28 May, 2009 Live Action !
Amid all the excitement that has accompanied the release of Graffiti Soul, I have barely had time to think about the upcoming live dates that begin in only a few days time. That does not mean that we have neglected preparations however, as both Andy Gillespie and Charlie Burchill have already been working away on the technical side, while Eddie, Mel and myself will join them in a few hours time to begin running through the first versions of a new set list.
The initial show is in Sweden, and with it being a festival; it usually means that our spot will be a good deal shorter that the normal 2-hour plus that we play on our own concert tours. That said, we will still be looking to debut a few new songs from the Graffiti Soul/In Search Of the lost Boy collections, and as the dates progress we will gradually add more and more new stuff into a set already full of classics.
A much asked question recently has centred on how difficult a task is it to get a finely balanced set considering the amount of songs that we have in our catalogue. The answer is that it is indeed very difficult to keep everybody happy, but it is also a nice problem to have in fact, given that it is proof more than anything of the substantial musical journey that we have been on over the last three decades. It is also a problem that – let’s be honest – only the most legendary artists get to involve themselves with. I refer of course to that rare breed that have had the fortune (and the talent) to survive in an industry that is known for chewing most artists up and spitting them out after a few releases, sadly never to be seen or heard of from again. That is how it goes!
We meanwhile thank our stars that we have been given this new again opportunity to tangle with the challenge of keeping an audience not only interested but also engaged with us as we set out on a series of dates that should eat up most of the remainder of this year. There is still nothing more rewarding than sending home an audience that is both exhausted and uplifted from attending one of our shows, and we hope to be doing that each and every night during the concert dates that we are now ready(ish) to embark on.
See you out there somewhere hopefully!
Jim Kerr
PS
Thanks to everybody who came to the HMV signing in Glasgow earlier this week. People from every generation of Simple Minds fans travelled from far and wide and then queued enthusiastically for hours on end to say hello and get their albums signed. It was a wonderful display of appreciation from them and we in turn appreciate all their effort and support both currently and throughout the many years.