Created by Nick Rhodes (keyboards) and John Taylor (bass) in Birmingham, England in 1978, it later add took in Roger Taylor (drums), Andy Taylor (guitar), and Simon Le Bon (lead vocals). The band has sold more than 100 million records over their more than 40 years of existence, making them one of the best-selling groups in history.
Their songs are often vivid, hook-laden pieces dance pop that have fared well on the radio, but what many remember best about Duran Duran is their iconic music videos. Though many of the videos were tongue-in-cheek, the band has never quite escaped the glamorous and decadent 'jet set' image that their early videos projected. Their flashy outfits and strident, art rock influenced music showed an immense debt to 70s English glam artists such as David Bowie and Roxy Music, yet the band grasped a sense of their own identity and became one of the keystones of the new romantic movement.
Their first singer and one of their original founding members was Stephen Duffy, and their original bassist was Simon Colley. Several drummers and guitarists were subsequently tried, as well as a handful of vocalists, after Duffy left Duran Duran early in 1979. The band felt that they had something special with vocalist Simon Le Bon, and the group smashed into the pop scene shortly afterwards when "Planet Earth", their debut single, was released on 2 February 1981.
"Planet Earth" became an immediate hit in the band's native U.K., reaching #12 on the U.K. Singles Chart on 21 February, and it did even better in Australia, hitting #8 there. Being Duran Duran's first Top 10 hit anywhere in the world, the song showed the group's interest in international stardom. The band's eponymous debut album came out promptly afterwards in June 1981. 'Duran Duran' hit #3 on the album charts and remained in the U.K. Top 100 for 117 weeks, achieving platinum status by December 1982. The initial United States release failed to generate much interest at first, but the group was a British sensation due to their strident mix of pop rock and electronic music.
Music videos for hit singles "Planet Earth" and "Careless Memories" were filmed in December 1980. As they also experienced considerable success with "Girls on Film", which hit #5 on the UK Singles Chart and #11 on the Australian Singles Chart, the group firmly grasped the opportunity to make a name for themselves in musical television. As their fame grew, some fans worried that Duran Duran could have peaked too early. They headed into AIR Studios in London in early 1982 anxious to somehow top themselves.
Band member John Taylor came up with the new album's title, 'Rio', as a product of his fascination with the flaunting sexuality and diverse atmosphere of Brazil. He later said, "Rio, to me, was shorthand for the truly foreign, the exotic, a cornucopia of earthly delights, a party that would never stop." The band had their own plans and ambitions for promotion and reunited with director Russell Mulcahy (who was behind the video for "Planet Earth") to plan out the release of a full length 'video album'— eleven videos in total. Totally dedicated to on-site filming, guitarist Andy Taylor even contracted a tropical virus and ended up hospitalized, thankfully getting better relatively quickly.
'Rio' was, simply, a commercial juggernaut. The band's second studio album, originally released worldwide on 10 May 1982, reached #2 in the UK and #1 in Australia. Massively popular in the U.S., it earned a gold disc on 1 March 1983 and went platinum on 26 April 1983, eventually reaching double-platinum status. As songs such as "Hungry Like the Wolf" and "Rio" received considerable airplay, critical acclaim also grew for the release. With MTV heavily playing the band's music videos, the album is still held as one of the best new wave albums ever. In April 2013, 'Rio' was even voted #3 in BBC Radio 2's 'Top 100 Favourite Albums of all time' list.
In 1985, Duran Duran performed "A View To A Kill" for the the James Bond film of the same name. The song appeared in the movie's title sequence and was also a best-selling single in its own right. In 1987, "Out Of My Mind" was featured at the end credits of the drama film 'The Saint' as well.
Like Depeche Mode, Duran Duran was among the earliest bands to work on their own remixes. From the very beginning, the band had a keen sense of style, and worked with stylist Perry Haines and fashion designers such as Kahn & Bell and Antony Price to build a sharp and elegant image, soon growing beyond the ruffles and sashes of the pirate-flavoured New Romantic look.
Although the group never disbanded, it went through several line-up changes over the years - American guitarist Warren Cuccurullo (formerly of Missing Persons) was also a member of the band from 1989 to 2001, and drummer Sterling Campbell was a member from 1989 to 1991. John Taylor, Roger Taylor and Andy Taylor all returned in 2001 and created a stir among music media and the band's fans. Duran Duran released the first album from the reunited line-up, Astronaut, in 2004, which was in turn followed up by many sold out shows in England, most notably Wembley Arena, where a live DVD of the tour was filmed in 2004/2005.
In October of 2006, it was announced on Duran Duran's website that Andy Taylor had left the band. The band's latest album, 'Red Carpet Massacre' was released in November 2007. They performed the album live in New York City on Broadway at the Barrymore Theater, for what was originally scheduled as an unprecedented 10-night run. A stage hand union strike shortened the run by a few nights, but Duran Duran were able to re-schedule the shows elsewhere. They went on to tour the world, ending their successful run in December of 2008.
2008 also saw the release of a new DVD that documents the making of their now-classic "Rio" album (called "Classic Albums: Rio (Collector's Edition)"), and a book called "Would Someone Please Explain?"- a compilation of questions from the "Ask Katy" area of their popular website.
Duran Duran returned at the end of 2010 with their 13th album, the digital and self-released album All You Need Is Now which debuted at number one on the iTunes charts in many countries (including the USA). The physical version of the album will be released with bonus tracks in February 2011. The album was produced by Mark Ronson.
2015 saw the band return with the album Paper Gods, which was led by the single "Pressure Off" featuring Janelle Monae and Nile Rodgers. The album was the band's first top 10 chart success in the U.S. in over 20 years, and also reached number 5 in the U.K.
Official Websites:
http://www.duranduran.com
http://twitter.com/duranduran
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Duran-Duran
http://www.youtube.com/DuranDuran
http://www.youtube.com/07duranduran
http://www.myspace.com/duranduran
To the Shore
Duran Duran Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And you've drained your loving cup
Come stands reeling to the shore
When the brave are coming out
The dry fight and the dusty shout
See you crawling on the floor
Gorging your sanhedralite
Words are falling to the floor
Glands stand pouring fruit tree
Now they glisten on the waterline
See how you are at the shore
I'm moving Chrissie pretty flowers in the shutter maze
Haul up all your petty desires
Leave them lying down before
Wash away the rusty disease
Of your brown town days in our silver sea
Leave it dying at the door
Feather yellow your time to leave
Open out your arms and breathe
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
To the shore now
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
To the shore now
Come on
The lyrics of Duran Duran's "To the Shore" contain a mixture of obscure and metaphorical expressions that make it difficult to discern the song's meaning. The song appears to be a poetic reflection on leaving behind one's past and moving forward to a better life. The first verse mentions a "nine-day feed" being over and a "loving cup" being drained, which can be interpreted as a reference to life's pleasures and indulgences that eventually come to an end. The singer then describes someone "crawling on the floor" and "reeling to the shore" as if they are searching for something.
The second verse talks about "diamond stars shine glitter bright" and "sanhedralite," which aren't immediately clear in meaning. The imagery here could be related to the supernatural or mystical. The words "glands pouring fruit tree" may be a reference to a hormonal response that is triggered when we feel excitement or joy, in contrast to the singer of the song, who appears to be struggling. The final lines of the song encourage the listener to move beyond their current situation and "open out your arms and breathe" as they "wash away the rusty disease / of your brown town days in our silver sea."
Line by Line Meaning
When your nine day feed is up
When your physical resources and energy have depleted after striving for nine days, and you have nothing left to give
And you've drained your loving cup
And you've used up all the love and affection that you have in your heart
Come stands reeling to the shore
One forgets about everything else and earnestly seeks retreat to the shore to find peace, solace, and respite from the mundane life
When the brave are coming out
When brave people are emerging from their cocoons, unafraid to face reality
The dry fight and the dusty shout
When there is a fight in the desert, which can make the throat dry and gritty from sand, and people are trying to win or stand their ground
See you crawling on the floor
One can appear helpless on the floor, struggling for control when caught in a difficult situation
And diamond stars shine glitter bright
And the bright, sparkling stars shine in the dark night sky
Gorging your sanhedralite
Feasting on some exotic substance and experiencing an altered state of being
Words are falling to the floor
Words slip away and lose their impact
Glands stand pouring fruit tree
Emotions overflow and manifest themselves in tears, like fruit dropping from a tree
Now they glisten on the waterline
Now that the tears have fallen, they glisten on the surface of the water as the person stands by the shore
See how you are at the shore
Observe how the person has found peace, comfort, and solace at the shore
I'm moving Chrissie pretty flowers in the shutter maze
The singer is reminiscing about moving flowers in a maze, possibly for a girl named Chrissie, in a shuttered place
Haul up all your petty desires
Abandon your insignificant desires and wants in life, and move on
Leave them lying down before
Leave those petty desires behind and move forward
Wash away the rusty disease
Get rid of any negative and harmful experiences, and leave them behind
Of your brown town days in our silver sea
Get rid of any sad memories of your past and move on to something brighter and more uplifting
Leave it dying at the door
Leave your past behind and forget about it, as it is dead and buried now
Feather yellow your time to leave
It is time to leave, depart, and start anew
Open out your arms and breathe
Open your arms and take a deep breath, it's time to embrace the present moment
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Simon John Charles Le Bon, Roger Andrew Taylor, John Taylor, Andy Taylor
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Edgar Filho
Lyric:
When your nine day feed is up
And you've drained your loving cup
Come stands reeling to the shore
When the brave are coming out
The dry fight and the dusty shout
See you crawling on the floor
And diamond stars shine glitter bright
Gorging your sanhedralite
Words are falling to the floor
Glands stand pouring fruit tree
Now they glisten on the waterline
See how you are at the shore
I'm moving Chrissie pretty flowers in the shutter maze
Haul up all your petty desires
Leave them lying down before
Wash away the rusty disease
Of your brown town days in our silver sea
Leave it dying at the door
Feather yellow your time to leave
Open out your arms and breathe
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
To the shore now
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
To the shore now
Come on
Splitting Atoms
Me too it was worth having both just for this song. Sound of Thunder and To The Shore just exude emotion. Le Bon is a God. Duran Duran are so totally under rated and under appreciated.
mingkee27
LOL
I mentioned both as "an interesting pair"
littlenige
Not sure how old you are or where you are located but they are for sure not underrated. They were massive in the 80's in the UK.
MontagZoso
They are very appreciated now!
Prillan
Being a teen during the 80ies I had the great privilige to experiance the best music ever made! Duran Duran no exception.
KYabolicLE
people like to joke with me about them being my favorite band, but I don't care, they have the best music to me, and this song is incredible!
Arcana7609
Lucky for you and I, we get to listen to them and they get to listen to whatever crap they listen to
Zlad! Vevo
+Arcana7609zei is lisen tu Nickelback and Justin Bieber wile we lisen to clasics!
Zlad! Vevo
+Arcana7609 liv mi elon I is 4 and hard tu writ
Arcana7609
calls child and family services I'd to report the abuse of child. He's 4 and he's abusing my aesthetic sensibilities with his poorly made and executed Youtube persona"