Simply Red are a British soul and pop band formed in Manchester in 1985. The band is led by singer and songwriter Mick Hucknall, who, by the time the band initially disbanded in 2010, was the only original member left. Since the release of their debut studio album Picture Book (1985), they have had ten songs reach top 10 in the UK Singles Chart, including "Holding Back the Years" and "If You Don't Know Me by Now", both of which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. They have had five number one albums in the UK, with their 1991 album, Stars, being one of the best-selling albums in UK chart history.
"The Air That I Breathe" is a ballad written by British-Gibraltarian singer-songwriter Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood, initially recorded by Hammond on his debut album, It Never Rains in Southern California (1972). It was a major hit for the Hollies in early 1974, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart.
Stars is the fourth album by British-based pop/soul/jazz band Simply Red, released in September 1991. Five singles were released from the album, including the UK top ten hits "Stars" and "For Your Babies". The album was a worldwide success, particularly in the band's home country where it has been certified twelve times platinum and was the best-selling album of the year in the UK for both 1991 and 1992, the first album to be the best-seller in two consecutive years since Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge over Troubled Water in 1970–71. As of July 2016 it is the 14th best-selling album of all time in the UK.
Home is the eighth studio album by British pop and soul band Simply Red, released in 2003. It is the first Simply Red album released on band frontman Mick Hucknall's own record label, Simplyred.com. The album was a success all around the world, and includes the hit singles, "Sunrise", "Fake", "You Make Me Feel Brand New" and "Home".
Life is the fifth studio album by British pop and soul band Simply Red, released in 1995. The lead single "Fairground" became their first number 1 hit in the UK. Due to this success, the album also made #1 on the UK album chart. It also included "We're in This Together", the official theme song for Euro '96. This was also the last album to feature band members Fritz McIntyre and Heitor TP.
Simplified is the ninth studio album by Simply Red album, released in October 2005. It features new, rearranged recordings of the band's older songs, and four new songs: "Perfect Love" and an alternate version, "My Perfect Love", a cover of Leon Russell's "A Song for You", and "Smile".
Greatest Hits is the first compilation album released by British pop and soul group Simply Red, which contained material from their first five studio albums and included a newer track, a cover of Aretha Franklin's 1973 classic, "Angel".
"Your Mirror" is a song by British soul and pop band Simply Red. Written by Mick Hucknall, it was released in July 1992 as the fifth single from their fourth album, Stars (1991), and reached number 17 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was later included on the band's compilation albums, Greatest Hits in 1996, Simply Red 25: The Greatest Hits in 2008 and Song Book 1985–2010 in 2013.
"If You Don't Know Me by Now" is a song written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, and recorded by the Philadelphia soul musical group Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. It became their first hit after being released as a single in September 1972, topping the US R&B chart and peaking at number 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
"Holding Back the Years" is a song by British soul and pop band Simply Red, released as the third single from their debut studio album, Picture Book (1985). It reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the UK Singles Chart. It is one of two Simply Red songs to reach number one in the US. It also reached number four on the Adult Contemporary chart. "Holding Back the Years" had initially been released in the UK the year before, reaching number 51. The song was nominated in the category of Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 29th Annual Grammy Awards.
The discography of Simply Red, a British soul band, consists of twelve studio albums, six compilation albums, one extended play, fifty-three singles and a number of other appearances.
"Stars" is a song by British soul and pop band Simply Red, released in November 1991 as the second single from their fourth album of the same name (1991). Written by lead singer Mick Hucknall and produced by Stewart Levine, it became the first single from the album to enter the UK top 10, reaching number eight in December 1991. Outside the UK, "Stars" reached the top 10 in Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg, and Zimbabwe. In the United States, it climbed to number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking the band's last appearance on the listing.
"Fairground" is a song by British soul and pop band Simply Red, released on 18 September 1995 as the first single from their fifth album, Life (1995). Co-written and co-produced by frontman Mick Hucknall, it makes extensive use of a sample of Dutch duo the Goodmen's 1993 hit "Give It Up". It became Simply Red's first and only No. 1 single on the UK Singles Chart, staying at the top for four weeks in September and October 1995, and was also a chart hit in mainland Europe and Australia but failed to generate long-term success in North America.
The discography of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, a rock band with multi-national personnel, consists of seventeen studio albums, four live albums, four compilation albums, thirty-six singles, five video albums and thirty-eight music videos.
"Angel" is a soul ballad recorded by American singer Aretha Franklin. The song was co-written by Aretha's sister, Carolyn, and Sonny Sanders. Aretha co-produced the song with Quincy Jones and it originally appeared on Aretha's 1973 album Hey Now Hey . It was released as a single in June 1973 and went on to top the US R&B Singles chart for two weeks while reaching number twenty on the Pop chart. The single sold over 900,000 copies.
"For Your Babies" is a song by British soul and pop band Simply Red. Written by Mick Hucknall, it was released in January 1992 as the third single from the band's forth album, Stars (1991). The song reached number nine on the UK Singles Chart in February same year. It also reached the top 20 in Ireland and the top 30 in Austria and Belgium. The track was included on the band's compilation albums, Greatest Hits in 1996, Simply Red 25: The Greatest Hits in 2008 and Songs of Love in 2010. It was also featured on the band's acoustic album Simplified in a new version.
"(Ain't That) a Lot of Love" is a 1966 song written by Homer Banks and Willia Dean Parker, and first released by Banks on Minit Records, titled "A Lot of Love".
Big Love is the eleventh studio album by British pop group Simply Red. The album was released on 29 May 2015 by East West Records. It is their first studio album since Stay (2007), and the first album to only feature original material since Life (1995). Big Love is also the first album to be released under a new recording contract with East West Records, a label Simply Red previously were signed to until April 2000.
Song Book 1985–2010 is a four-disc box set by British soul group Simply Red. It peaked at number 41 in the United Kingdom and was certified Gold for sales of 100,000. It also peaked at number 6 in New Zealand and 16 in Australia in 2015.
"Thrill Me" is a song by British soul and pop band Simply Red. Written by lead singer Mick Hucknall and Fritz McIntyre, it was released in April 1992 as the fourth single from their fourth album, Stars (1991). The song reached number 33 on the UK chart in May 1992. It also reached number five in Zimbabwe, number 30 in Ireland and number 58 in the Netherlands, as well as number six on the European Dance Radio Chart. It was later included on the band's compilation albums, Greatest Hits in 1996, Simply Red 25: The Greatest Hits in 2008 and Song Book 1985–2010 in 2013.
