Simple Minds - Speed Your Love to Me / Book of Brilliant Things (Demo)

Music : Simple Minds
Title: Speed Your Love to Me / Book of Brilliant Things
Version: Demo
Year: 1982

Category:

Music

Tags:

• simple minds
• electronic music
• strange music
• trucks
• vintage cars
• eskimo
• winter
• night driving

[vamborooolz]

Excellent......love the version of 'Speed Your Love', sounds like Kraftwerk getting a kick up the ass. Makes you wonder just how more influential they would have become if they'd followed the New Gold Dream road-map. Even the 'Brilliant Things' demo sounds like it could've fathered the House/Acid sound.

[MrOrdinar]

@vamborooolz This road-map was diverted by two mishaps: Bono and Chrissy Hynde.

[AngelicGunrunner]

(1/2)Interesting alternatives. I always liked McNeill's keyboard style and agree the band tumbled downhill fast from the mid-eighties (Jim Kerr once said "Don't You" the song that really brought them to arena status in the US, was an inane single, and he was essentially right) but this really sounds very much like "Theme For Great Cities" and "Trans Europe Express": same motorik beat. They could do this in their sleep by 1983, a repeat of SAF would have been stylish but in the end irrelevant.

[MrOrdinar]

@AngelicGunrunner Indeed. The good thing is that SM are recording again with Steve Hillage (the producer from their best era, Sons and Fasciantion/Sister Feelings Call). The bad thing is that Michael McNeil is gone, and the existing keyboard man, is far far away from these sounds.

[DuranFan09]

@MrOrdinar I don't know, the current keyboard player (Andy Gillespie) does a fabulous job of emulating early 80s MacNeil on 'Broken Glass Park' (studio version to be released as part of Greatest Hits box set later this year). Check it out, they've played it live quite a few times.

[MrOrdinar]

@DuranFan09 Mick was fabulous on keyboards, it's hard for everyone to play like he did in the '80s. I know very well the live versions of Broken Glass Park, but I would give the whole credit for the sound to Charlie. In my oppinion Andy Gillespie is a disciplinated musician, but not more than that.

[cadburyenglishman]

@SciFiAssasin. Apparently Jim Kerr was not happy with the final sound of Sparkle In the Rain and Lillywhite's final product.  It was thought as sounding too U2'ish, well Lillywhite did U2, but in truth it was Bono who was onstage at an SM concert singing New Gold Dream, and he once counted the SM's as his favourite band, thus SM's were so far ahead in their sound and abilities, but not fully expressed enough in mass recordings with Virgin. What a sound this one, thank you for sharing.

[cadburyenglishman]

Amazing version of already beautiful songs! Are these really the minds?

[tommypsue]

@huthut91 hell yes

[AngelicGunrunner]

@MrOrdinar On their best records in 1980/82 they managed to be both ambient and funky, that's what makes SAF/SFC such a great album. They found a really organic, subtle sound, both deep and catchy. The greatest thing about Sparkle is, Kerr's vocals and Burchill's guitar are more passionate than ever. The released version of Speed Your Love To Me works for me, it's very youthful, hungry, gleaming with pride, and funky. And the same with Street Hassle. By 1987 they had mostly lost that edge.

[AngelicGunrunner]

(2/2)Whatever the issues and flaws of "Sparkle" the album has some of Jim's strongest singing, some really good songs and great, punchy performances from all the others. It's nowhere near as bland as "Real Life" or the Paris live double album.

So many British 80s band never even attempted to make it in America - The Smiths, Prefab Sprout, New Order etc. The Minds at least made a determined attempt to get thru to the big audiences without giving up all the complexity and lifeblood of their music.