Artist · EveryDisc catalogue

Duran Duran

A British pop-rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978. The collective received its name from the name of the main antagonist of the film "Barbarella." Along with the similarly styled band Spandau Ballet, it was one of the most popular pop groups in the world in the first half of the 1980s and was, in the opinion of MTV, the main group of the "Second British Invasion" in the USA. The band is also called the "Birmingham Five." Despite the fact that they are generally viewed as part of the "new romantic" movement, along with bands such as Spandau Ballet, when they first appeared, the band later moved away from this image. The band's controversial music videos, which included partial nudity and sexual subtext, became popular in the early 1980s on the then-new music video channel—MTV. Duran Duran were among the first bands whose videos were shot by professional directors with 35mm film cameras, which gave their videos much higher-quality imagery than was the standard at that time. In 1984, the band was one of the innovators in the use of video technologies in their live performances in stadiums. The band was formed by keyboardist Nick Rhodes and bassist John Taylor, later joined by drummer Roger Taylor, and after numerous personnel changes, guitarist Andy Taylor and vocalist Simon Le Bon. The five of them made up the band's most successful lineup. The band never disbanded, but after Andy Taylor left in 1986, the lineup changed; former Missing Persons guitarist Warren Cuccurullo (played in the band from 1989 to 2001) and American drummer Sterling Campbell (from 1989 to 1991) joined the band. The reunion of the original five members in the early 2000s created excitement among the band's fans and music media. Andy Taylor once again left the band in the middle of 2006, and guitarist Dom Brown has worked with the band as a session artist on tours since then. In the first half of the 1980s, Duran Duran had several international hits on both sides of the Atlantic, including "The Reflex" (1st place in the USA and Great Britain, 1984) and "A View to Kill" (1st place in the USA, 2nd place in Great Britain, theme for a James Bond film, 1985).