Guitar Songs, Tabs & Lessons

Simple Minds

1 guitar song · Tabs, Lessons & Tone Guide Pop

Choose a Simple Minds Song to Play

Don't You - Guitar Lesson

YouTube Stats: 125K · 2.7K

GuitarLessons365SongLessons Guitar Lesson

Band Overview

History and Guitar Legacy

Simple Minds emerged from Glasgow, Scotland in 1977, evolving from post-punk into a major synth-rock force of the 1980s. Despite synth-pop comparisons to Depeche Mode and OMD, the band maintained a significant guitar presence. Charlie Burchill has anchored the band since its formation, serving as sonic architect of their shimmering, effects-laden guitar work that proved electric guitar could dominate alongside synthesizers without traditional rock riffing.

Playing Style and Techniques

Burchill's approach centers on spacious, atmospheric chord voicings rather than conventional power chords or pentatonic leads. His palette includes heavy chorus and delay effects, clean to slightly overdriven tones, arpeggiated figures, sustained open-string voicings, and wide stereo layering. He bridges The Edge's rhythmic delay work with Robert Smith's moody chord sensibilities, creating a brighter, more triumphant stadium sound that defined mid-1980s synth-rock guitar.

Why Guitarists Study Simple Minds

Burchill's work proves that guitar impact comes from tone crafting and precise note placement rather than speed or complexity. For guitarists wanting to escape blues-rock conventions, Simple Minds offers valuable lessons in atmospheric playing and textural layering. Studying Burchill teaches how to create cinematic sounds with simple note choices, how effects sculpt tone, and how musical restraint elevates playing. His style demonstrates knowing when not to play matters as much as what you do play.

Difficulty and Learning Path

Simple Minds songs sit at intermediate difficulty level. Chord shapes aren't overly complex, but capturing the feel requires solid understanding of effects pedal timing, dynamics, and restraint. Getting tone right is crucial since Burchill's sound relies heavily on chorus, delay, and reverb rather than amp breakup. Guitarists developing atmospheric techniques, textural layering, and effects-based approaches will find Simple Minds an excellent educational band to study and emulate.

What Makes Simple Minds Essential for Guitar Players

Charlie Burchill relies heavily on chorus and delay effects to create his signature wide, shimmering tone. Learning his parts means developing precise timing with delay repeats, your picking rhythm needs to lock with the effect, not fight against it.
Burchill favors clean-to-edge-of-breakup tones rather than high-gain distortion. This means your picking dynamics matter enormously, you can't hide behind a wall of gain. Practice controlling your attack to go from glassy clean to slightly gritty just by adjusting your right hand.
Open-string voicings and suspended chords (sus2, sus4) are staples of the Simple Minds guitar sound. These voicings ring out beautifully with chorus and reverb, creating that anthemic 80s atmosphere that defined tracks like 'Don't You (Forget About Me).'
Arpeggiated chord patterns are more common than strummed power chords in Simple Minds arrangements. Burchill often picks through chords note by note, letting each string sustain and interact with the delay and chorus effects to fill the sonic space.
Restraint is a key technique to learn from Simple Minds. Burchill frequently leaves space in his playing, allowing synths and vocals to breathe. For guitarists used to filling every bar, studying his parts is excellent practice in ensemble awareness and dynamic control.

Did You Know?

Charlie Burchill is entirely self-taught on guitar and has cited David Bowie's guitarists (Mick Ronson, Robert Fripp) as early influences rather than traditional blues or rock players, which explains his unconventional approach to the instrument.

'Don't You (Forget About Me)' was actually written by Keith Forsey and Steve Schiff, not by the band themselves. Simple Minds initially resisted recording it, but it became their biggest hit and the iconic anthem from The Breakfast Club soundtrack.

In early Simple Minds recordings like 'Empires and Dance' (1980), Burchill used a much more angular, post-punk guitar style influenced by bands like Magazine and Wire, a stark contrast to the lush, effects-heavy sound he'd develop later.

Burchill was an early adopter of guitar synthesizer technology in the 1980s, sometimes using Roland guitar synths to blur the line between traditional guitar tones and keyboard textures on albums like 'Sparkle in the Rain.'

The guitar part on 'Alive and Kicking' uses a combination of chorus-drenched clean arpeggios and a brighter, more cutting rhythm tone, Burchill tracked multiple guitar layers to achieve that massive stereo width you hear on the record.

Simple Minds' producer Steve Lillywhite (who also worked with U2 and Peter Gabriel) played a significant role in shaping Burchill's guitar tone on 'Sparkle in the Rain,' encouraging a more aggressive, room-mic'd approach compared to their earlier, more polished productions.

Essential Albums for Guitarists

Once Upon a Time 1985

This is Simple Minds at their most anthemic and guitar-forward. 'Alive and Kicking' and 'Sanctify Yourself' feature layered clean arpeggios with heavy chorus and delay, perfect for learning effects-based rhythm guitar. The album teaches you how to create massive, stadium-sized sounds with relatively simple chord shapes and smart use of dynamics.

Spotify Apple Music

Sparkle in the Rain 1984

Produced by Steve Lillywhite, this is the most aggressive-sounding Simple Minds album and a goldmine for guitarists wanting to learn driving, energetic new wave guitar. 'Waterfront' features a punchy, distorted riff that's rare for the band, while 'Speed Your Love to Me' showcases tight rhythmic strumming over a propulsive beat. Great for developing your sense of groove in a synth-rock context.

Spotify Apple Music

New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) album cover

New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) 1982

Widely considered their artistic peak, this album features Burchill's most textural and atmospheric guitar work. Songs like 'Someone Somewhere in Summertime' and 'Promised You a Miracle' are studies in using reverb, chorus, and clean tones to create dreamy, layered soundscapes. Essential listening for any guitarist interested in ambient or post-punk influenced playing.

Spotify Apple Music

Tone & Gear

Guitar

Charlie Burchill has been closely associated with Gibson and Gretsch guitars throughout his career. In the early 80s, he frequently played a Fender Stratocaster and various Gibsons, later gravitating toward Gretsch semi-hollowbodies for their bright, jangly character. He's also used Gibson Les Pauls and SGs at various stages. The semi-hollow and single-coil guitars work particularly well with his effects-heavy, clean-toned approach, providing clarity and note separation that thicker-sounding guitars might lose in a wash of chorus and delay.

Amp

Burchill has used a range of amplifiers over the decades, including Fender and Roland combos in the early years for their clean headroom and bright tonality. In live settings through the 80s, he leaned on setups that prioritized clean-to-slightly-breaking tones at stage volume rather than cranked high-gain rigs. The emphasis was always on a pristine platform that let his effects pedals do the tonal sculpting, think Fender Twin Reverb territory rather than Marshall stack territory.

Pickups

Burchill's tone is best replicated with moderate-output pickups, either single-coils or lower-output humbuckers. High-output pickups would compress the dynamics too much and muddy up the chorus and delay effects that define his sound. Stock Fender single-coils or Gretsch Filter'Tron-style pickups deliver the right balance of clarity, chime, and bite that cuts through the band's dense synth arrangements while keeping the guitar tone sparkling and defined.

Effects & Chain

Effects are absolutely central to the Simple Minds guitar sound. Chorus is the most essential pedal, a Boss CE-2 or Roland Dimension-style chorus creates that wide, shimmering stereo spread. Add a solid digital or analog delay (Boss DD series or similar) set to medium repeats for rhythmic interplay, and a lush reverb (hall or plate settings). Burchill also experimented with Roland guitar synths and flangers on various records. The chain is typically: guitar → chorus → delay → reverb → clean amp. Overdrive is used sparingly and tends to be mild, think boost rather than crunch.

Recommended Gear

Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Charlie Burchill's early 80s Stratocaster provided the bright single-coil clarity essential for cutting through Simple Minds' synth-heavy arrangements. Its responsive dynamics work perfectly with his effects-driven tone, letting chorus and delay shine without muddy compression.

Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Burchill used the Les Paul's thicker voice for darker, more powerful tones on select tracks, though its higher output required careful EQ to prevent his signature effects from becoming cloudy. It offered tonal variety while maintaining the clarity needed for studio work.

Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

The Custom's refined aesthetic matched Simple Minds' polished 80s image, delivering slightly warmer tones than the Standard while still preserving note definition through chorus and delay effects. It balanced artistic vision with the clean-toned platform Burchill required.

Amp

Fender Twin Reverb

The Twin Reverb's legendary clean headroom and built-in reverb created the pristine, sparkling foundation for Burchill's effects-centric approach. Its responsive dynamics let his pedal chain sculpt the tone without fighting amp breakup.

Pedal

Boss CE-2 Chorus

This Boss chorus pedal defines Simple Minds' signature shimmering, wide stereo spread that became iconic across their catalogue. Its lush modulation sits at the heart of Burchill's effects chain, creating the band's distinctive atmospheric guitar character.

Pedal

MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay

The Carbon Copy's warm analog delay delivers the rhythmic, medium-repeat textures that interweave throughout Simple Minds arrangements without overwhelming the mix. Its natural compression adds cohesion to Burchill's effects-heavy tone while maintaining melodic clarity.

How to Practice Simple Minds on GuitarZone

Every Simple Minds song page on GuitarZone includes a built-in Practice Toolbar. No app to download, no account needed. Open any song, then use the toolbar to slow the video to 0.5× speed, set an A/B loop around the exact riff you're working on, and jump between song sections instantly.

The toolbar appears automatically on every guitar tab, lesson, and cover page. Pick a song below, hit play, and start practicing at your own pace.

Practice Don't You - Guitar Lesson