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Before lead singer Mike Hucknall formed Simply Red he was in a punk band called the Frantic Elevators. This project was largely spawned as a reaction to the inspirational 1976 Manchester Sex Pistol’s concert of which members of the Fall, the Smiths, and Joy Division were also in attendance. The group had a 7 year career, but never broke into the mainstream; however, their final single “Holding Back the Years” was a critical sensation and was revived by Hucknall’s new group Simply Red.
Simply Red was assembled by both Hucknall and manager Elliot Rashman. Hucknall acted as the key creative figure behind the project acting in conjunction with a variety of session and touring musicians. The harsher textures and barren structures of Hucknall’s punk group seemed to be flipped inside out with Simply Red. The sound typified by this project was lushly produced and exhibited a certain smoothness heard from artists like Barry White, The Temptations, and even crooners like Tom Jones.
In addition to Hucknall, the lineup was initially comprised of keyboardist Fritz McIntyre and ex-The Drutti Column band mates: bassist Tony Bowers, brass player Tim Kellett, and drummer Chris Joyce.
The band signed a record deal with Elektra and released two singles “Red Box” and The Valentine Brother’s cover “Money’s Too Tight (To Mention)”. The latter single was a worldwide commercial success and entered the UK and Irish Top 20. It also appeared on the band’s studio debut “Picture Book” along with the Talking Head’s cover “Heaven” and a revamping of “Holding Back the Years”, which went on to top the Irish charts and place at No. 2 on the UK charts.
Simply Red’s 2nd studio album saw release in 1987 and adopted a cleaner, sophisticated soul sound. The standout single “The Right Thing” was another boost in the band’s career, reaching #11 on the UK and #26 on the Billboard Hot 100. The band’s shift towards sophisticated pop was becoming even more evident with their cover of Cole Porter’s jazz-pop standard “Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye”.
By the time the group released their third album “A New Flame”, it seemed that they were striving to take the charts by storm even if that meant risking artistic experimentation. Their leap into the homogeny of adult-contemporary seemed to be an advantageous career move. They scored another No.1 hit with their cover of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” and established themselves as one of the biggest pop acts in the UK.
When Simply Red’s next album “Stars” was released in 1991 the band didn’t necessarily identify as a band. Rather Simply Red was perceived as the music project of Hucknall. At this point most of the original members of the group had left including Bowers and Joyce who were replaced with Shaun Ward and Gota Yashiki. Despite the major reconstruction in the line up “Stars” proved to be the most commercially successful album of Simply Red’s career, becoming the best selling album in Europe for 2 years and producing a whopping 5 Top 40 singles in the UK.
Simply Red saw their first UK No. 1 single with “Fairground”, which spearheaded the release of their 1995 studio album “Life”. This record became a massive hit as well and was documented as the 4th best selling album in the UK at the time. A greatest hits collection followed in 1996, featuring the Aretha Franklin cover “Angel” on which the neo-soul group the Fugees made an appearance. The trend of releasing covers clearly seemed to work for the group and in 1998 they put out the album “Blue”, which contained revisions of Neil Young, Albert Hammond, and Gregory Isaacs tracks.
The album “Love and Russian Winter” followed a year later, but did not produce any significant hits (at least comparative to their prior releases). Though the group continued to tour they delayed album production for a while (which can possibly be attributed to their expulsion from East West Records).
Simply Red’s next studio album “Home” came out in 2003 and went Platinum twice over in the UK and reached Gold status in many other countries. 2005’s “Simplified” consisted primarily of re-workings of the group’s older material, but also contained 4 newly written songs as well as a cover of Leon Russell’s “My Perfect Love”. “Stay” came out 2 years later, reaching gold status in the UK, Poland, and Italy. One year later the band offered another retrospect of their career, releasing their second greatest hits album “Simply Red 25: The Greatest Hits”.
Founded by Jazzie B in 1988, Soul II Soul began as a sound system playing records at house and street parties. Featuring a rotating cast of members including Nellee Hooper, Simon Law, Phillip “Daddae” Harvey, and Caron Wheeler, the band's debut release was the dubplate “FairPlay” in 1988, which secured them a deal with Virgin Records. Following the subsequent release of a few un-charting singles in 1988, the group rose to recognition with in 1989 with the release of “Keep on Moving”. The same year Soul II Soul issued the single “Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)”, which went on to top the UK Singles Chart for four consecutive weeks. Featuring Wheeler on vocals the single paved the way for the group’s debut album “Club Classics Vol. One” which also found the top spot of the UK Albums Chart.
Soul II Soul also enjoyed moderate success in the U.S. at this time with the single “Back to Life” reaching the Billboard 200’s Top 10. The band’s debut also secured the group two Grammy Awards for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group for “Back to Life” and Best R&B Instrumental for “African Dance”. The group’s sophomore album “Vol. II: 1990 - A New Decade” followed in May 1990 once again rising to the top of the UK Albums Chart. Led by the singles “Get a Life”, “A Dream’s Dream”, and “Missing You”, the album was recorded without Caron Wheeler, however earned the group three Soul Train Awards. A third album, “Vol. III: Just Right” arrived in 1992, which spawned the group’s last Top 10 hit, “Joy”.
The following year Soul II Soul released the greatest hits album “Vol. IV: The Singles 88-93”, which rose to No. 10 on the UK Albums Chart. Marked by a decline in sales, the band’s fourth full-length “Vol. V: Believe” was released in August 1995 peaking at No. 13, and was followed by “Time for Change” in 1997.
Simply Red was, strangely, the soundtrack to my childhood summer holidays, not really your typical teenage confession, but it’s true. To be fair, this was my parents’ doing - and something that I resented for quite some time before I finally just accepted the fact that I love the enigma that is Mick Hucknall. There – I said it; I love him, he is one smooth ginger fox. So in 2010 when his Simply Red farewell tour came to the Birmingham NIA, I was there, along with all the family. Mick being the only original Simply Red band member left, it made sense that the name should retire after a final tour but the audience seemed sad and sentimental nonetheless. I, too, was glad and sad in equal measure knowing that this was my first and last experience of Simply Red live. The show reflected this nostalgic tone; the set included all the hits like “Your Mirror,” “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” and, my personal favourite, “Stars;” the audience sang along as best they could but Mick’s slick and soulful vocals rang out above it all. It goes without saying that the musical talent of the backing band was second to none and the subtle, sophisti-pop supported Mick’s voice impeccably. Perhaps the best part of the show, though, was with the last track, “Holding Back The Years,” as a montage of social and political images, news footage and historic events that spanned the same time frame as Simply Red’s career made up the back drop of the stage. - The perfect way to commemorate a hugely successful career in a way that was wholly relatable and sentimental for each audience member, too.
hbrownn02
Soul II Soul are legends in the eyes of soul and RnB fans, with the British collective being one of the few bands to crossover to the US at the end of the ‘80s. Jazzie B’s experimental RnB group, which has featured a rotating lineup, have been going since 1988 and soon after were signed to Virgin Records. After they dropped their landmark debut, Club Classics Vol. One, in 1989, a handful of follow-ups followed up throughout the ‘90s; for a while at least, their dance-laced soul pop was pretty ubiquitous. These days, Jazzie B and co regulars on the festival circuit. They are just so incredibly well suited to big, open-air main stages, especially when the sun is shining. I saw them for the first time recently on the main stage at London’s Lovebox, where the veterans had an audience of young and old dancing around in glorious sun. Jazz B still looked like the don and the band were super efficient. Obviously their massive hit ‘Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)’, which they ended on, achieved a massive sing-a-along – perhaps the biggest sing-a-long of the day. Caron Wheeler’s vocals are still impressive, even after all this years, and it was one of the festival highlights. Soul II Soul have still got it!
cliverozario
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