Simple Minds - 40 Years of Hits Tour 2020 Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977. The most commercially successful Scottish band of the 1980s, they achieved five UK Albums chart number one albums and have sold more than 60 million albums. Despite various personnel changes, they continue to record and tour. The band scored a string of hit singles, becoming best known internationally for their 1985 hit "Don't You (Forget About Me)", from the soundtrack of the film The Breakfast Club. Their other more prominent hits include "Alive and Kicking" and "Belfast Child" (UK #1). In 2016, they received the Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Song Collection from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers, and Authors. The core of the band is the two remaining founding members, Jim Kerr (vocals, songwriting) and Charlie Burchill (lead and rhythm guitars, keyboards after 1990, other instruments, songwriting). The other current band members are Ged Grimes (bass guitar), Sarah Brown (vocals), Gordy Goudie (rhythm guitar), Cherisse Osei (drums) and Catherine AD (vocals, keyboards, guitar). Former members include bass guitarist Derek Forbes, keyboardist Mick MacNeil, drummers Brian McGee and Mel Gaynor (who first joined the band in 1982) 2019: Live In The City Of Angels ......... On 20 August 2019, Simple Minds announced the forthcoming release on 4 October 2019 of Live In The City Of Angels, their new live album capturing the band on their biggest ever (2018) North American tour. Mostly recorded on 24 October 2018 at the Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles, California (i.e. the City of Angels), the live album would be made available on multiple formats: standard double CD, deluxe 4-CD album (4 CDs in a hardback book), 4-vinyl quadpack, digital downloads, and streaming services (plus a signed set list bundle). The standard CD and vinyl format features 25 songs while the deluxe CD and digital formats features 40 songs. The album title can be seen as a reference or a nod to their milestone first (1987) live album Live In The City Of Light (which was (mostly) recorded in the City of Light, i.e. Paris, France). Twenty-four of the tracks were performed that night in Los Angeles, with only "Glittering Prize" being recorded on 8 November 2018 at the Fillmore-Gleason Theatre in Miami Beach. The bonus tracks available on the deluxe CD and digital formats were recorded at various sound checks and rehearsals. The 40-song collection is spanning, to date, a 40 year career. According to Kerr, the next Simple Minds studio album would be released in 2021
