Retro Record Review: ‘Once Upon a Time’ by Simple Minds

I don’t remember exactly how or when it happened but I had a copy of Simple Minds’ Once Upon a Time on vinyl when I was a kid. Maybe it was given to me as a gift because I loved their breakthrough hit “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” and the album’s lead single “Alive and Kicking.” It was probably in 1986 when I was 11. (Wow, I’m old.)

So, let me know if you’ve had an experience like this. When I was a kid, I’m talking 10-14-ish, there were songs that I would hear on the radio or see their music videos on MTV that I loved but also felt a bit different from the big hit makers of the day like Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Prince. Songs like “And We Danced” by The Hooters, “What You Need” by INXS, and “Walking Through Walls” by The Escape Club all felt a bit off kilter and I loved it. At the time, I had no clue that these bands were coming from post punk backgrounds and I’d certainly never heard of The Big Music, but there was something about this sound that stuck with me. It wasn’t until the years after U2 changed everything for me, when I was diving head first into the punk, post punk, college rock, punk adjacent pool that it hit me. Those bands came from this world that was changing my life. Now all these years and decades later, it is this style, this type of music that I connect with more than most. And Simple Minds’ Once Upon a Time played a big part in that growth and development.

Once Upon a Time is a masterwork of poppy, soaring, and anthemic post punk. Of the album's eight songs, seven of them are good to great, with a few being all-time classics. The A-side is especially unassailable boasting “Alive and Kicking,” “Ghost Dancing,” the title track, and “All the Things She Said.” Even if the second side of the album sucked, it would still be an incredible record because of those four songs alone. Luckily the B-side does not suck in the least, with "Sanctify Yourself” as its standout moment.

Is this album cheesy and earnest? Yes. Is that a bad thing? I certainly don’t think so. In fact, I think it’s pretty freaking great.

Look, I am super nerdy about this stuff and I talk about it in a grandiose, nearly hyperbolic way because it is that important to me. These are my sacred texts.

References

Don't You (Forget About Me). (2025, July 31). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Don%27t_You_(Forget_About_Me)&oldid=1303591200

Once Upon a Time (Simple Minds album). (2025, July 13). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Once_Upon_a_Time_(Simple_Minds_album)&oldid=1300351164