When to use passato prossimo and passato remoto

When speaking of past actions, there are a few tenses that can be used in Italian. Both passato prossimo and passato remoto can be translated to the English simple past, yet they're used differently in Italian. Passato prossimo (Ho fatto, Ho detto, Sono andato) is the most popular one and Italian people use it all the time. Yet it should be used when talking about fairly recent actions: Ieri sono andato a scuola = Yesterday I went to school; Mi sono appena lavato i denti = I just brushed my teeth; Sono andato a New York il mese scorso = I went to New York last month. When speaking of something that happened years before, passato remoto is the correct tense to use: Vidi tuo padre quel giorno = I saw your dad that day. Quando andai a Londra 20 anni fa.... = When I went to London 20 years ago.....