Mick Hucknall is a year old man.

Mick "Red" Hucknall was born Michael James Hucknall on 8 June 1960, Denton, Manchester. He formed the soul based pop group Simply Red in june 1984 with David Fryman (guitar) Fritz McIntyre (keyboards) Tony Bowers (bass), Tim Kellett (brass and keyboards), and Chris Joyce (drums). Last three were all from "Durutti Column" while Mick had been in punk band the "Frantic Elevators"

Signed to Elektra Records, the group's debut R&B single 'Moneys Too Tight To Mention' reached number 13 in the U. K. singles chart in 1985. Their first album 'Picture Book' followed later the same year, making the top 40 of the UK album chart and including the song that was to expose the smooth ear-caressing vocals of Hucknall to the masses. 'Holding Back The Years' was released for a second time in May 1986, reaching number 3 in the UK singles chart 2 months after it topped the U.S. and eventually sending 'Picture Book' to platinum status. In June they were middle of the bill at Glastonbury. Pictures are featured on this site.

Prior to their second album - their 1987 UK number 2 'Men And Women', band changes made included Aziz Ibrahim's replacement of Sylvan on guitar, and the additions of Ian Kirkham on Saxophone and Janette Sewell on backing vocals. This was followed in the same year by further singles success with 'Infidelity' and a cover of Cole Porter's 'Everytime We Say Goodbye'.

Simply Red's shows at London's legendary Lyceum Theatre reaffirmed Mick Hucknall's mastery of delivering a live set, dominated by a vocal performance of peerless intensity and soulfulness. Backed by a twelve-piece band, which included a smoldering horn section and the enthralling sax of Ian Kirkham, Hucknall unrolled a litany of Simply Red classics alongside his newer material, which underlined the extraordinary number of successes which the group has enjoyed - a catalogue of hits unrivalled in modern British pop. The show was filmed in September 1998.

Another band change replaced Ibrahim and Sewell in 1988, before the following year saw their first UK number 1 success with the album 'A New Flame'. Another US number 1 was released from this their third album, narrowly missing the top slot in the UK as 'If You Don't Know Me By Now' reached number 2 in April 89. Bowers and Joyce had left the band with Shawn Ward (bass), and Gota (drums) filling the vacancies to record their second successive UK number 1 album, 1991's 'Stars'. Dee Johnson joined as backing vocalist in time for 'Life', another UK chart topper in 1995, and the last album recording before the band returned last year with 'Blue'.

Blue

The reason the quick production of Albums like "Blue" and "Love And Russian Winter" , reveals Mick, is that he has found himself on a creative roll with its producers and his long-time collaborators, Andy Wright and Gota Yashiki. "It's been wonderful for me to find two people I so trust and have confidence in. That's made it a fantastic working triumvirate. Add to that the synergy of a great band which is totally committed to the music and brings a constant flow of new ideas to it, and you can see why I'm feeling so positive." With its songwriting process developed seamlessly out of that for 'Blue', the new album combines the personal and specific ('Words For Girlfriends', 'Thank You', and 'Your Eyes' among them) with themes that are public and universal ('Man Made The Gun', 'The Sky Is A Gypsy', 'Back Into The Universe'). And as the title of the closing track, 'Wave The Old World Goodbye' suggests, a definite millennium mood prevails throughout. "I suspect that what was on my mind at the time of writing these songs is pretty much what's been on everyone's," says Mick. "We're coming to the end of 2000 years. Naturally, you look back and assess what has gone before and your part in it. But also you look to the future, and out into the universe. All of these billions of us little guys, wondering how we relate to the bigger picture."

Love And Russian Winter

And the album's intriguing title? "The love element of it is self explanatory," he offers. "It's what drives and inspires us all throughout our lifetimes - and not just the poets and songwriters among us. Hope springs eternal, and thank goodness for that. If it didn't, we'd all be rushing off cliffs like lemmings. And the Russian winter element comes from my thinking of how something very harsh has actually been a saviour to us more than once over the course of those 2000 years. Ironically, it's what protected the world from Alexander the Great, from Napoleon and from Hitler. Imagine if any of them had won out... Think how different the world might be now." The stylish breadth and sheer accomplishment of 'Love And Russian Winter' will confound those who would put Simply Red in the box marked blue-eyed soul and fasten down the lid. "Categorisation like that is just lazy thinking, to my mind," says Mick. "Yes, American R&B has been a huge influence on my music, but jazz and reggae and even rock are certainly there in the mix too. I'm very much of that British tradition that started with the Rolling Stones, and whereby black American traditions are filtered into something that is original in itself and not at all derivative. Having a good, strong voice helps in that process too, of course. People might love me or loathe me, but I think everyone knows what I sound like."

Career Review

brings up to date a musical history which began in Manchester in the early 1980s. It was while an art student in his home city that Mick formed the punkish Frantic Elevators. On their disbandment, he then put together the earliest incarnation of Simply Red, signing to Elektra and releasing a fine debut LP, 1985's 'Picture Book', which included the classic singles 'Money's Too Tight (Too Mention)', and 'Holding Back The Years', a track which gave the group its first U.S. No.1. In the intervening years, a string of critically acclaimed and commercially highly successful albums have followed - 'Men And Women' (1987), 'A New Flame' (1989), 'Stars' (1991), 'Life' (1995) and 'Blue' (1998), which have sold over 40 million copies. Particular career highlights to date have included the exceptional success of 'Stars', the most successful British album of both 1991 and 1992: a second American chart-topper with 1989's inspired cover of Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes 'If You Don't Know Me By Now', and a first U. K. No.1 with 1995's 'Fairground'. Says Mick of that sound 'It's very pluralist, in the same way that my life is. I don't like just one type of food. I don't like just one kind of music. But we do only get just one shot at living in this amazing world, and it's up to each and every one of us to get out there and taste as much of it as we can. That's the spirit that goes into our records. My hope is that they take the listener to a lot of different places." With an irresistible new single 'Ain't That A Lot Of Love' heralding the imminent release of the band's seventh studio album, Simply Red are ready to add a new chapter to one of the most consistent success stories within a generation of British pop. "Every time I sit down to talk about a new project, I am able to say hand-on-heart that I've given the best I could at a particular time," says the band's driving force, singer and writer Mick Hucknall. "But I really feel that I've reached a peak with this one." Titled 'Love And The Russian Winter', it is the band at its best, doing what it does best - incorporating a variety of musical styles, influences and moods into the singular, wholly unmistakable and entirely original sound that is Simply Red. Playing the opening of the Dome was a great way to finish off the millennium and Observatory of Greenwich. What do they do now. Encores become harder as year go by... On January 21st, 2000 Mick Hucknall of Simply Red was interviewed by Michael Parkinson.

Albums:

1. Picture Book
Elektra, 1985

2. Men And Women
Elektra, 1987

3. A New Flame
Elektra, 1989

4. Stars
East West, 1991

5. Life
East West, 1995

6. Blue
Elektra, 1998

7. Love & The Russian Winter
Elektra, 1999