Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill were childhood friends who formed their first punk
band Johnny & The Self-Abusers in Glasgow in 1977. They made one single titled
"Saints and Sinners" but split on the day of its release with Jim Kerr and
Charlie Burchill going on to form Simple Minds, naming themselves after an Iggy
Pop lyric. Various line-ups of the band evolved around their songs before they
decided to embrace a poppier sound for debut 1979 album Life in a Day. The 1982
album New Gold Dream signalled a richer, more commercial direction, resulting in
their first US number one "Don'...