Editing Simple Minds (section)

===Initial albums (1979–1980)===
During late 1978 and early 1979, Simple Minds began rehearsing the set of Kerr/Burchill-written songs which appear on their debut album.<ref name="DT" /> On 27 March 1979 the band made their first television appearance, performing the songs "Chelsea Girl" and "Life in a Day" on BBC's ''[[The Old Grey Whistle Test]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/simple-minds/1979/the-old-grey-whistle-test-bbc-television-theatre-london-england-63c4beef.html |title=Simple Minds setlist at The Old Grey Whistle Test |publisher=setlist.fm }}</ref> The first Simple Minds album, ''[[Life in a Day (album)|Life in a Day]]'', was produced by [[John Leckie]] and released by Zoom Records in April 1979. The album's title track "Life in a Day" was released as Simple Minds' first single and reached No.&nbsp;62 in the [[UK Singles Chart]], with the album reaching No.&nbsp;30 in the [[UK Albums Chart]].<ref name="Larkin"/> In April/May 1979 they made their first UK tour as supporting act for [[Magazine (band)|Magazine]], who were a major influence on them at the time.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.simpleminds.com/2009/02/11/the-mighty-magazine/ |title=The Mighty Magazine |first=Jim |last=Kerr |date=11 February 2009 |publisher=simpleminds.com }}</ref>

In June 1979 "Chelsea Girl" was released as the second single from the album, failing to reach the chart, while the band continued to tour the UK on their own.<ref name="sm">{{Cite web|url=http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/timeline/index.htm |title=Timeline |publisher=Dream Giver Redux}}</ref> In September 1979 Simple Minds recorded their next album, ''[[Real to Real Cacophony]]'' at [[Rockfield Studios]] with producer [[John Leckie]]. The songs were mostly conceived in the studio and was a significant departure from the pop tunes of ''Life in a Day''.<ref name="Larkin"/> German [[Krautrock]] was now the band's main influence, adopting a more experimental electronic sound that drew influences from the motorik, repetitive grooves of bands such as [[Neu!]], [[Kraftwerk]] and [[La Düsseldorf]].<ref name="sa">Sean Albiez, David Pattie ''Kraftwerk: Music Non-Stop'' 2011, page 156</ref>

The band began their "Real to Real Cacophony Tour" in Germany and also made a short visit to New York in October 1979.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.setlist.fm/search?artist=73d6ba71&query=tour:%28Real+to+Real+Cacophony+Tour%29 |title=Simple Minds Real to Real Cacophony Tour |work=setlist.fm }}</ref> Their performance of the songs "Premonition", "Factory" and "Changeling" at [[Hurrah (nightclub)|Hurrah]] was filmed for [[The Old Grey Whistle Test]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/simple-minds/1979/hurrah-new-york-ny-6bc4be96.html |title=Simple Minds setlist Hurrah, New York |publisher=setlist.fm}}</ref>

''Real to Real Cacophony'' was released in November 1979. While the band got little marketing support from their record company Arista, who didn't like the album, it received critical acclaim.<ref name="sm" /> The release was followed by their third UK tour of the year and a BBC session for [[John Peel]] in December.<ref name="sm"/> In January 1980 "Changeling" was released as the only single from ''Real to Real Cacophony'', failing to make an impression on the charts.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/discog/rtrc/c1.htm |title=Changeling |publisher=Dream Giver Redux }}</ref> In March they supported [[Gary Numan]] on a couple of gigs, and continued their Real to Real Cacophony Tour until June 1980 with dates mainly in Germany, France and the Netherlands.<ref>[http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/tours/t1979-2/index.htm Real to Real Cacophony Tour] Dream Giver Redux</ref> In June 1980 Simple Minds entered the studio to record their next album, again with producer [[John Leckie]] at Rockfield Studios.<ref name="sm"/> The band again had a new approach to their music that differed from the previous album, this time aiming for a more repetitive, dance-orientated sound inspired by [[disco music|disco]] music they had heard in nightclubs while touring Europe.<ref>Dave Thomas ''Simple Minds Glittering Prize'' Omnibus Press 1985, p.47</ref>

''[[Empires and Dance]]'' was released in September 1980.<ref name="Larkin"/> Many of the tracks were minimal and featured a significant use of [[Music sequencer|sequencing]], further exploring their repetitive Krautrock-influences with electronic dance grooves.<ref name="sa" /> McNeil's keyboards and Forbes' bass became the main melodic elements in the band's sound, with Burchill's heavily processed guitar becoming more of a textural element. With this album, Kerr began to experiment with non-narrative lyrics based on observations he had made as the band travelled across Europe on tour. While a modest commercial success, ''Empires and Dance'' received enthusiastic response in the British music press<ref>[http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/reviews/ead/pr1.htm New Musical Express 1980] Dream Giver Redux</ref> Simple Minds had caught the attention of [[Peter Gabriel]] who selected them as the opening act on several dates of his European tour starting in August 1980.<ref name="Tour 1980">[http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/tours/t1980-1/index.htm Empires and Dance Tour 1980] Dream Giver Redux</ref> The tour as support act for Peter Gabriel gave the band the opportunity to play at bigger venues.<ref name="Tour 1980" /> 

''Empires and Dance'' peaked at no.41 on the UK Albums Chart and dropped out of the chart after three weeks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/28243/simple-minds/ |title=Simple Minds |publisher=[[Official Charts Company]]}}</ref> The band's manager Bruce Findlay later blamed Arista for poor handling of the album and it not being more commercially successful. Initially Arista only released 7500 copies of the album.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jun/27/a-nuclear-reactor-of-music-the-story-of-simple-minds-classic-album-empires-and-dance |title="A nuclear reactor of music": The Story of Simple Minds Classic Album Empires and Dance |first=Graeme |last=Thompson |date=27 June 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] }}</ref>  Furthermore, Arista did not release a single to promote the album. "I Travel" was not released as a single until October to promote the Empires and Dance tour. The single sold poorly and did not reach the UK chart, but the 12" version became popular in the US club scene and (based on import sales only) entered the [[Billboard (magazine)|''Billboard'']] Disco Chart at no.80 in early 1981.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/discog/ead/it1.htm |title=I Travel |publisher=Dream Giver Redux}}</ref> "I Travel" was subsequently reissued twice in the UK, but again failed to reach the singles chart.