Burning The Ground Exclusive 1985
NEW 2021 Transfer!
NEW Meticulous Restoration!
Originally posted May 18, 2015
In the original post for this song in 2015, I used the U.S. 12″ which is pressed at 45 RPM however I always liked the European artwork a bit better, plus this is a cleaner sounding record to my ears. With all of the equipment upgrades that have been made since 2015, I think this is a superior transfer. I hope you like it.
“Don’t You (Forget About Me)” is a song performed by Scottish rock band Simple Minds. It was written and composed by producer Keith Forsey and Steve Schiff, a guitarist and songwriter from the Nina Hagen Band. The song plays during the opening (Schiff and Forsey’s demo) and closing (Simple Minds’ recording) credits of the John Hughes film The Breakfast Club.
Forsey asked Cy Curnin from The Fixx, Bryan Ferry, and Billy Idol to record the song, but all three declined; Idol later performed a cover of it on his 2001 compilation album Greatest Hits. Schiff then suggested Forsey ask Simple Minds who, after refusing as well, agreed under the encouragement of their label, A&M. According to one account, the band “rearranged and recorded ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’ in three hours in a north London studio and promptly forgot about it.”
Continuing the rock direction recently taken on Sparkle in the Rain but also glancing back at their melodic synthpop past, it caught the band at their commercial peak and, propelled by the success of The Breakfast Club, became a number-one hit in the U.S. and around the world. It is the band’s only number-one hit on the U.S. Top Rock Tracks chart, staying atop for three weeks. While only reaching number seven in the UK, it stayed on the charts from 1985 to 1987, one of the longest time spans for any single in the history of the chart.
The song did not appear on the band’s subsequent album Once Upon a Time but appeared on the 1992 best-of Glittering Prize 81/92. It has since been a fixture of the band’s live sets – with an extended audience participation section during its inclusion on the 2015 tour to promote the band’s Big Music album.
Two versions were created for the release. A short version of 4:23 appeared on the single and the original motion picture soundtrack album of The Breakfast Club. A longer version of 6:32 was released on a 12″ single. This version contains longer breakdowns and drum fills, a second appearance of the bridge, and a longer ending.
John Leland from Spin wrote that “‘Don’t You Forget About Me,’ a romantic and melancholy dance track, therefore cuts ice both in the living room and on the dance floor.”
Molly Ringwald who starred in The Breakfast Club recorded her own version of the song on her 2013 album Except Sometimes.
SIDE A:
Don’t You (Forget About Me) (Long Version) 6:33
Lyrics By [Words], Music By – Keith Forsey, Steve Chiff*
Producer – Keith Forsey
SIDE B:
A Brass Band In African Chimes 9:21
Producer – Steve Lillywhite
Written-By – Simple Minds
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Don’t You (Forget About Me) | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #1 |
| 1985 | Don’t You (Forget About Me) | U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | #1 |
| 1985 | Don’t You (Forget About Me) | U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | #36 |
| 1985 | Don’t You (Forget About Me) | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Pay | #9 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Virgin – 601 766, Virgin – 601 766-213
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: Europe
Released: Apr 1985
Genre: Pop, Rock
Style: New wave, Synth-pop
CREDITS:
Pressed By – Sonopress
NOTES:
From the original motion picture soundtrack “The Breakfast Club”
Made in West Germany
Find the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
Password: burningtheground
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Pleasant memories of the film and soundtrack. It’s been years since I’ve heard this tune. Thank you very much, Paul 🙂
Yess! Extended version is awesome.
DJ Paul has your back like a spine with these amazing shares.
Thank You!
Hello,
I like pretty much the B-side too. Sounds like it could have been on a Steve Hillage album. but He have not produced or writen the track.
Unfortunatly, Jim Kerr’s voice is now quite aging awful. He have real difficulties to sing “Don’t” correctly live.
Anyway, we are all getting older.
Great band with a cool discography of extended mixes. I love the single you posted recently aswell ”All The Things She Said” with the Steve Thompson remix of ”Promised You A Miracle” too.
Thanks Paul 🙂
You’re welcome, Mark 🙂
Thank you for this transfer Paul, interesting that this song was offered to Billy Idol, it would of been great and a big single, Billy eventually did record a cover of it, but when I hear Forget on the radio I often try to imagine what Billys vocals would of sounded on this. Simple Minds of course does a fantastic performance, I learned drumming by watching the drummer in the video, listening to that solid beat.
Incidentally and I don’t know where to ask, but I thought I’d ask here – would you have any Blow Monkeys singles?
Thanks!
You’re welcome, Modernaire. I might have a couple Blow Monkeys singles I will check 🙂
excellent post Paul, I love this song. congratulations for such a good job. Would it be possible to re-upload the 12 inch that are no longer available for download? I will thank you forever.
You’re welcome, Sir M. That is what I did with this post a new transfer for a no longer available post. 🙂
Thanks for answering. Congratulations Paul, with your work you make my life happy.
Always love singing along to “Don’t You (Forget About Me)”.
The video is great too, especially when Jim Kerr goes out of the left side frame as the camera pans from left to right and eventually appears again on the right side frame as it moves along the other band members.
1985 was a great year for songs from soundtracks, my favourite films that year was A View To A Kill, Beverly Hills Cop which came out in the UK in 1985 and The Breakfast Club.
Cool post Paul.
Thank you, John I agree ’85 was a great year for songs from movies. 🙂
paul, you know i love simple minds. so i was happy to see this come up. i remember hearing this on the radio when it came out. within a few seconds i knew it was simple minds. i had just come off a few years of listening to new gold dream, and sparkle in the rain, so i was ready for their new sound. although this was just a single release, i was hopeful. they didn’t have any other new music, so they just recycled the b-side from the up on the catwalk 12 inch. the shorter version is called… Read more »
The band really should have gotten more attention in the USA but at least what they did get noticed were brilliant tracks. I hope you enjoy this new transfer, 🙂
Excelent. Thank you so much for sharing it.
You’re welcome, José 🙂
I had the US 12″ back in the day, and my best friend and I played it incessantly. He got around to buying the UK import, and imagine our horror to see the single version timing (4.20) on the label!
According to Discogs and DJ Paul (obviously) this is a misprint, but I would swear that it was the 7″ version, although I don’t remember ever listening to his copy.
I think there are a couple of releases that are misprinted Glen it was always frustrating when the label or sleeve was incorrect. I got lucky with this one 🙂
I’m so enjoying this movie week Paul. It’s a wonderful celebration of beloved movie themes from wonderful films. I always enjoy when you do some sort of “theme week” on your site. Thanks again Paul for “re-mastered” memories!
Jeff
You’re very welcome, Jeff 🙂