Themes for Great Cities: A New History of Simple Minds

Nobody owes us anything, but the Simple Minds story has been too condensed. Themes for Great Cities is a new biography of one of Britain's biggest and most influential bands, written with the full input and cooperation of Simple Minds. It reclaims and revivifies the magnificence of their pioneering early albums, from Real to Real Cacophony and Empires and Dance to Sons and Fascination, New Gold Dream, and beyond. It celebrates the trailblazing music of one of Britain's greatest groups.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 22 June 2023
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group

Nobody owes us anything, but the Simple Minds story has been too condensed. After Live Aid and "Don't You (Forget About Me)" there hasn't been quite the credit for those first few records. I think they contain some really special music. I can hear the flaws, but there's something about the spirit and imagination in them that feels good. They draw from such a wide range of influences. . . . but the spirit of it was always Simple Minds.

Jim Kerr, to the author: An illuminating new biography of one of Britain's biggest and most influential bands, written with the full input and cooperation of Simple Minds, shedding new light on their dazzling art-rock legacy.

Themes for Great Cities features in-depth new interviews with original band members Jim Kerr, Charlie Burchill, Mick MacNeil, and Derek Forbes, alongside key figures from within their creative community and high-profile fans such as Bobby Gillespie, James Dean Bradfield, and Mogwai's Stuart Braithwaite. The book reclaims and revivifies the magnificence of Simple Minds' pioneering early albums, from the glitchy Euro-ambience of "Real to Real Cacophony" and "Empires and Dance" to the pulsing, agitated romance of "Sons and Fascination, New Gold Dream" and beyond.

Emerging in 1978 from Glasgow's post-punk scene, Simple Minds transitioned from restless art-rock to electro futurism, mutated into passionate pop contenders, and, finally, a global rock behemoth. They have sold in the region of 60 million records and remain a worldwide phenomenon. The drama of their tale lies in these transformations and triumphs, conflicts and contradictions.

Themes for Great Cities tells the inside story of a band becoming a band. Inspiring, insightful, and enlightening, it celebrates the trailblazing music of one of Britain's greatest.

Weight: 314g
Dimension: 126 x 197 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781472134011