‘A New Flame’: The Story Behind Simply Red’s Steamy Third Album

“It was one of those thunder and lightning moments”

A New Flame itself followed on 13 February 1989 and became the first Simply Red album to enter the UK chart at No.1. Sprightly and full of vim, it also saw Hucknall double down on his love of 70s soul music, wooing listeners with his flirtatious falsetto. Though a couple of the record’s songs had originally been co-written with Motown songwriter Lamont Dozier, the album closer, Enough, was a collaboration with Joe Sample, former keyboardist for 60s jazz group The Crusaders. “I love that song,” Hucknall said. “It was one of those thunder and lightning moments.”

Despite choosing not to release a cover version as the album’s lead single, Hucknall’s synth-aided rendition of Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes’ 1972 Philadelphia soul hit, If You Don’t Know Me By Now, was the real show-stopper, quickly working its way into position among the best Simply Red songs. Released as a single in March 1989, the song’s ultra-modern production arguably made it the definitive version, and it became the band’s second-ever No.1 hit in the US. “I look back now at having had two No.1s in America and think it’s quite an addition to your CV,” Hucknall later said. “It’s quite a good club to be in.”

“I realised that nearly all the lyrics are very personal…”

The third single to be lifted from A New Flame was its title track, issued in June 1989. “It was probably about a girlfriend,” Hucknall’s father, Reg, noted, admitting that it was his favourite Simply Red song. “But I don’t know which one.” His suspicions were right – like many other songs on the album (Love Lays Its Tune, To Be With You, More), A New Flame was inspired by Mick’s love for Dee, a blonde model he had met in Tokyo and who had proceeded to accompany the band on tour. The song reached No.17 in the UK, giving audiences yet another scintillating serving of blue-eyed soul.

With its relaxed vibe and polished, jazz-inspired musicality, A New Flame was widely seen as a great leap for Mick Hucknall as a songwriter. “When I’d finally written all the songs for this album,” he told VH1 in 1989, “I realised that nearly all the lyrics are very personal. They’re either autobiographical or they’re about close friends or situations around me.” Hucknall’s growing confidence with tackling relationship issues and making them relatable would prove to be a key stepping stone for his writing.

“The album put him right back up there”

By mid-1989, it was clear A New Flame had far surpassed expectations, catapulting Hucknall to even greater heights. The first album to sell a million copies in the UK in 1989, it proved that the band’s previous US No.1 single, Holding Back The Years, was no one-off. In October 1989, Simply Red concluded the album’s run with the release of You’ve Got It, a soul-pop ballad tackling lust and love, and which Hucknall had co-written with Lamont Dozier.

“I think with the arrival of this album, it feels much more easier to make,” Hucknall said of recording A New Flame. “We were very relaxed about it.” This laidback feeling proved just as seductive to listeners, as the record went on to sell 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. Producer Stewart Levine saw it as a pivotal Simply Red release that reasserted Hucknall’s place in the pop pantheon. “I think the album put him right back up there,” he asserted. He’s not wrong, either. After A New Flame, Simply Red became a fully-fledged arena act, embarking on a hugely successful international tour that lasted well into 1990.

Though Simply Red would further develop their sound on their next album, Stars, there’s little doubting that A New Flame lit the way, setting them on a trailblazing trajectory that would make them one of the biggest bands of the 90s.

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