You see it; thats right...the 'Duranduran' album, in a special 'gold' case, even...the one where they wanted to be taken seriously. And I went for it. I still believe in it.
I always liked Duran Duran; I was with them as soon as I heard 'Hungry Like The Wolf'. I was caught in the initial wave of MTV and I always made sure to watch for the Durannies. They were all over MTV in the early days, kiddies. The 'Rio' album is still one of my favorites from that era. The videos were iconic; the cats just looked cool as hell and they actually could play. (John Taylor is a silly bass player, y'all...and no one on Earth has a tone like Simon LeBon.) I was turned onto to the actual first release by an awesome show that used to be on the USA Network called 'Night Flight'. They showed the 'uncensored' videos laaaate at night. I caught 'Girls On Film' and it was a WRAP...!
*click the link in the title of this post for my redemption*
... and I stay with my bands for a while, man. Once a band puts out something that REALLY connects with me, I'll buy everything they put out until I think they just don't care anymore (or they have just lost it).
I stayed with the Durannies. I bought that crappy 'Seven And The Ragged Tiger' album (and I didn't dig too much on that alubm) I bought the albums by the side projects (The Power Station & Arcadia) when there was too much ego going on within the group for them to function as a whole, I stayed with them through the departure of two members, 'Notorious' was aight...a lotta cats had given up on them and then they dropped this joint...
The big 'hit' on this album is 'I Don't Want Your Love'.
As far as I can tell, 'Big Thing' was not in fact a 'big thing'. I still bust this one out, kids. There are no less than four songs other than the single that showed my loyalty to the Durnannies was warranted. They had kinda fallen out of the spotlight by this time, I was a whole new person by the time this came out, having gone through a lotta awkward 'first' experiences of all kinds, but they were 'growing' and so was I.
Hated the title track. Horrible opening track. There's the single, okay...'All...She...Wants...Is...'....NOPE....I started to think that Duran Duran had been listening to too much industrial music. It was the new burgeoning sound, but I sure as hell didn't want that from the Durannies. Gimme some hooks, some melodies, synth sweeps, guitars, wicked hit-hat work and funky basslines.."doop doop doo doop, doop doo doo, doop doo doo doop, doop dooooooo"....I am with you on the growth thing but gimme something, man. I already like Nitzer Ebb (we'll get to that), I don't need that from you doop doop dooooooo
...and then this sweet little piano line and this funky little drum machine. Almost too smooth, reminiscent of the cool-down stuff on 'Rio' ('Lonely In Your Nightmare', 'Save A Prayer'). I was caught by it, off-top...'Too Late Marlene'. Keeper.
Another dancefloor burner called 'Drug (It's A State Of Mind;)'. And then you flip the tape...and find the reason I bothered to upgrade to a CD on this one when it was time to do so...
The second side of this album was as 'serious' as Duranduran (their spelling for this album, another way for them to say, 'This is different...') They had a tribute song for Andy Warhol followed by what it still, to this day, one of my favorite album sequences ever. 'Palomino', which one of my favorite melodies and an awesome little atmospheric interlude...although it's one of those songs that a lotta people may classify under 'filler'. I think it is proof that my boys were reaching for something else.
...followed by a nice ethereal piece called 'Land', that may or may not be about mermaids or something...pieced together with a coupla interludes and wrapped up with an instrumental.
'Big Thing' caught up with me at a time when I wanted to be taken seriously too. I was growing up and so was Duranduran. I remember very vividly listening to it over and over on the way back to Gary, IN from Washington, DC to see my Grandma Mary for the last time. It was the first and last time I rode a train for an extended period also. Life was changing. I was changing. People that were here all the time were gone. We all hafta soldier on though. We all hafta know that there are people out there pulling for us.
"Aight, I'll spell it as one word, Yeah, Roger and Andy are gone, but I am with the team. And y'all call me 'Rock J' from now on."
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