Waist High favorite Simple Minds' fifth studio album, New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84), released in 1982, was a significant turning point for the band, when critical and popular success in the UK and Europe finally intersected. With a slick, sophisticated sound thanks to producer Peter Walsh, Simple Minds was soon categorized as part of the "New Romantic" outgrowth of New Wave, and the record generated a handful of charting singles including "Promised You a Miracle," "Someone, Somewhere in Summertime," and "Glittering Prize."
1983's Sparkle in the Rain delivered "Waterfront," which hit number one in a few European countries and remains one of the band's signature songs to this day, as well as "Speed Your Love to Me," and "Up on the Catwalk."
Despite the band's newfound popularity in the UK and Europe, Simple Minds remained essentially unknown in the U.S. until the movie The Breakfast Club changed all that. It broke Simple Minds in the U.S. almost overnight, when the band achieved its only number-one U.S. pop hit with the film's opening track, "Don't You (Forget About Me)." Ironically, the song wasn't even written by the band, but by Keith Forsey, who offered the song to Billy Idol and Bryan Ferry before Simple Minds agreed to record it. The song soon became a chart-topper in many other countries around the world.
Taking advantage of their newfound popularity, Simple Minds released Once Upon a Time, which would go on to generate four worldwide hit singles: "Alive & Kicking," "Sanctify Yourself," "Ghostdancing," and "All the Things She Said."
Simple Minds' latest album, Black & White 050505, released in the fall of 2005, has generated some of the most positive reviews for a Simple Minds record in many years.
Material: wikipedia.org
