'Duran Duran On Track': 'All You Need Is Now' reignites fans' passion

As the new US release date of Duran Duran On Track approaches, I’ll revisit one of my favorite albums, All You Need Is Now.

Duran Duran’s Mark Ronson-produced masterstroke didn’t make the cover of Duran Duran On Track, which features Rio, Seven And The Ragged Tiger, The Wedding Album and Paper Gods, with Future Past on the back cover. 

The sales of All You Need Is Now were likely affected by the fact that it was released via an independent label, Nick Rhodes’ and Stephen Duffy’s Tape Modern, during a time when downloads had greatly affected album sales in general. But the LP, on which the band returned to their musical roots, remains a fan favorite.

I had lost touch with my Duran Duran fandom after the release of their last album on Epic Records, Red Carpet Massacre. The decision to work with Timbaland, Justin Timberlake and Nate ‘Danja’ Hills was a polarizing one (which is detailed in the book), and the band was aware that it was a risk in terms of what Duranies would like. I bought the album and listened to it extensively, of course, but that era marked the first time I didn’t attend a single show on a tour to promote a new LP since I had become a fan.

All You Need Is Now, on the other hand, was just what I needed to reignite my passion, and I’m likely not the only such fan. I bought the digital download, followed by the expanded album three months later, attended three shows on the tour and, at a friend’s suggestion, started writing in a professional capacity about the band for a news website. That eventually morphed into this blog, and then the book. 

Duran Duran On Track is available now in the UK and will be released on October 31 in the US. While the book’s US release date was delayed from September 26, I have a limited number of UK import copies available for purchase via PayPal.

Or check out Linktree for preorder links. And if you’re already enjoying the book, please leave a review on Amazon or wherever you purchased your copy.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club return with a ‘Howl’

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, which hasn’t released a new album in over seven years and has played live only sporadically for the past few years, at last returned to the stage for a headlining tour to mark the 20-year anniversary of their third LP, Howl.

BRMC played the album in full, followed by some of their hardest rock songs, lighting up a crowd packed “like sardines” into the Summit Music Hall in Denver on Sept. 28. Although Howl has been described as an “acoustic gospel album,” its roots are more in folk music. 

Indeed, BRMC took the stage as the labor union folk song “Which Side Are You On?” played. Then they launched into the gospel-tinged “Devil’s Waitin’” before playing the rest of the LP’s tracks mostly in order, including the stand-out singles “Shuffle Your Feet,” “Ain’t No Easy Way” and “Weight Of The World.”

Been (top) and Hayes, with trombone.
All photos by Christopher Windle

The band, singers and multi-instrumentalists Robert Levon Been and Peter Hayes and drummer Leah Shapiro, impressed at every turn. That included stints at a seemingly taped-together upright piano by Been and the trombone by Hayes. They didn’t miss a beat until Been flubbed the opening lines to “The Line,” after which the apologetic singer restarted the song and sang it to perfection along with Hayes.

Howl straddles the line between folk, blues and old-time country, with some gospel for good measure. The angelic voices of Been and Hayes keep the music from sounding like that “twangy cowboy shit” that Been recently said he hates “so much,” according to Spin magazine. Been’s songs definitely sounded the least like country music in the setlist, including “Weight Of The World” and the gentle “Promise.”

Hayes had the stage to himself for a few songs, including “Complicated Situation” and “Fault Line.” The rest of the band returned to close out the Howl tracks strong with “Sympathetic Noose,” “Gospel Song” and “The Line.”

Then they truly went electric, storming through some of their biggest songs, including “Beat The Devil's Tattoo,” “Whatever Happened To My Rock ‘n’ Roll (Punk Song)” and “Spread Your Love.” Been teetered at the edge of the stage, at times holding his bass guitar like a shotgun. Hayes, his face obscured by a mop of gray curls, was a whirlwind on guitar, and Shapiro pounded the drums, attuned to every move by her bandmates.

BRMC closed out the concert with the highlight of the evening, a roaring, extended jam of “Shadow’s Keeper,” then circled back to Howl, winding down the anniversary show with “Open Invitation,” the LP’s “hidden” closing track.

One hopes that BRMC gets to a point at which they want to record a new album together again. But in the meantime, a tour revisiting one of their best LPs is just as welcome.

‘Duran Duran On Track’: ‘Seven And The Ragged Tiger’ creates a sensation

As the US release date of Duran Duran On Track draws closer, I’ll revisit the last album spotlighted on the book’s cover: Seven And The Ragged Tiger.

The front cover of Duran Duran On Track features Seven And The Ragged Tiger as well as Rio, The Wedding Album and Paper Gods, with Future Past on the back cover.

Though Duran Duran had their first taste of widespread international success with Rio, Seven was a juggernaut. It debuted at Number 1 in their native UK and in the top 10 in multiple countries and included three top 10 singles in both the UK and the US.

The album, named for the five band members and their two managers, with the “Ragged Tiger” being success, couldn’t have arrived at a more opportune time. The marketing of the album and the band’s music that followed appealed greatly to younger listeners, especially females. The new music was accompanied by a wide range of products bearing the band members’ image that even included a board game, Into The Arena, for ages 7-plus.

That Duran Duran’s rise during that era rivaled Beatlemania is no overstatement. There are simply few rock bands that have ever reached the level of teen hysteria brought on by the Fab Four and the duly named Fab Five.

Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant acknowledged that in 1982 on MTV, calling them “enormous teen heroes” in England who have carried on “The Beatle tradition from way back. It’s remarkable to see so much style and class suddenly becoming apparent in video.”

Duran Duran On Track is available now in the UK and will be released on October 31 in the US. (The shipping date for preorders was originally September 26.) I’ll continue this occasional series up until the new US release date, ending with Danse Macabre on Halloween.

Check out Linktree for preorder links. And if you’re already enjoying the book, please leave a review on Amazon or wherever you purchased your copy.

‘Duran Duran On Track’: ‘Paper Gods’ helps write a new chapter for the band

As Duran Duran On Track makes it into the hands of more readers, I’ll revisit Paper Gods, the band’s 14th studio album, which is fast approaching its 10th anniversary.

The front cover of Duran Duran On Track features Paper Gods, as well as Rio, Seven And The Ragged Tiger and The Wedding Album, with Future Past on the back cover.

Upon release, Paper Gods reached the top five in the UK and the Billboard top 10 in the US, the band’s first LP to do so in that country since The Wedding Album. Duran Duran started playing larger venues, especially in the US, and more critics began reassessing the band’s musical legacy.

The album itself was hit or miss. Its artwork harkened back to the band’s biggest records with the “stickers” featured on its cover, but several tracks on the LP embraced EDM, which dates the album a bit. Still, there are several solid musical statements: the upbeat energy of “Pressure Off,” the swirling synths of “Face For Today,” the sublime balladry of “What Are The Chances?” and the apocalyptic beauty of “The Universe Alone.”

On the Paper Gods tour, the band played large arenas like Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. When they visited that arena on the Astronaut tour in 2005, many seats were empty, but in 2016, official attendance for their show at the venue was over 10,000.

The band has been proving to doubters that they’re the real deal ever since. Even though they’ve collected just about every honor in the music world, critics today sometimes seem astounded by just what they’ve achieved. A review of Duran Duran On Track in The Afterword, a UK pop culture blog, offers praise for the book as well as the band.

“The book covers all sixteen studio albums, a number that took me by surprise,” the review states. “They have certainly transcended their original genre by far and show no signs of stopping.”

Being reviewed alongside books about more traditional rock bands like Aerosmith and Foo Fighters and an expanded edition on punk icons The Clash certainly puts Duran Duran in good company.

Duran Duran On Track is available now in the UK and will be released September 26 in the US.

Check out Linktree for preorder links. And if you’re already enjoying the book, please leave a review on Amazon or wherever you purchased your copy!

‘Duran Duran On Track’: ‘Future Past’ sparks a renaissance for the band

This week marks the UK release of Duran Duran On Track. To celebrate, the focus turns to the band's 40th anniversary album, Future Past, which graces the back cover of the book.

The front cover of Duran Duran’s entry in the On Track series features four of the band’s albums: Rio, Seven And The Ragged Tiger, The Wedding Album and Paper Gods. 

The release of Future Past in 2021 heralded a new era for the band. The album received glowing reviews upon release and hit number 3 on the UK charts, and an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame followed the next year. Most surprisingly, the album has exposed a younger audience to Duran Duran, thanks to the LP's first single, which became a streaming smash years later after being used in TikTok edits among gamers.

“Invisible” is a strong pop-funk track, but the album includes other sublime moments: the effervescent “All Of You,” the celebratory single “Anniversary” and the dark ballad “Wing” among them. In addition to “Invisible” and its sleeper success, Future Past held further surprises, including the bubbly “More Joy!” and the harder-hitting “Hammerhead.” 

Duran Duran have found room in their hit-packed setlist for “Invisible” after fans of the games Metal Gear Solid, Fortnite and Death Stranding 2 (Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima's new game) propelled the song into the band's top 10 most popular tracks of all time on Spotify. And it keeps gaining ground.

New fans who want to learn more about the band and their catalog as well as longtime Duranies should find something for them in Duran Duran On Track (Sonicbond Publishing). The book is available now in the UK and will be released September 26 in the US.

Check out Linktree for preorder links. The book can also be ordered from many other major retailers.

'Duran Duran On Track': The enduring allure of 'Rio'

As part of the countdown to the release of my book, Duran Duran On Track, I’ll be taking deeper dives into areas that are only touched on in the book.

Duran Duran’s entry into the On Track series, one that explores “every album, every song” by over 100 musical artists, features four of the band’s albums on its front cover: Rio, Seven And The Ragged Tiger, The Wedding Album and Paper Gods. (I was delighted to find out that Future Past made it onto the back cover.) 

While all Duranies have their favorite album, few would argue against Rio being considered the band’s seminal work. It’s the LP that saw Duran Duran continue their rise in the UK and break through in the US and still has an impact on pop culture today. 

Its breakout single, “Hungry Like The Wolf, ” was just played during a Sabrina Carpenter concert at BST Hyde Park. The young singer welcomed Simon Le Bon and John Taylor onstage, exposing a new audience to the band’s music.

While the band tours parts of Europe, their own live setlist remains a near-constant topic of debate among fans. The song selection is clearly designed to appeal to a wider audience, and the inclusion of indelible hits like “Hungry Like The Wolf” and “Rio” is a no-brainer.

I’ve attended 24 Duran Duran concerts and counting, and they’ve played “Rio” at all but one, near Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2012. When the band closed with “Girls On Film” instead, chants of “Rio!” “Rio!” from the audience followed. But alas, it wasn’t played.

During the band’s wilderness years, when only three longtime members remained, they would play the song at different points in the set. Now it’s the obligatory concert-closer.

Perhaps the song’s greatest impact is its video. A shot of the band on a yacht even graced the original cover of Greatest, which was just rereleased (albeit with a simpler design) and made it onto the top 10 physical albums chart in the UK.

No matter your favorite album or song by the band, they’re all covered in Duran Duran On Track (Sonicbond Publishing), slated to be released on 31 July in the UK and September 26 in the US.

Check out Linktree for preorder links. The book can also be ordered via PayPal in the US.

'Duran Duran On Track': A real-life extraordinary world

Welcome to an occasional series counting down to the release of my first book, Duran Duran On Track! I’ll be sharing stories behind the music which are touched on in the book but that I will explore further here.

When I learned that Duran Duran weren’t represented in the On Track series, one that includes over 100 books about musical artists ranging from AC/DC to Frank Zappa, I decided to write this book. As part of the research, writing and fact-checking process for my 55,000-word book exploring “every album, every song” by the band, I took some deeper dives into areas that are only mentioned in passing in the final product. 

One of those involved a stop at The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, during a trip to that state. Because the gorgeous gardens were the site of Duran Duran’s video for “Ordinary World,” my favorite track from my favorite album, a visit was planned to capture some photos.

Photos by Christopher Windle 

The Huntington is arguably the most famous site of a Duran Duran video in the United States. The filming of the clip, directed by Nick Egan, took place in The Huntington’s themed gardens, including the Japanese Garden, the Rose Garden and the Desert Garden. As shared on the Duran Duran Message Board in 2024, Egan described the cacti-filled garden as a place that “looked like another planet. I thought it was a great play on the idea of an ordinary world, which is anything but ordinary, in fact extraordinary, and those gardens were certainly that.”

Even on a fall day, the majesty of The Huntington can’t be denied. Our visit took place in late November, which was apt because the video itself was filmed late in the year, in December of 1992. 

The first of the featured gardens we visited was the Japanese Garden, where the four Wedding Album-era band members walked barefoot through the Zen Court at the end of the video. The garden, with its koi ponds, moon bridge and charming teahouse, was a tranquil place to start our visit. 

Though not quite in full bloom, the Rose Garden was a beautiful spot reminiscent of the English countryside. It was a bit surreal to walk the same winding path as the bride did in the iconic video. 

Chris with ‘Old Man of the Andes.’
Photo by Karen Windle

But the Desert Garden was the highlight of our visit. Among the seemingly otherworldly succulents was a fascinating cactus called “Old Man of the Andes.” Another sight that caught our eye was the towering Queensland kauri, the oldest planted tree in the gardens.

In Duran Duran On Track (Sonicbond Publishing), I examine the band’s 16 studio albums and key standalone singles, offering my take on each. This project was a key focus for me for the better part of a year, and I hope it offers something for everyone. 

The book is slated to be released on 31 July in the UK and September 26 in the US. Check out Linktree for preorder links. It can also be preordered from other major retailers, including Amazon, and I also have author-signed copies available for purchase if you are in the US!