Simple Minds: Walk Between Worlds Tour

Detroit, Michigan (October 14, 2018) -Sixteen years after their last visit, Simple Minds returned Sunday to The Filmore in Detroit, Michigan. On a World Tour in support of the recently released ”Walk Between Worlds”, the yearlong tour touches on their new release while highlighting the hits form the bands 40-year music history.

To the casual fan, Simple Minds is one bombastic, inescapable monster hit; “Don’t You (Forget About Me)”, from the soundtrack to The Breakfast Club. Sundays concert proved that there is so much more to the band and its legacy than this mega hit shoulders. Their vast 40-year music catalog has the mettle to go “hit for hit” with any band from the era. With the incomparable original front man, 59 year old Jim Kerr handling the vocals with his familiar creamy Scottish burr, along with original guitarist Charlie Burchills epic guitar licks front and center, Sundays performance was destined to be memorable from the start.

Lets answer the lingering question first. Yes they played THAT song that everyone came to here. But the rest of the two, 70-minutes sets served as a reminder of just how potent and diverse Simple Minds expansive music catalog actually is. Hits like the soulful “All the Things She Said” and new release, “Sense of Discovery”, which feature Kerr and super backup singer Sarah Brown sharing vocals, was energized yet tight and fresh. The 2004 cover of “Dirty Old Town” was both sultry and moody. Even the heavy guitar layers mixed with the patented Simple Minds chorus in “Stand By Love,” had the most stoic fan up and dancing about.

If the hits and deeper cuts performed in the main set wasn’t enough to satisfy the most ardent fans, Simple Minds came out blazing with an upbeat version of the classic,”Alive and Kicking” during the encore. A crowd favorite at any party, tonight was not going to be any different. Every person in the house, top to bottom, were on their feet dancing and singing back at Kerr and the band, word for word. This in itself would have been enough to end the show on a high note, but Kerr and the band weren’t quite ready to leave just yet. Without missing a beat, drummer Cherisse Osei began the rhythmic intro to the last song of the night, the high-energy dance hall classic, “Sanctify Yourself”.

When Simple Minds left the stage for the last time and the exuberant, yet exhausted fans began filing towards the exits, memories came rushing back to me. You see, I was one of these fans thirty-some years ago leaving the venue the exact same way, tired yet satisfied. Yes, there are only 2 original members left, Kerr and Burchills, but so what. Kerr still retains his smooth vocal prowess, while Burchills refined style that allows the Simple Minds classics and the deeper cuts to sound new and fresh.

To the casual music fan, Simple Minds is only known for one song, which unfairly or not, hindered or blossomed their career, dependent on whose opinion you believe. With a library full of worldwide hits and 40 years worth of legendary live performances under their belt, the correct answer is plain to see.

With the plethora of bands reuniting and vying for your hard earned dollar, do yourself a favor; spend it on tickets to attend a Simple Minds concert.  And trust me, you wont be disappointed you did.

Simple Minds:
      

The Fillmore Detroit: