The ‘Dream’ Box Set For Simple Minds Fans

In the early 80s, life was good for Simple Minds. Five years after their formation, they’d become a much-loved cult outfit whose fourth album, Sons And Fascination, narrowly missed out on the UK Top 10. Nevertheless, as the group set to work recording their fifth album, it was a “go big or go bust” moment.

Despite Simple Minds’ ferocious work ethic, the brilliance of their next move seems almost casually preordained. While rehearsing for upcoming gigs they worked up the basic frameworks for what would become ‘Hunter And The Hunted’, ‘King Is White And In The Crowd’ and the all-conquering, era-defining single ‘Promised You A Miracle’. Feeling bullish about their new material, Simple Minds performed ‘Miracle’ live during their 11 February 1982 Kid Jenson BBC session, before the song had even been recorded. Their instincts proved right – the song was positively received and the group subsequently captured it in the recording studio, released it to the world in April, and were duly rewarded with their highest chart placing yet when it hit No.13 in the UK charts.

For lesser bands, that might have been it: one radio hit selling an album’s worth of filler. For Simple Minds, however, the sessions that became New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84) were meticulously crafted, with Jim Kerr (vocals), Charlie Burchill (guitars), Michael MacNeil (keyboards) and Derek Forbes (bass) firing on all cylinders. The surprise isn’t that the album became the monster crossover hit the group deserved, but that the band managed to turn their endless stream of ideas into one of the finest, most ambitious pop albums of the decade. Hitting No.3 in the UK and taking Simple Minds into the US charts for the first time ever, it set them up for a storming run of No.1 albums that would see the band dominate the UK charts for the remainder of the decade.

On the back of critically acclaimed deluxe reissues of Once Upon A Time and Sparkle In The Rain, New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84) gets a much-deserved lavish six-disc box set reissue on 29 July. Featuring a fully remastered edition of the album, the super deluxe box set boasts countless single and promo mixes, an entire disc of live radio sessions sourced from the BBC (among them the never-before-released Kid Jensen session during which the band debuted ‘Promised You A Miracle’), and an entire disc of previously unreleased demos and alternate mixes of much-loved classics. With a DVD boasting a stereo-shattering 5.1 mix, along with promo videos for ‘Glittering Prize’ and ‘Miracle’ (and the group’s seminal Top Of The Pops performances of the same), it’s the last word in this most fertile period in one of Britain’s most beloved bands.

Digital, 2CD, LP and Pure Audio Blu-ray versions will also be made available on 29 July, but the 5CD+DVD box set will be the stuff that Simple Minds’ most devoted fans’ dreams are made of.

Scroll down to read the complete New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84): Super Deluxe Edition tracklist, and order the box set here: 

CD1
‘Someone Somewhere In Summertime’
‘Colours Fly And Catherine Wheel’
‘Promised You A Miracle’
‘Big Sleep’
‘Somebody Up There Likes You’
‘New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84)’
‘Glittering Prize’
‘Hunter And The Hunted’
‘King Is White And In The Crowd’

CD2
‘Promised You A Miracle (Extended)’
‘Seeing Out The Angel (Instrumental Remix)’
‘Promised You A Miracle (US Remix)’
‘Promised You A Miracle (US Dub)’ [first time on CD]
‘Promised You A Miracle (US Special Extended Remix)’ [first time on CD]
‘Glittering Prize (Club Mix)’
‘Glittering Prize (Extended Theme)’
‘Someone Somewhere In Summertime (Extended)’
‘New Gold Dream (German 12” Mix)’
‘King Is White And In The Crowd (Instrumental)’ [unedited and restored mix originally released with Touch Tape magazine; first time on CD]
‘New Gold Dream (German 12” Remix With Drums)’ [outtake]
‘In Every Heaven’ [outtake]

3CD
‘Promised You A Miracle (Edit)’
‘Theme From Great Cities’
‘Glittering Prize (Edit)’
‘Glittering Prize (Theme)’ [first time on CD]
‘Someone Somewhere (In Summertime)’
‘Soundtrack For Every Heaven’
‘New Gold Dream (7” Mix)’

4CD
Kid Jensen BBC Session, Recorded 11 February 1982
‘Promised You A Miracle’ [previously unreleased]
‘In Trance As Mission’ [previously unreleased]
John Peel BBC Session, Recorded 15 February 1982
‘King Is White And In The Crowd’ [previously unreleased]
‘Promised You A Miracle’ [previously unreleased]
‘Love Song’ [previously unreleased]
‘Sons And Fascination’ [previously unreleased]
‘King Is White And In The Crowd’ [previously unreleased]
Kid Jensen BBC Session, Recorded 13 August 1982
‘Someone Somewhere In Summertime’ [previously unreleased]
‘Glittering Prize’ [previously unreleased]
‘Hunter And The Hunted’ [previously unreleased]

CD5
‘Someone Somewhere In Summertime (Full Duration)’ [previously unreleased]
‘Colours Fly And Catherine Wheel (Full Duration Instrumental)’ [previously unreleased]
‘Promised You A Miracle (Remix For Album: Long)’ [previously unreleased]
‘Big Sleep (Instrumental)’ [previously unreleased]
‘In Every Heaven (Full Duration)’ [previously unreleased]
‘Somebody Up There Likes You (Full Duration Instrumental)’ [previously unreleased]
‘New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84) (Full Duration)’ [previously unreleased]
‘Hunter And The Hunted (Alternative Take)’ [previously unreleased]
‘King Is White And In The Crowd (Monitor Mix)’ [previously unreleased]
‘In Every Heaven (Early Version)’ [previously unreleased]

DVD
‘Someone Somewhere In Summertime’ [5.1 mix]
‘Colours Fly And Catherine Wheel’ [5.1 mix]
‘Promised You A Miracle’ [5.1 mix]
‘Big Sleep’ [5.1 mix]
‘Somebody Up There Likes You’ [5.1 mix]
New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84)’ [5.1 mix]
‘Glittering Prize’ [5.1 mix]
‘Hunter And The Hunted’ [5.1 mix]
‘King Is White And In The Crowd’ [5.1 mix]
‘In Every Heaven’ [5.1 mix]
‘Promised You A Miracle’ [promo video]
‘Glittering Prize’ [promo video]
‘Promised You A Miracle’ [TOTP performance; first time commercially released]
‘Glittering Prize’ [TOTP performance; first time commercially released]