Mick Hucknall has questioned the influence of Britpop bands like Oasis, Blur and Suede on music in the nineties.
The decade is often characterised by the rise of such acts and the impact of the Manchester scene, which dominated the charts mid-way through the era, but the Simply Red frontman believes their success is overstated.
Speaking on the Rockonteurs podcast, he says: “I thought the shift in the nineties happened with Take That.
“The hip side of the nineties wants to talk about Oasis, Blur and Suede, whatever. But I looked at Take That and thought, that’s a mainstream that’s really taking off in a big way.”
It’s that kind of worldwide appeal, Mick says, that sets acts like Take That in a different league to their Britpop counterparts.
“So while I acknowledge what you’re saying about Suede and Oasis and the importance of that, it’s the way in which people eulogise in Manchester about Factory Records like it is some kind of holy grail,” he reflects.
“But they’ve still not sold that many albums. And they’re still not that big globally.”
Listen to Mick Hucknall on. Rockonteurs below.
This month, Simply Red return with their 13th album, ‘Time’, which was recorded in London with the group’s longstanding producer Andy Wright and the band’s tight-knit group of musicians.
“When we were in lockdown, I went, well, jeez, who am I actually?” he remembers. “What makes me tick? And I realised: you are a songwriter.
The project sees the band back with Warner Music – the label that helped launch their career in 1985 – with Mick adding the LP reflects the musician as he is now – a happily married father and an ever-inspired singer and songwriter.
“Music is one of those wonderful communicators. Each and every person can have an interpretation of a song that can mean something to them,” he explains. “To be able to create something that is then shared with millions of people all over the world – what a joy. How can anything be more rewarding and fulfilling than that?”
‘Time’ is out May 26 on Warner and available to pre-order now.
Buy ‘Time’ on CD.
Buy ‘Time’ on Vinyl.
