SIMPLE MINDS - SPEED YOUR LOVE TO ME

Released: January 9, 1984

Charts: UK: #20 

“Speed Your Love to Me” was the second single from Simple Minds’ 1984 album “Sparkle in the Rain”, released on January 9, 1984. A stadium-sized rock anthem, it followed the success of “Waterfront” and peaked at #20 on the UK Singles Chart. Produced by Steve Lillywhite (who had worked with U2 and Phil Collins), “Speed Your Love to Me” benefited from his epic, atmospheric production style. Bono had introduced Jim Kerr to Lillywhite, and his influence helped shape Simple Minds’ evolving sound.

An urgent love song, Speed Your Love to Me is driven by Jim Kerr’s impassioned vocal delivery, with fire imagery intensifying the burning desire in the lyrics: (You go to my head, With the flames that grow higher and higher). Jim Kerr later acknowledged that the song’s title may have been inspired by The Righteous Brothers’ “Unchained Melody”, specifically the lyric: (Godspeed your love to me).

At the time of the song’s release, Jim Kerr was falling for Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders. The two bands crossed paths in early 1984 while touring Australia, sharing a bill at the Narara Music Festival in January. By May 5, 1984, Kerr and Hynde were married. Their relationship was brief but influential, with Simple Minds opening for The Pretenders on their Learning to Crawl US tour.

One unexpected but crucial contributor was Kirsty MacColl. Known for her sharp wit and formidable talent, MacColl helped restructure the song when the band was struggling with its arrangement. MacColl also provided backing vocals. As Jim Kerr recalled: “We knew it had a great melody, but the arrangement was puzzling us. Kirsty came in and said, ‘Do this. And put that there. And put that little bit at the end.’ And we were like, Listen to you! She was bossing us around, and we let her in the gang.”

Filmed on December 6, 1983, the promotional video blended cinematic urban and natural imagery with studio performances. The fast-moving shots of Glasgow’s roads and tunnels, including the Clyde Tunnel, Kingston Bridge, and Erskine Bridge, visually echoed the song’s urgency and movement. As the lyrics “higher and higher” soared, the video transitioned to breathtaking aerial views of the Firth of Clyde and Loch Lomond.