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press releases | sons and fascination | simple minds sign to virgin





SIMPLE MINDS Chase That MANILOW Magic

Simple Minds having split from Arista have signed a long-term worldwide recording deal with Virgin Records. Scotland's premier disco rockers resisted the offers of several major companies to sign their lives away with Virgin. Virgin views the signing of the band as a major coup, and confidently predict Simple Minds will become one of the most imporntant and successful bands in the U.K. by the end of the year. The band has just recorded a new single which should see release around April, and depart for a 20 date tour of the U.S. and Canada immediately after their only schedueld London appearance this year at The Venue on Tuesday, March 3. It's the band's first American tour, having previously only played two dates in New York in November '79. The band's last single I Travel has just entered the American disco chart in Billboard first week at 80 - purely on import sales. Several thousand copies of the new single Celebrate have also been imported into the U.S.

The band then undertake a quick sprint around Europe to follow up interest generated by their major European tour late last year with Peter Gabriel. Simple Minds return to the U.K. to begin work on their first album for Virgin with a tenative release set for around Augsut. The band's manager Bruce Findlay commenting on the band's decision to sign with Virgin, says he's naturally delighted to be with the label after considering a number of highly enticing offers from several major companies. "We are tremendously impressed with Virgin's impact on the U.K. market and the enthusiasm shown by the label towards the band," he said. "Also we have built up a marvellous understanding with Ariola and we are particularly pleased that Virgin is licensed by them in Europe which means we can continue to build on the good work Ariola have already done in helping to break the band in a market which we feel shows enormous potential. But what really convinced us to go with Virgin was the eventual realisation that as Arista already had Barry Manilow and the label wasn't big enough for both of us, Virgin sorely needs a middle of the road disco band like ourselves to grab our own slice of the Manilow magic!!!!!"

20 February 1981