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| "Belfast Child / Ballad of the Streets" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Belfast Child.jpg | ||||
| Single by Simple Minds | ||||
| from the album Street Fighting Years | ||||
| B-side | "Mandela Day" "Biko" |
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| Released | 18 January 1989 | |||
| Format | 5" CD, 3" CD, cassette, 7" vinyl | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, Irish folk, World music | |||
| Length | 6:39 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Writer(s) | Music: traditional Lyrics: Simple Minds |
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| Producer | Trevor Horn, Stephen Lipson |
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| Simple Minds singles chronology | ||||
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"Belfast Child" is a 1989 Number 1 UK Charts [1] hit single by Simple Minds from their album Street Fighting Years. The single is also known as the "Ballad of the Streets" EP, highlighting both "Belfast Child" and "Mandela Day" (originally its B-side).
Contents |
Style and influence [link]
The song uses the music from the Irish folk song "She Moved Through the Fair", but has completely different words.
Jim Kerr recalled in 1000 UK #1 Hits why he used the melody, "I first heard the melody (of She Moved Through The Fair) a few days after the Enniskillen bombing (when a bomb planted by the IRA exploded during a Remembrance Day service at Enniskillen in County Fermanagh, killing 12 people and injuring at least 63), and like everybody when you see the images I was sick. In the second part of the song, I'm trying to relate to people in Northern Ireland who lost loved ones. I'm trying to talk about the madness, the sadness and the emptiness. I'm not saying I have any pearls of wisdom, but I have a few questions to ask."
Reception [link]
The song received rave reviews, receiving a five-star review in Q Magazine.
Music video [link]
The video to the song was shot in black and white and displays poignant footage of children and the destruction of the bombing. It was directed by Brendan Hughes, ex BBC Northern Ireland producer.
B-sides [link]
The B-side of the single was "Mandela Day", a song which had its world premiere at the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute concert on 11 June 1988[2]. The CD single and the 12" single included a cover of Peter Gabriel's "Biko" as well.
Track listings [link]
7" vinyl [link]
- UK, Germany: Virgin / SMX 3
- France: Virgin / 90496
| Side one | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |||||||
| 1. | "Belfast Child" | Traditional music, lyrics by Simple Minds | 6:39 | |||||||
| Side two | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |||||||
| 2. | "Mandela Day" | Simple Minds | 5:42 | |||||||
12" vinyl [link]
- UK: Virgin / SMXT 3
- UK: Virgin / SMX BS (limited edition box set, including 4 black-and-white photographs from the music video)
- France: Virgin / 80432
- Germany: Virgin / 611 998
- Yugoslavia: Jugoton /MXSVIRG 18016
| Side one | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |||||||
| 1. | "Belfast Child" | Traditional music, lyrics by Simple Minds | 6:39 | |||||||
| Side two | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |||||||
| 2. | "Mandela Day" | Simple Minds | 5:42 | |||||||
| 3. | "Biko" | Peter Gabriel | 7:31 | |||||||
CD [link]
- UK: Virgin / SMX3CD (3")
- UK: Virgin / SMXCDT3 (5")
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Belfast Child" | Traditional music, lyrics by Simple Minds | 6:39 | |
| 2. | "Mandela Day" | Simple Minds | 5:42 | |
| 3. | "Biko" | Peter Gabriel | 7:31 |
Chart performance [link]
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart[1] | 1 |
| Australian Singles Chart[3] | 12 |
| Dutch GfK chart[4] | 1 |
| Dutch Top 40[5] | 1 |
| Irish Singles Chart[6] | 1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart[7] | 9 |
| Preceded by "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" by Marc Almond featuring Gene Pitney |
UK Singles Chart number-one single 19 February 1989 – 26 February 1989 |
Succeeded by "Too Many Broken Hearts" by Jason Donovan |
| Preceded by "Buffalo Stance" by Neneh Cherry |
Dutch Top 40 number one single 11 March 1989 – 18 March 1989 |
Succeeded by "Alles kan een mens gelukkig maken" by René Froger |
| Preceded by "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" by Marc Almond featuring Gene Pitney |
Irish Top 40 number one single 16 February 1989 – 23 February 1989 |
Succeeded by "Leave Me Alone" by Michael Jackson |
References [link]
- ^ a b "Chart Stats - Simple Minds - Belfast Child". https://www.chartstats.com/songinfo.php?id=16147. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
- ^ Ketchum, Mike. "The Mandela Concert, Wembley 1988". African National Congress. https://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/history/mandela/awards/wembley88.html. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
- ^ "australian-charts.com - Simple Minds - Belfast Child". https://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Simple+Minds&titel=Belfast+Child&cat=s. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
- ^ "dutchcharts.nl - Simple Minds - Belfast Child". https://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Simple+Minds&titel=Belfast+Child&cat=s. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
- ^ "De Nederlandse Top 40, week 10, 1989". https://www.radio538.nl/web/show/id=44685/chartid=4925. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
- ^ "irishcharts.ie search results". https://www.irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
- ^ "norwegiancharts.com - Simple Minds - Belfast Child". https://norwegiancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Simple+Minds&titel=Belfast+Child&cat=s. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
https://wn.com/Belfast_Child
Belfast
Coordinates: 54°35′49″N 5°55′48″W / 54.597°N 5.930°W
Belfast (/ˈbɛl.fɑːst/ or /ˈbɛl.fæst/; from Irish: Béal Feirste, meaning "mouth of the sandbanks") is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. Most of Belfast, including the city centre, is in County Antrim, but parts of East and South Belfast are in County Down. It is on the flood plain of the River Lagan. The city's motto is Pro Tanto Quid Retribuamus (roughly Latin for "what shall we give in return for so much").
By population before the 2015 council reform, Belfast was the 17th largest city in the United Kingdom and the second largest on the island of Ireland. It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly. At the time of the 2011 census, the city of Belfast had a population of 286,000. With the 2015 council reform it is 333,871 and lies at the heart of the Belfast Urban area, which has a population of 483,418 and the Belfast Metropolitan Area, which had a population of 579,276 at the 2001 census. The larger urban zone, as defined by the European Union, had an estimated total population of 673,000 on 1 January 2012. Belfast was granted city status in 1888.
Belfast (album)
Belfast is an album by folk metal artists Mägo de Oz, which was released in 2004.
Track listing
DVD
Members
Belfast (Northern Ireland Parliament constituencies)
Belfast is the largest city and capital of Northern Ireland. It is partly located in County Antrim and partly in County Down.
Belfast was represented in the Northern Ireland House of Commons 1921-1973. This article deals with the Belfast borough constituencies. For the County Antrim and County Down county constituencies, see Antrim (Northern Ireland Parliament constituencies) and Down (Northern Ireland Parliament constituencies). See also the List of Northern Ireland Parliament constituencies 1921-1973.
Boundaries
1921-1929: The City of Belfast was divided into four constituencies, each returning four MPs, using the single transferable vote method of proportional representation. There were four single member UK Parliament constituencies with the same names, which existed from 1885-1918 and since 1922. See Belfast East, Belfast North, Belfast South and Belfast West.
The Northern Ireland Parliament seats comprised the following wards of the then County Borough of Belfast (as they existed in 1921).
Radio Stations - Belfast
Podcasts:
BELFAST
ALBUMS
- HEAVY METAL FORCE Ⅳ released: 1987
Белфаст
ALBUMS
- Пиво на асфальте released: 2006
- Парад св. Патрика released: 2003
-
by Simple Minds
Belfast Child
by: Simple MindsWhen my love said to me
Meet me down by the gallow tree
For it's sad news I bring
About this old town and all that it's offering
Some say troubles abound
Some day soon they're gonna pull the old town down
One day we'll return here,
When the Belfast Child sings again
Brothers, sisters where are you now
As I look for you right through the crowd
All my life here I've spent
With my faith in God the Church and the Government
But there's sadness abound
Some day soon they're gonna pull the old town down
One day we'll return here,
When the Belfast Child sings again
When the Belfast Child sings again
So come back Billy, won't you come on home
Come back Mary, you've been away so long
The streets are empty, and your mother's gone
The girls are crying, it's been oh so long
And your father's calling, come on home
Won't you come on home, won't you come on home
Come back people, you've been gone a while
And the war is raging, in the Emerald Isle
That's flesh and blood man, that's flesh and blood
All the girls are crying but all's not lost
The streets are empty, the streets are cold
Won't you come on home, won't you come on home
The streets are empty
Life goes on
One day we'll return here
When the Belfast Child sings again