Duran Duran emerged from Birmingham, England as an important and prolific New Romantic pop band circa. 1980, and quickly morphed nicely into more mainstream pop by the mid ’80s. Today, while not as popular as they once were, they continue to produce catchy, singable tunes with an intensity not often matched by other pop bands.
The group has morphed over the years from the original five (Simon LeBon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, Roger Taylor, and Andy Taylor) into various sub-combinations as members have come and gone, as well as initiated side projects like the short-lived group, Arcadia (Simon, Nick, and Roger). Currently, Duran Duran is: Simon LeBon (lead singer); John Taylor (Bass); Nick Rhodes (keyboards); and Roger Taylor (drums).
According to rankings on Billboard US Charts, these are the top 10 Duran Duran singles of all times:
10. Come Undone (charted at #7)
9. I Don’t Want Your Love (charted at #4)
8. Is There Something I should Know: (#4)
7. Hungry Like the Wolf (#3)
6. Union of the Snake (#3)
5. Ordinary World (#3)
4. Notorious (#2)
3. Wild Boys (#2)
2. The Reflex (#1)
1. A View to a Kill (#1 for 2 weeks)
(Rio only made it to #14; New Moon on Monday to #10; and Save a Prayer to #16)
Fans of the group could certainly debate endlessly about their 10 best songs. If you haven’t heard a lot of older Duran Duran music, this list is just one of many places you can start to get some ideas. Any list will be biased on personal taste and, particularly, when each rater began listening to the group. Since I grew up on Duran Duran in the early 80s, my list is more heavily populated with their works from that time. Additionally, it is difficult to grow up in the era when MTV actually played videos without one’s choices being contaminated by these memories, and Duran Duran was one of the most creative bands when it came to adapting their songs into (strange) video story lines. Hence, this top 10 list reflects Duran Duran’s excellence in both song and video.
(Note: this list includes only songs that were released as singles. There are album songs I love from Duran Duran even more than any of their released singles: “The Night Boat” from their first, self-titled album, and “Shadows on Your Side” from Seven and the Ragged Tiger, immediately come to mind.)
My Top 10 List:
10. Come Undone: from The Wedding Album in 1993. The video displays their New Romantic origins.
9. Rio: From the album of the same name, 1982 was a great year for this band. I think what I liked most about this song was the video – bikinis, beautiful beaches, and boats — classic DD. The song itself is catchy but not addictively so, and hence, only at #9.
8. Hungry Like the Wolf: Again, a classic from Rio in 1982. The dramatic appeal of the video, with LeBon racing after a wild Amazon woman in the jungle, contributes substantially to the appeal of this song.
7. Falling Down: From the 2007 album, Red Carpet Massacre, this is the second worst performing single on Billboard that Duran Duran has ever released. Hence, I’m sure its presence on my top 10 list will be controversial. All I can say is this is the first Duran Duran song in over 10 years that I’ve found infectiously singable, and helped me survive many long weekend commuter treks in my car along I-95. The video (currently unavailable online), like most Duran Duran videos, is awesome and replete with cocaine-chic fashion models. The video reflects the revolving door lifestyle that some Hollywood celebs have with drug addiction and rehab.
6. Save a Prayer: Again, from Rio in 1982. Soulful and heartbreaking, the synthesizer melody is amazing. ‘Nuf said.
5. Is There Something I Should Know: This song was added to the original self-titled album when it was released in the U.S. in 1983. How can you not sing along with this one? Please, please tell me now.
4. New Moon on Monday: from the album, Seven and the Ragged Tiger, this song hit the charts in 1984, reaching the top 10 in both the UK and US. The appeal of this song is the refrain, with its haunting vocal harmonies. What the heck is it about anyway? The video suggests an underground rebellion against a military regime, but I think like many Duran Duran songs, the lyrics may be somewhat random (“Shake up the picture the lizard mixture; with your dance on the eventide” – huh??).
3. The Wild Boys: From the album, Arena, 1984. Again, the video absolutely kills (the extended version is worth watching), and this song has one of the best clubbing dance beats of any ’80s song out there. (Right up there with “Rock the Casbah” by The Clash.)
2. A View to a Kill: This was the title song to the James Bond film of the same name in 1985. The video, which takes place on the Eiffel Tower is just quirky.
1. The Reflex: From Seven and the Ragged Tiger and released as a single in 1984, this was their first #1 hit in the U.S. This song hits Number One on my list for a completely biased reason: it was the first song that really made me a diehard Duran Duran fan. The video is not particularly interesting compared to their other videos, but the boys have never looked better. The lyrics are bizarre (“the Reflex is an only child he’s waiting in the park”) and may be completely meaningless.
Honorable mentions go to: “Union of the Snake;” “Planet Earth;” and “Careless Memories.” Duran Duran is expected to come out with a new album within the next year – I’m hoping for a new song good enough to modify this top 10 list. Keep on rocking!
