Company acquires publishing, neighboring rights and royalties
BMG has acquired the key music interests of legendary Scottish rock band Simple Minds. The agreement with the band’s core members Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill includes the publishing rights to more than 240 songs across five UK No. 1 albums, the band’s neighboring rights and royalties from their entire recorded catalogue.
The deal marks the culmination of a long-standing relationship between BMG and Simple Minds. BMG has previously served as the administrator of the band’s publishing catalogue and released their 2018 album Walk Between Worlds. Last month, BMG announced that it will release the band’s latest studio album, Direction Of The Heart, on October 21st.
“There are few bands who can claim to have changed music, but over a period of 45 years Simple Minds have done precisely that,” shares, Alistair Norbury, BMG President Repertoire & Marketing UK. “It has been a long courtship, but we are delighted to have the opportunity to be custodians of their outstanding catalogue. We are thrilled that BMG is now the musical home of Simple Minds, past, present and future.”
Focused around frontman Jim Kerr and guitarist and keyboardist Charlie Burchill, Simple Minds have generated career sales of over 60 million albums. Their five No. 1 albums on the Official UK Albums Chart include 1984’s Sparkle in the Rain, 1985’s Once Upon a Time, 1987’s Live in the City of Light, 1989’s Street Fighting Years and 1992’s Glittering Prize 81/92. The band was awarded the Q Inspiration Award in 2014 for their contribution to the music industry and in 2016 were awarded the Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Song Collection.
Key songs include “Love Song,” “The American,” “Promised You A Miracle,” “Glittering Prize,” “Waterfront,” “Someone Somewhere in Summertime,” “Alive And Kicking” and “Belfast Child.” The US No. 1 “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” was written by Keith Forsey and was not acquired, but BMG will collect recorded and neighboring rights royalties from the track.
“We are very pleased to have struck this deal. It feels like the right time for us and our families. We look forward to working with everyone at BMG,” Kerr shares.
Simple Minds have influenced generations of musicians with a trademark widescreen sound of propulsive beats mixing guitars and keyboards. Bono has publicly acknowledged U2’s debt to Simple Minds. “We learned from them,” he told the BBC’s Desert Island Discs last month.
The acquisition of the Simple Minds catalogue is BMG’s eighth acquisition in the UK this year. The company announced in April that it had acquired a 50% stake in Primal Scream’s music publishing interests.
After a two-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Simple Minds commenced an extensive tour on March 31st playing to over 500,000 people across Europe. The tour will continue through the summer, concluding on September 17th in Leeds, England, with a headline slot at the Radio 2 Live Festival.
