Simple Minds - Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call (UK 1981)

An Uncle Roddus Album Review

Another Classic Album From My Past.

I seem to remember my first exposure to this band was on the legendary "Radio With Pictures", an alternative music video show that aired late on a Sunday evening. I think it was "Sweat In Bullet" they played and it caused some excitement amongst some of us at school the next day. Someone had even managed to tape it. "Love Song", I think, was the the song that started getting them noticed before they sky-rocketed off into the stratosphere of mega stardom with their next album. This album soon found its way into my collection and being the first issue I managed to get the bonus album, "Sister Feelings Call" with it. The album lived up to our expectations and became a favourite with me and a mate and led us to check out their earlier albums later on.

 listening to this now, I wish I had my headphones repaired to re listen to this some more, there is a lot happening here on this sometimes bombastic sounding arty electro pop. Plenty of creative use of synths  and programmed drums as well as the conventional instruments played. Quite complex music and very well executed. A very strong album and another unique record both then and now. The two monster tracks mentioned above were the more accessible and pointed the way to the next album, whereas awesome constructions like "The Earth That You Walk Upon" and the title track harked back to the experimentalism of their earlier work, although like all great forward thinking pop music experimentalists, they have made all of this album accessible. "Sister...." follows on in a similar vein but with mostly instrumental tracks and is as every bit as good as "Sons...." which pretty much makes this a double album. 

 The CD reissue I actually picked up in the United States while visiting there several years ago and unlike earlier CD re issues, has all the tracks from "Sister....", where as the back cover I posted above has two tracks missing(I was too lazy to scan my own CD cover). Another highly recommended piece of music history and rated a deserving 4.5/5.