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Product details
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Track Listings
| 1. In Trance As Mission |
| 2. Sweat In Bullet |
| 3. 70 Cities As Love Brings The Fall |
| 4. Boys From Brazil |
| 5. Love Song |
| 6. This Earth That You Walk Upon |
| 7. Sons And Fascination |
| 8. Seeing Out The Angel |
| 9. Theme For Great Cities |
| 10. The American |
| 11. 20th Century Promised Land |
| 12. Wonderful In Young Life |
| 13. League Of Nations |
| 14. Careful In Career |
| 15. Sound In 70 Cities |
Product Description
2003 Remastered album fts : "love song", "rheme for great cities" & "the american"
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
38 of 39 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
It's a rash music lover who doesn't pay heed to the musings of John Peel and during the playback of a session that Simple Minds recorded for his show to promote these albums, he speculated that they were "a band at the very height of their powers".
Certainly the band - unceremoniously and unfairly dumped by Arista after the record company misread the demand for Empires and Dance - were brimming with confidence and riding the flood of their creative juices. Placed by new label, Virgin, into the studio with ex-Gong guitarist Steve Hillage in the production seat, the band recorded a wealth of material, which resulted in a second album, Sister Feelings Call, being released free (initially) with its sibling, Sons and Fascination.
Ironically, years later Jim Kerr would blame Hillage for not imposing more discipline on the band and went on to suggest the songs could have been better arranged. Sometimes, he said, it sounded like there was more than one song going on in the same track. It's an exaggeration, I know, but it's like Monet saying that he wishes someone had made him paint more precisely; an artist decrying the elements of his work that made it so compelling.
At the time, though, the then evidently more artistically switched on Kerr did a fantastic job of turning the band's complex musical creations into songs. Certainly it's difficult to think of many vocalists who, confronted by the music, would fashion something so catchy as 70 Cities As Love Brings The Fall or, indeed, would have the good taste to resist the urge to take part in the invigorating Theme For Great Cities.
In an unfortunate twist of musical history, this was to be Brian McGee's last album with the band, just as the powerful drummer appeared to reach his creative apogee. From the perspective of today's homogenised beats and drum sounds, the performances are even more astounding: his casual, easy management of In Trance As Mission's 6/8 signature through to the pounding, imaginative loop of Boys From Brazil. In retrospect, it is possible to see his departure as the beginning of Simple Minds' creative decline, although this wouldn't become evident for some time.
Overall, the albums are far more colourful than their predecessor; rich in melody and far subtler in their methods. The dark dramas are replaced by more evocative feelings of nostalgia on tracks like Seeing Out the Angel and Sons and Fascination, which contrast with the excellent upbeat singles: The American; Love Song; and Sweat in Bullet. However, the videos for these last two singles also revealed that the band's daunting creative vision did not extend to that medium.
Contrary to what you will read on the fan sites of those who adore the post Live Aid Simple Minds, I'd suggest that this is their finest hour, the essence of what made the band great. Released on CD simply as Sons and Fascination, with no liner notes, this release omits both Sound in 70 Cities and League of Nations, although they would have fitted onto the single compact disc. However, both can be found on the Themes releases of the band's 12" singles.
Certainly the band - unceremoniously and unfairly dumped by Arista after the record company misread the demand for Empires and Dance - were brimming with confidence and riding the flood of their creative juices. Placed by new label, Virgin, into the studio with ex-Gong guitarist Steve Hillage in the production seat, the band recorded a wealth of material, which resulted in a second album, Sister Feelings Call, being released free (initially) with its sibling, Sons and Fascination.
Ironically, years later Jim Kerr would blame Hillage for not imposing more discipline on the band and went on to suggest the songs could have been better arranged. Sometimes, he said, it sounded like there was more than one song going on in the same track. It's an exaggeration, I know, but it's like Monet saying that he wishes someone had made him paint more precisely; an artist decrying the elements of his work that made it so compelling.
At the time, though, the then evidently more artistically switched on Kerr did a fantastic job of turning the band's complex musical creations into songs. Certainly it's difficult to think of many vocalists who, confronted by the music, would fashion something so catchy as 70 Cities As Love Brings The Fall or, indeed, would have the good taste to resist the urge to take part in the invigorating Theme For Great Cities.
In an unfortunate twist of musical history, this was to be Brian McGee's last album with the band, just as the powerful drummer appeared to reach his creative apogee. From the perspective of today's homogenised beats and drum sounds, the performances are even more astounding: his casual, easy management of In Trance As Mission's 6/8 signature through to the pounding, imaginative loop of Boys From Brazil. In retrospect, it is possible to see his departure as the beginning of Simple Minds' creative decline, although this wouldn't become evident for some time.
Overall, the albums are far more colourful than their predecessor; rich in melody and far subtler in their methods. The dark dramas are replaced by more evocative feelings of nostalgia on tracks like Seeing Out the Angel and Sons and Fascination, which contrast with the excellent upbeat singles: The American; Love Song; and Sweat in Bullet. However, the videos for these last two singles also revealed that the band's daunting creative vision did not extend to that medium.
Contrary to what you will read on the fan sites of those who adore the post Live Aid Simple Minds, I'd suggest that this is their finest hour, the essence of what made the band great. Released on CD simply as Sons and Fascination, with no liner notes, this release omits both Sound in 70 Cities and League of Nations, although they would have fitted onto the single compact disc. However, both can be found on the Themes releases of the band's 12" singles.
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This album, together with the previous "Empires and Dance" and the subsequent "New Gold Dream" see Simple Minds at their creative peak. Originally, "Sons and Fascination" was released with "Sister Feelings Call" as a double record package. That there is no padding of material on either record is testament to how much of a roll that the band were on. Thematically, the album is exploring images of America, but musically it is locked in a very European setting. Elements of Can, Neu, DAF and Brian Eno can be heard, but the band are treading their own distinctive path now. There is so much going on here. The opening "In Trance as Mission" sets the scene for the album. Derek Forbes bass straight away setting the rhythm over which Mick McNeils synths weave in and out. "Sweat in Bullet" is all rubbery bass. The beautifully haunting "This Earth that You Walk Upon" has some excellent atmospheric guitar by Charlie Burchill. He, together with the late John McGeoch from Magazine, were surely the most original guitarists to have come out of that time and both have never been given the credit they deserve. Just listen to the wah-wah guitar solo on "The American" for instance.
This album is all widescreen vistas, energetic, bold and of it's time. Credit must be given to producer Steve Hillage. Though known at the time for his work with Gong and his own prog based solo albums, here he is pointing to his future techno work as System 7. The album didn't reach the critical or commercial height's which the following, "New Gold Dream" achieved, but at the time Simple Minds were seen as torch bearers for bold, new techno based rock. Today, the couplet of "Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call" still impresses and can be rightfully placed along with "New Gold Dream" in the canon of the great early 80's albums such as "The Correct Use of Soap", "Sulk", "Tin Drum" and "Penthouse and Pavement".
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Hard to believe it really, Simple Minds were once a band you could talk lovingly about in civilised company. This album (plus a handful of singles) was the band at its peak. From here onwards it's the slow decent into the hell of stadium rock blandness. This CD though glimmers with ideas and tunes, Jim Kerr's voice is tremendous, the band sound fresh, vital and new. Ah, how times have changed!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Theme for Great Cities excels
I heard Theme for Great Cities as backing music, not realising it was by Simple Minds, downloaded it, and listened to it a lot. Read more
Published 20 months ago by tallmanbaby
Simple Minds Greatest Album
Empires and Dance was a great title and concept with a small smattering of good and one great track that live up to the premise. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Doogster
Simple Minds' best
These two albums are the band's best,the refinement of their unique talent to its best pitch before succumbing to the commercialism of'New Gold Dream'. Read more
Published on 25 Oct 2008 by Lazydrake
Mission - Motion
A combination of a new producer (Steve Hillage) and a more mature style saw Sons and Fascination consolidate the group's reputation for innovation. Read more
Published on 8 Jun 2007 by Nicholas Casley
wonderful in young life
often wonder what it must feel for an artist to realise they've produced their best work, and from that point onwards there's only one direction. Read more
Published on 25 Feb 2006 by radio atlantis
Tracklisting
This (along with New Gold Dream) presents Simple Minds at their best. Interesting, brooding, and albums that I keep returning to. Read more
Published on 13 Sep 2005 by Will Johnston
Correction re: bonus tracks
Re: my earlier review. Checked the original vinyl of "Sister Feelings Call", and it includes both "League of Nations" and "Sound in 70 Cities". Read more
Published on 28 July 2004 by not_a_real_folkie
Sublime Moments
The received wisdom is that Simple Minds sacrificed creativity and innovation for commercial success when they hit the big time with "Alive and Kicking" around 1985-6. Read more
Published on 26 July 2004 by not_a_real_folkie
1981's albums remastered with bonus-tracks...
Simple Minds were surprisingly vital for a few years at the start of the1980s, after releasing their Kid-A, 1979's Real to Real Cacophony theoriginal line-up made the classic... Read more
Published on 28 April 2004 by Jason Parkes
Complete at last.
Firstly to make it clear that "League of Nations" and "Sound in 70 CIties" ARE included on this release. Previous issues ommitted these tracks. Read more
Published on 24 April 2003 by John David Charles Hilton
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