Don't You (Forget About Me)

"Don't You (Forget About Me)"
Single by Simple Minds
from the album The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
B-side"A Brass Band in African Chimes"
ReleasedFebruary 1985 (US)
9 April 1985 (UK)[1]
RecordedNovember 1984[2][3]
Genre
Length4:20 (original version)
6:32 (extended version)
LabelVirgin
A&M (US)
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Keith Forsey
Simple Minds singles chronology
"Up on the Catwalk"
(1984) 		"Don't You (Forget About Me)"
(1985) 		"Alive and Kicking"
(1985)
Audio sample
"Don't You (Forget About Me)"
Music video
"Don't You (Forget About Me)" on YouTube

"Don't You (Forget About Me)" is a song by the Scottish rock band Simple Minds, released as a single in 1985. It was written and composed by the record producer Keith Forsey and the guitarist Steve Schiff for the film The Breakfast Club (1985). Simple Minds initially declined to record it, preferring to record their own material, but accepted after several other acts also declined.

"Don't You (Forget About Me)" became a breakout hit for Simple Minds, an iconic song and a 1980s anthem. The single reached No. 1 in the United States and Canada, becoming Simple Minds' biggest hit in the United States. It also reached No. 7 on the UK Singles Chart and reached the top ten in charts around the world.

  1. ^ "Music Week" (PDF). p. 14.
  2. ^ "Don't You (Forget About Me) No 1 on U.S. Billboard Charts". Simpleminds.com. 20 May 1985. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  3. ^ "Here's Why Simple Minds Almost Didn't Make Don't You (Forget About Me)". Grunge. 18 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b Sun, Michael (14 November 2018). "From Sixteen Candles to Love, Simon: how teen soundtracks have evolved". Double J. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  5. ^ Billboard Staff (19 October 2023). "The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List". Billboard. Retrieved 11 February 2024. The soaring and shimmering new wave love song that was a smash from its opening "HEY, HEY, HEY, HEY!"s...
  6. ^ "Covering the Hits: "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (Simple Minds)". CoverMeSongs.com. 16 October 2020.
  7. ^ Parker, Dylan (4 September 2022). "The Breakfast Club's "Don't You" is Absurdly Beloved Except Maybe by the Band Who Sang It". TheThings.com.
  8. ^ Breihan, Tom (2 October 2020). "The Number Ones: Simple Minds' "Don't You (Forget About Me)". Stereogum. Retrieved 31 July 2023. The band finds some gorgeous middle ground between icy synthpop and U2-style proselytizing.