SIMPLE MINDS - GLITTERING PRIZE

Released: August 16, 1982

Charts: UK: #16 

“Glittering Prize” is a 1982 single by Simple Minds, released as the second single from their album “New Gold Dream (81–82–83–84)”. It reached #16 in the UK but achieved greater success in Australia, New Zealand, and Norway, where it entered the top 10. The song’s title later inspired the 1992 compilation album “Glittering Prize 81/92”, which featured highlights from the band’s career up to that point.

Simple Minds initially viewed “Glittering Prize” as one of the weaker tracks on the album. Guitarist Charlie Burchill was surprised to hear a Muzak version in a supermarket, joking about the song’s quality. Jim Kerr later reassessed the song, realizing its strength as a well-crafted pop track and expressing excitement about performing it live. Musically, “Glittering Prize” features a bass-driven groove with keyboard flourishes, creating what has been described as an evocative love song.

The music video alternates between two settings: a golden room, where Jim Kerr, Charlie Burchill, and Mick MacNeil perform dressed in black, and a museum-like space with golden portraits of the band members, watched over by a sleeping guard. A gold-painted woman sneaks into the museum, touches a pharaoh-like Kerr in a sarcophagus, revives the band members, and escapes with them in a car. As the guard realizes the theft, she reappears in the golden room, relaxing on a chair and sipping a cocktail as the video ends.

Recognized as a classic and milestone for Simple Minds, “New Gold Dream (81–82–83–84)” was performed in full during their 30th anniversary tour in 2008. On October 6, 2022, the band played the album live at Paisley Abbey, Scotland, for the Sky Arts “Greatest Albums Live” series. This performance was later released as “New Gold Dream – Live from Paisley Abbey”.