Fascination is second to Real To Real, IMO. Sister Feelings Call is their last great album before they morphed into something totally different. Look forward to your thoughts on their amazing body of work... I'm also a HUGE fan of early OMD and Human League. Are you familiar with the pre-Dare Human League? Amazing stuff.

aaarrgh! stoopid Overstock.com takes forever to send out their packages. hopefully my two Simple Minds CDs will arrive tomorrow so i have something new to listen to.

anyway, Mr. X... i just turned 28 this month, so i was much too young to experience the post-punk movement when it happened. let's just say i discovered The Cure, Depeche Mode, Joy Division/New Order durning Junior High School and i've been working my way backwards since, LOL.

i'm eagerly awaiting those two Simple Minds CD. i really hope i will like Empires and Dance. from the reviews i've read, it seems to be the kind of music i would appreciate. same goes for New Gold Dream. if i end up liking these two, Real to Real Cacophony and Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call will be the next two.

yeah, i'm a HUGE fan of OMD, DarkAngel already knows this as fact. love first five albums, especially Organisation, Architecture and Morality, and Dazzle Ships... i have trouble which one i like best out of these three. then artistically the band started going downhill after Junk Culture, although i do like Liberator.

i also like The Human League very much. although i still think Dare! is their best, Reproduction is an amazing album... people will never believe these two albums came from the same band (well, technically it's two different bands with the same name and the same lead singer). the reissued version which tacks on The Dignity of Labour EP and Electronically Yours single makes it twice as good... "Being Boiled" is a synth classic. Travelogue is also very good, the sounds are a whole lot more experimental compared to the stark and minimal Reproduction, but i like the songs on Reproduction better. if i had to choose my fave three Human League albums, it'll have to be Dare!, Reproduction, and Secrets, in that order.

i'll definitely post here once i listen to the two Simple Minds CDs...

 

[Mr. X]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bong aaarrgh! stoopid Overstock.com takes forever to send out their packages. hopefully my two Simple Minds CDs will arrive tomorrow so i have something new to listen to. anyway, Mr. X... i just turned 28 this month, so i was much too young to experience the post-punk movement when it happened. let's just say i discovered The Cure, Depeche Mode, Joy Division/New Order durning Junior High School and i've been working my way backwards since, LOL. i'm eagerly awaiting those two Simple Minds CD. i really hope i will like Empires and Dance. from the reviews i've read, it seems to be the kind of music i would appreciate. same goes for New Gold Dream. if i end up liking these two, Real to Real Cacophony and Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call will be the next two. yeah, i'm a HUGE fan of OMD, DarkAngel already knows this as fact. love first five albums, especially Organisation, Architecture and Morality, and Dazzle Ships... i have trouble which one i like best out of these three. then artistically the band started going downhill after Junk Culture, although i do like Liberator. i also like The Human League very much. although i still think Dare! is their best, Reproduction is an amazing album... people will never believe these two albums came from the same band (well, technically it's two different bands with the same name and the same lead singer). the reissued version which tacks on The Dignity of Labour EP and Electronically Yours single makes it twice as good... "Being Boiled" is a synth classic. Travelogue is also very good, the sounds are a whole lot more experimental compared to the stark and minimal Reproduction, but i like the songs on Reproduction better. if i had to choose my fave three Human League albums, it'll have to be Dare!, Reproduction, and Secrets, in that order. i'll definitely post here once i listen to the two Simple Minds CDs...

Nope, I was right about our ages...I'm 29. I also started geeking out on new wave in junior high. I can definitely relate!! As a freshman in high school, people were listening to Great White, while I was listening to XTC, early Cure (Seventeen Seconds!), etc.

I absolutely agree with what you said about OMD. Junk Culture was the jumping off point (although the album is half good). The first four are incredible. I have a great video of a show from the Architecture and Morality Tour.

I don't think I can pick a favorite between the first two Human League albums. As much as I love Dare, I definitely prefer those to it. ("Seconds," "Darkness," "The Sound Of The Crowd"....man, when I was in 8th Grade, I couldn't get enough...) The Fascination! EP is excellent, there are a few good songs off of Hysteria ("The Lebanon," in particular), but I shy away from anything after that. I never listened to Secrets.

I wish I would have found this thread sooner. I would have suggested starting with Real and Sons, but I'm sure you'll like Empires.........

 

[bong]

gaaah! no Simple Minds CDs this weekend!

 

[Oink1]

Try Glittering Prize 81 - 92 It's a nice collection