16 Sep, 2013 Minds In Milan
A fair number from our hometown, Glasgow, will this week be visiting the Duomo – Cathedral of Milan – as they arrive in Milan to watch the Champions League football match between Glasgow Celtic and AC Milan.
Were it possible I too would have travelled to take in the game. In doing so I may well have made a pit – stop inside the cathedral. Offering a prayer no less, in hope that the game is presided over by a much more competent referee than was in charge when Celtic visited a few years ago. Also praying not to get the kind of “hammering” that Italian champs, Juventus, dealt us at the start of the year.
Not everyone’s favourite Italian city, I do like Milan personally. That said, I can partly see the merit in this view of the city taken from Michael Palin’s travel pages.
“Considering it is such a centre of high fashion, Milan is remarkably devoid of architectural beauty. Dajna, a local who is helping us with our filming here, is philosophical.
‘Milan is all about making money, she says. It’s in the blood and in the history. The city has never been much concerned with looking good. She points out a group of people gathered around a window peering intently at a television screen. They’re not watching football or the latest Madonna video but the rise and fall of share prices.'”
Well, that is only one view of course., and I am not interested In Madonna either. Maradonna maybe? Milan however has always been a kind city to Simple Minds, and that goes all the way back to ’83, when we first played there while promoting our New Gold Dream album. From then on we have always looked forward to our Milan gigs, and personally I am happy that we finally have another Milan date on our schedule (Feb 25, ’14 – Alcatraz, Milan)
I will be even happier if some of our friends in Sicily can travel north for the show. Always a bonus to see them.
Jim Kerr
This post is also available at JimKerrSicilyNotebook.com