Documentary Watch -Classic Albums - Rio

I caught the “Rio” episode of the British documentary series “Classic Albums”. I don’t know that I considered Rio to be the best of best albums though I do consider Duran Duran a great singles band and they are definitely an all time favorite of mine. For me, if asked to name ‘the’ classic Duran album, I might opt for the first one. It’s got some sublime moments and in the case of “Planet Earth” an all time great hit. Wanting to emulate Bowie, Roxy et al- they did in fact reach the peak and defined an era with that song (“like some new romantic looking for the TV sound”. ) The title track is nearly enough in itself to cement Classic status along with the yacht video and the Nagel album cover. Rio is surprisingly deep when you revisit it 40 years later. “My Own Way” is one of the band’s least favorite singles, but it’s a hidden 80s classic- like many of the songs here, as much Chic as Bowie/Ferry. Of Duran songs (and 80s songs in general) Lonely in your Nightmare isn’t particularly a standout track, but has aged better than most songs of the time. Hungry Like The Wolf is on par with Rio as being a decade defining moment, after that, it’s largely album tracks. But in that, not necessarily unremarkable, “Hold Back the Rain” in any other timeline would have been a smash pop hit. “New Religion” sounds awful on paper, going deeper into the funk sounds with LeBon rapping. It works though, with the underappreciated Andy and John Taylor”s guitar and bass work, sort of anticipating the “dark wave” movement. You likely know “Save A Prayer”, a successful single and one of my favorite Duran moments- LeBon sings plaintively while the band backs with an exotic sound that was promised from the album’s title and cover (and infamous video, check out the Wikipedia entry for that story). “The Chauffeur” ends the album - likely best known for the infamous R rated video. While it lacks the arena prowess of Duran’s biggest singles, it is one of the bands finest musical moments. If you only considered the band a pop band, surely this song will change your mind. What this episode did was remind me of course of just how talented this band was, but more surprisingly how instrumental Nick Rhodes was in crafting the end product. Nick creating the infectious Rio opening, the “do”s in Hungry like the Wolf, and finding the distinct sound for “Save a Prayer”. While I don’t think the rest of the band gets enough credit (John Taylor and Andy Taylor did some amazing things, and I haven’t even mentioned LeBon as the perfect front man for a group like this), I was impressed with how much Rhodes contributed and am surprised he never went on to do more outside of Duran. Now, he did coproduce the very Duran-y “Too Shy” by Kajagoogoo, but the only other significant work I know of besides that is the Dandy Warhols 2002 “Welcome to the Monkey House” record. Not surprisingly, I like that album quite a bit. The Warhols aspired to be heirs to the Durans, and they are one of my favorite bands of the last 20 years. If you are a fan, check out the video “You Were the Last High” which is a recreation of the “Planet Earth” video. You got me Classic Albums, “Rio” is really an excellent record.