Simply Red

History

Mick Hucknall had previously fronted the punk group the Frantic Elevators, whose seven-year run ended in 1984 after critical acclaim for their final single, "Holding Back the Years". Following the group's demise, Hucknall teamed up with manager Elliot Rashman, and by early 1985 they had assembled a band of local session musicians. The group tried several names—World Service, Red and the Dancing Dead, and Red (after Hucknall's nickname for his hair colour)—before Hucknall decided that adding the word 'Simply' would improve the latter name. The band's name also references Hucknall's support of Manchester United, whose home shirt is red.

The initial line-up comprised Hucknall (vocals), David Fryman (guitar), Tony Bowers (bass), Fritz McIntyre (keyboards and vocals), Tim Kellett (brass and live backing vocals) and Chris Joyce (drums). Bowers and Joyce had both been in the post-punk bands the Durutti Column and the Mothmen; Kellett had also been a member of the Durutti Column, though not concurrently with Bowers and Joyce. Simply Red signed with Elektra in 1985, but after recording one track ("Red Box"), Fryman left and was replaced by guitarist Sylvan Richardson, billed as 'Sylvan'. "Red Box" appeared as a B-side to the group's first single, "Money's Too Tight (to Mention)", a cover of a Valentine Brothers soul song. That single reached the UK and Irish top 20, later the American, French and Dutch top 30, and the Italian top 5, and was included on the debut album Picture Book (1985). Several lower-charting singles followed, including a re-recording of the Frantic Elevators' "Holding Back the Years" in a new soul-ballad arrangement. Initially placing outside the UK top 50 upon its 1985 release, the track was re-released in 1986 and became a major hit, peaking at number one in Ireland, number 2 in the UK, number 3 in the Netherlands, number 20 in Italy and later number one in the United States.