I will begin by confessing that yes I am a Duran Duran fan... although I am not very keen on their last album, I have liked them since first seeing them as a support act to Hazel O'Connor way back in 1980! They had just been signed to EMI at the time, and when their first album 'Duran Duran' was released in 1981, I bought it immediately.
'Rio' followed in 1982, which saw the band achieving global success, Princess Diana stating they were her favourite band, and a following of screaming teenage fans wherever they went. I must admit, this used to annoy me somewhat at the time, as I think many males would no longer admit to liking them because of this! In fact, my then boyfriend refused to go to any more of their concerts with me, even though he liked them and had been with me on the previous occasions I saw them in 1980, 81 and 82. The audience's on those first two occasions had been mostly male, but after the release of Rio in 1982, this changed completely! I went to see them for the fourth time when on tour promoting this album, and it was scary! Screaming girls pushing, shoving and fainting, which spolied the experience for me. The band sounded great, but I never went to see them live again after this.
The band :-
Simon Le Bon - vocals John Taylor - bass Roger Taylor - drums Andy Taylor - lead guitar Nick Rhodes - keyboards
Seven and the Ragged Tiger was released in 1983, the third album form the band, and the last one to feature the original line up with Andy Taylor on lead guitar. Duran Duran carried on over the years that followed , with drummer Roger Taylor also leaving the band. A few years ago the original five members got back together and released an album, followed by a successful
tour. However, Andy Taylor has since left the band again.
I chose to review Seven and The Ragged Tiger, as this album contains my favourite Duran Duran track, and both this album and their debut album are my favourite albums by the band. The album's title is said by Simon Le Bon to represent the band. "The Seven is for us - the five band members and two managers - and 'The Ragged Tiger' is success. Seven people running after success. It's ambition. It's what it's about."
The album contains nine tracks, three of which were released as singles. By this time the band were also MTV superstars thanks to their previous videos shot in Antigua and Sri Lanka for singles from the 'Rio' album. Their first two albums were both completely different from one another, and this third album saw the band moving on again with a different feel, yet still providing solid drum and bass rhythm, and catchy choruses, with vocal harmonies from Simon, John and Andy which had previously seen them likened to The Beatles. The album also saw them depart from producer Colin Thurston, and enlist the help of Ian Little and Alex Sadkin to produce this album. Andy Hamilton, who played saxophone on 'Rio' also appears again on this album.
The album was remastered and re-released in 2003, however it is not a limited edition as stated above in the title here, it is simply remastered.
The tracks :-
1. THE REFLEX - this the opening track was released as a single and shot straight to the top of the charts, giving the band their second number one single. The single version which was released, however, is different to the album version, as it was remixed by Nile Rodgers, and contains the memorable 'Fl-fl-fl-fl-flex' intro! It is a good strong track, and perfect intro to the album, featuring a heavy bass line with a catchy keyboard and guitar riff. I like both the single and album versions, but probably have a slight preference for the album version, as it was this which I heard first. This is one of my favourite tracks on the album. The accompanying video featured the band performing on stage and was nominated for an MTV award for best stage performance. "You've gone too far this time, but I'm dancing on the valentine"
2. NEW MOON ON MONDAY - another single release from the album, and another of my favourite tracks. Some may remember the 20 min feature length video which was released for this ( and yes, it was before Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'!) and it features on the 'Dancing On The Valentine' video collection. The song begins with a deep vocal from Simon which builds to the higher notes of the chorus, which again is catchy and memorable and features great harmonies from John and Andy. "New moon on Monday, and a fire dance through the night "
3. (I'M LOOKING FOR) CRACKS IN THE PAVEMENT - Simon said the inspiration for this track came from him recalling walking home drunk and trying not to step on the cracks in the pavement. It is a slower track than the previous two, with a strong rhythm, and again a strong chorus which is trademark Duran Duran. "Something on my mind, is breaking open doors I'd sealed up before Something on my mind, makes me run when I thought I'd run too far"
4. I TAKE THE DICE - this is probably my least favourite track on the album. I am not saying it is a weak track, because it isn't. It is very up- tempo, catchy and more reminiscent of the tracks on 'Rio' in my opinion. "Show me your secret and tell me your name, catch me with your fizzy smile"
5. OF CRIME AND PASSION - the most 'rock' sounding track on the album. A dynamic track, fast-paced with lots of great guitar from the under-rated Andy Taylor (whose roots and influences are in rock music). I really like this track and I noticed when seeing the band live, the guitar featured loudly in their performances, but was often muted for the albums, which is a shame really, as I love their live sound. The track features heavy verses and a softer chorus, so quite different to the others. A great track! "Clouds on your shoulder, aren't they grazed by the afterglow How quiet they gather, when the storm is about to blow"
6. UNION OF THE SNAKE - another single release, and another solid bass driven track. A slower tempo than the other two singles, but plods along nicely with its strange lyrics and strong chorus. The b-side of the single release is a track called 'Secret Oktober', which I really wish had featured on the album as it is one of my favourite Duran Duran tracks, and would have been quite at home here. " The union of the snake, is on the climb Moving up, it's gonna race, gonna break through the borderline"
7. SHADOWS ON YOUR SIDE - picking up the pace again on this track, which was probably one of the most under-rated tracks. Fast-paced, with a lot of key changes, strong bass and guitar are what make up this track. "Promises made with a distant friend Truth should be known, it can only bend to a tune of its own Hey you'll never hear that voice again"
8. TIGER TIGER - a Nick Rhodes inspired instrumental track. Hauntingly beautiful, and leads into the final track.
9. THE SEVENTH STRANGER - My favourite track on the album. A haunting, ballad, which many thought would be a single, but I'm actually glad it wasn't. It has a spine-tingling intro, and a great vocal. I love these lyrics written by Simon : "A year of Sundays seems to have drifted right by, I could have sworn in one evening" When I first heard that line back in 1983, I connected with it right away and it still has the same feeling for me today. A beautiful end to a great album.
Duran Duran went on to achieve further success with subsequent albums, and when the original line up reformed a few years ago, they performed to sell-out arena's once again, and released a really good album 'Astronaut'. Sadly, as I mentioned previously, Andy Taylor left the band again after disagreeing on musical direction, that saw the band moving towards a more 'dance' based sound, which saw their last album 'Red Carpet Massacre' fail to reach the success of 'Astronaut'. Should have listened to Andy!
For me, although they still had a couple of decent albums after this one and some great singles 'The Wild Boys' and the brilliant bond them 'A View To A Kill', they never recaptured the feel or success of their first three albums in my opinion. There are however, a lot of bands around today influenced by these and other 80's bands, imitating them to a great degree of success such as The Killers, The Bravery, Franz Ferdinand etc.
Who said the 80's were rubbish?
*Review also appears on Dooyoo under same username
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