So let’s not dwell on the late 80’s when it comes to Duran Duran. Music had started to shift and the band’s audience started to explore new genres. Nineteen eighty six brought us the great album Notorious, minus two members of the band – Andy Taylor and Roger Taylor (no relation to each other or the Queen drummer). I am not exploring Notorious further because I think the singles “Notorious” and “Skin Trade” are great and represent a fairly significant shift in the band’s sound. These songs are much funkier than their previous pop offerings. No need for a deep dive on that album.

We skip ahead 10 years to 1993. Here we have an album of the quality and raw pop power that rival’s 1982’s Rio. The album is formally titled Duran Duran – the band’s 2nd eponymous album. But most fans call it The Wedding Album, as the cover shows photos of each band member’s parents’ wedding. We are rejoined at this point by drummer Roger Taylor.

This album produced hits “Ordinary World” and “Come Undone”. We’ll explore a little deeper. Does this album feature the most libertarian pop song ever?

Breath After Breath“. This song is…a departure from where we left off. It’s nothing like any of the songs I have previously showcased. It features the incredible Brazilian singer Milton Nascimento with the Portuguese verses. We also hear Warren Cuccurullo on Spanish-style guitar. What a new experience for Duranies that have matured from 12-something to 20-something!

Beating on my heart like a feather
beating of a moment ’til I disappear

None of the Above“. Most libertarian pop song ever? The song is pretty clearly referring to religion, but I’ve always listened to it with a more philosophical and ideological mindset:

I am I, myself alone
Realize I never need to use no one
When it comes down to my soul
Freedom puts my faith in none of the above

Since my familiarity with the deeper cuts on Duran Duran’s albums ends in 1993, we’ll skip the rest and go back to 1983 for the final article in this series.

Some songs to check out from more recent times are “Reach Up for the Sunrise”, “All You Need is Now” and the creeptastic “The Man Who Stole a Leopard” (one of my top 5 favorite songs of the band).

Next up we will look at my favorite all time Duran Duran song, and see if Tundra guessed it correctly.