Portrait of Jim Kerr

Birthday profile

Jim Kerr

Jim Kerr, Scottish singer-songwriter and keyboard player

Born
July 9, 1959
Age in 2026
67
Zodiac sign
Cancer
Birth year
1959

About Jim Kerr

James Kerr (born 9 July 1959) is a Scottish musician, singer and songwriter, best known for being the frontman of the rock band Simple Minds. Commercially successful singles released by Simple Minds include "Glittering Prize" (1982), "Someone Somewhere in Summertime" (1982), "Waterfront" (1983), "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985, #1 U.S. and #1 Canada), and "Alive and Kicking" (1985), as well as the UK number one single "Belfast Child" (1989). With Kerr as their lead singer, Simple Minds have achieved five UK Albums chart number one albums, Sparkle in the Rain (1984), Once Upon a Time (1985), Live in the City of Light (1987), Street Fighting Years (1989) and Glittering Prize 81/92 (1992); they have sold more than 60 million albums. They were the most commercially successful Scottish band of the 1980s. Simple Minds have also achieved considerable chart success in the United States, Australia, Germany, Spain, Italy and New Zealand. Kerr released his first solo album, Lostboy! AKA Jim Kerr, on 27 May 2010. His voice has been described as "David Bowie's rich baritone melded with Bryan Ferry's velvety croon". Kerr continues to record and tour with Simple Minds, who released their latest album Direction of the Heart in October 2022. Jim Kerr released his first solo album Lostboy! I like my band (laughs)...and I didn’t want a point blank Jim Kerr solo album either." The first Lostboy! Commercially successful singles released by Simple Minds include "Glittering Prize" (1982), "Someone Somewhere in Summertime" (1982), "Waterfront" (1983), "Don't You ", and "Alive and Kicking" (1985), as well as the UK number one single "Belfast Child" (1989).

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Jim Kerr timeline

  1. Commercially successful singles released by Simple Minds include "Glittering Prize" (1982), "Someone Somewhere in Summertime" (1982), "Waterfront" (1983), "Don't You ", and "Alive and Kicking" (1985), as well as the UK number one single "Belfast Child" (1989).
  2. Kerr continues to record and tour with Simple Minds, who released their latest album Direction of the Heart in October 2022.

The world when Jim Kerr was born

Jim Kerr was born in 1959. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1959

  • #1 song"Mack the Knife" – Bobby Darin
  • Top movieBen-Hur
  • Top TV showGunsmoke
  • Best-selling bookGoldfinger – Ian Fleming

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentIngemar Johansson knocks out Floyd Patterson for heavyweight title
  • Top headlineAlaska and Hawaii become the 49th and 50th US states
  • Technology milestoneMicrochip (integrated circuit) invented
  • Defining fadBarbie dolls
  • Notable inventionBarbie doll
  • World population2.98 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderDwight D. Eisenhower
  • Sports championLos Angeles Dodgers (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population177.1M

1959 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Jim Kerr's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19592026
Gas$0.31$3.45/gal
Average home$12,400$435,000
Average income$7,000$67,500
Minimum wage$1.00$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.69$11.95
Postage stamp$0.04$0.73
Population177.1M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.