Diving Deeper Into Duran Duran's "Rio"
Annie Zaleski has written the definitive book on the seminal 1982 album that helps listeners develop a deeper appreciation for the music.
As always, I thank you for spending some time with Michael’s Record Collection today. This week’s newsletter focuses on one album in my collection, but also on a method I use to gain a deeper appreciation and understanding for the music I enjoy.
Before I get to that story, I’d like to once again ask that you reply to this newsletter and let me know if you also listen to the MRC podcast or watch the videos. I am looking to optimize these efforts and it would be extremely helpful to know how much crossover there really is. You should be able to simply hit reply or write to me at michaelsrecordcollection@gmail.com.
Now, let’s get a little meta and write about music writing.
One thing that can make a big difference when it comes to appreciating music is finding out more about its backstory. There are multiple ways to do this, and it strengthens one’s connection with music when you know the stories behind its creation or dig deeper into the minds of the men and women who wrote, recorded, engineered, produced, and publicized it.
The internet is a pretty good invention (so I hear) for getting information. I’m also a sucker for a good music documentary. The Classic Albums series is excellent at telling an album’s story.
But you can also get that same kind of backstory the old fashioned way — through books. The folks at 33 1/3 have been churning out excellent books about meaningful albums since 2003. These books are sized somewhere between a CD and a DVD case and are fairly short in terms of page count, but they’re still packed densely with information. They’re full of facts, quotes from interviews with the artists, and details from those who worked on producing and promoting the albums.
Annie Zaleski recently released the 33 1/3 book on Duran Duran’s 1982 new romantic classic, Rio. Because I’m a child of the 1980s and someone who worshipped at the altar of MTV, Duran Duran was on my radar from the moment we got the music video network on our cable system. The Rio album and the band’s self-titled debut were both released before my family got MTV, but they were just entering the public consciousness in this country, and that is largely down to their airplay on MTV. But the band was about much more than fashion and style — although they were savvy when it came to both. Musicality was always at the forefront. Sometimes being “pretty boys” and having musical talent aren’t mutually exclusive.
Rio was quickly added to my growing cassette collection at that time and, much to my delight, the album tracks were as good as (or better than) the singles that were finally finding their way into the Top 40 — primarily “Rio,” “Hungry Like the Wolf,” and “Save a Prayer” — fueled by videos filmed in exotic locations. From the infectious chorus of “Hold Back the Rain,” to the hypnotic “Lonely in Your Nightmare,” to the eerie drama of “The Chauffeur,” to the manic energy of “My Own Way,” to the irresistible groove of “New Religion,” all nine tracks on the album deliver joy directly through the auditory canal to the tympanic membrane.
The band’s game-changing videos were more mini-movies than promotional clips, and they caught the imagination of the young people of mid-1980s America. Rio was a huge album and I’ve been a fan of it for many years.
So, I had to pick up Annie’s 2021 book. It was easy to pull the trigger on the purchase after a recommendation from a guy I worked with on the staff of my college newspaper — a music writer himself, who knows his stuff.
I’d read a lot of rock and roll biographies, autobiographies, and band profiles, but I’d never before read a book that specifically dove into just one album as in-depth as this one. The backstory of the album (and the band) is a fascinating one. There is enough information in the book to paint a picture of the band’s beginnings and transition from the first album into Rio to set the stage, but the bulk of it is about what went into the making of the album and its iconic videos, as well as the slow burn that made the album a worldwide success.
Rio eventually launched Duran Duran into the upper atmosphere of bands that could not only sell out the largest arenas and stadiums, but also had to hide from their legions of fans just to avoid being torn to pieces. And few people have taken as deep of a dive into the phenomenon of Duran Duran’s Rio as Zaleski.
Reading her book has led to me putting the bulk of the more than 150 releases by 33 1/3 on my to-read list. The series includes books about albums in many genres of music. The records covered include the likes of David Bowie’s Diamond Dogs, Blondie’s Parallel Lines, Lou Reed’s Transformer, Elvis Presley’s From Elvis in Memphis, and Metallica’s self-titled album. Whether you like country, soul, rock, folk, R&B, heavy metal, or punk, there’s at least one 33 1/3 book you’d probably like. They are as varied as the music they discuss.
These books are written after prospective writers submit their pitches for the albums they want to write about in a proposal process. Zaleski went through the process multiple times before getting the green light for her Rio book.
“I started pitching Rio in 2007 and I pitched it again in 2009 and neither time was successful,” she said. “And I basically put it on the shelf for a while because I was just like, ‘Oh, you don't have time to do this, and this is kind of discouraging.’”
Zaleski changed her mind after exchanging messages with a friend about submitting a pitch to 33 1/3. Her friend ultimately decided not to submit a proposal, but Annie went the other way.
“I was like, ‘You know what, I'm gonna do it,’” She said. “I'm going to be so upset if someone else pitched this book and got to do it and it wasn't me, because I've been wanting to do this for so long. I took my old proposal and ripped it up and made it a little better.”
The folks at 33 1/3 let Zaleski know in early 2019 that her proposal was accepted and she got the green light to write about Rio.
“I was shaking. It was like, ‘Oh my god, this is amazing,’” she said of getting the good news. “I was blown away because I had been wanting to do this for so long. And I'd loved the record for so long. So, it's like a dream come true.”
She set about scheduling interviews with the band and key personnel. She said the research and interviewing process took about eight months and the draft was ready in about a year. The editing process extended the project to about a year and a half and, finally, Zaleski’s book hit the stores and online outlets.
But…why Rio? I went through my high school years with the album, but what was it about this 1982 album that spoke to the younger Zaleski? It started with her introduction to the band, which didn’t happen until a decade after Rio was released.
“I came to Duran Duran in the early 90s when the (self-titled) ‘wedding album’ came out,” she said. “We had a modern rock station here called WENZ in Cleveland that played a ton of stuff from it, like ‘Ordinary World’ and ‘Come Undone,’ and I think ‘Too Much Information.’ But at the same time, they played Duran Duran’s 80s stuff, so the station was so cool. So, I came to a lot of that stuff at the same time I did (their) contemporary music. They would play ‘Hungry Like the Wolf’ or ‘Rio’ or something like that.”
Zaleski said she gravitated toward the Rio album in high school.
“I can't tell you what it is about the record I liked at the time, but I remember very distinctly being a teenager and just loving that record. I think it was just everything about the music,” she said.
Annie’s description is relatable. The same thing that drew her to Rio is what captured my imagination as a teenager in the early-to-mid-80s. While it would be easy to dismiss Duran Duran at the time as a precursor to the boy band craze solely due to their looks, the five members of the band — Simon LeBon (vocals), Nick Rhodes (keyboards), John Taylor (bass), Andy Taylor (guitar), and Roger Taylor (drums)…and here’s your obligatory reminder that the Taylors aren’t related — weren’t just getting by on their looks, groundbreaking and provocative videos, and fashion sense. There has always been a depth to Duran Duran’s music. It is music with texture that rewards attentive listening while remaining satisfyingly infectious and catchy when playing in the background during other activities. Not many bands can pull off both at the same time.
All someone has to do is focus on John Taylor’s inventive bass playing, Andy Taylor’s jagged, stabbing guitar punctuation, or Rhodes’ keyboard playing over his own masterfully crafted sequences on any given listen to come away with a deep respect for their ability to both play and fit parts together that blend perfectly. Read the lyrics and you may not necessarily grasp the meaning of LeBon’s words, but it’s clear there was something deeper going on beneath the surface than the typical angsty early-20s male.
“There was so much moodiness going on there,” Zaleski said.
Zaleski was able to interview all five members of Duran Duran, as well as others who were part of the Rio story. That access comes through in the book, as Zaleski recounts all of the relevant parts of the Rio narrative, from the prologue of its creation to its epilogue.
“All of them are honestly really easy to talk to,” she said of the band. “They are so self aware about not just what makes their music tick, but kind of how Duran Duran fits in the culture. They're extremely savvy, and they're extremely perceptive about that. And so that makes for really interesting interviews. They're very thoughtful and very forthcoming and you don't get that with a lot of artists.”
There are some great stories in the book about topics such as how “Hungry Like the Wolf” came together in the studio, how the band created that unique sound at the start of “Rio,” Rhodes’ exhausting journey from the studio to Sri Lanka for a video shoot, and more. One thing that comes across in Zaleski’s book is Duran Duran’s clear vision, drive, and goal of becoming the world’s biggest band.
“I think that's a lot of the reason why they became so successful is that they were all working together,” Zaleski said. “They were all going in the same direction. Everybody was very focused on the end goal. Having a group of people all working like that is also very rare. And they were so focused and so ambitious.”
With five musicians working tirelessly to get from point A to point B, Duran Duran created a masterpiece in Rio. One only has to go listen to the saxophone solo by guest musician Andy Hamilton on the title track to get a sense of why the music holds up today. Not only is the sax solo essential to connecting the parts of the song, but that interlude works equally well as a showcase for John Taylor’s bass work. It’s a bass solo and a sax solo happening simultaneously. Listeners can choose to focus on one or the other, or enjoy the interplay of the two. The band, along with producer Colin Thurston, knew how to craft a song that is never tiresome.
The other reason it’s difficult to get sick of Rio is that there are so many variations of the songs. Half of the album was remixed for U.S. audiences by David Kershenbaum just months after the initial release. Plus, there are “night versions” — longer dance mixes that were played in clubs. The different mixes and versions pull different elements of the song to the forefront, so the listener notices new things depending on which version they hear.
“This is kind of the crucial backstory to the record,” Zaleski said. “So, it came out and the sound of the record just wasn't necessarily like what was fitting in with U.S. radio. So, at the time, basically getting a radio hit was what bands needed to do. That was the pathway to success. And at that time, FM radio or just rock radio was like Rush and Van Halen and Journey and all these bands who don't really sound a ton like Duran Duran. So, they basically didn’t fit in.”
Kershenbaum, a veteran producer who had some success with English artist Joe Jackson, came aboard to give the record a little more of an American rock feel.
“And it's funny because it was very subtle. It's not like it was dramatic remixes,” Zaleski said. “I think Simon's vocals are higher in the mix and Andy's guitars are higher in the mix, keyboards are a little bit more in the background, it’s a little punchier, and that's really it.”
Having so many different mixes and versions is maddening for completists and collectors. Annie herself is still looking for a few versions but owns several versions of Rio.
“I have eight vinyl copies,” Zaleski said. “I have three CD versions. There's the 2009 Deluxe Edition. There is a 2001 reissue. I have one of the earlier ones. I think it might be the mid-80s one. So I have the three CD versions. And then I have a cassette. You almost need to have double the amount of Rios that I have to try to get everything. It's daunting.”
How do you know if your copy of the record is an early pressing? Zaleski said the tell is if “Hungry Like the Wolf” is less than four minutes long. However, that’s also true of the 2001 remaster on CD. Your best bet may be to get details from durancompilations.com or Discogs.
The knowledge dropped throughout her book is similarly helpful. It’s the fascinating story behind an essential 80s album, and for my money it deepens my appreciation of the music. It gives the listener a fresh perspective of an album that’s 40 years old, and that’s always a good thing.
You can order Duran Duran - Rio by Annie Zaleski on Amazon or your favorite bookstore, or you can buy it directly from her website (including signed copies). It’s a great companion piece for the album.
Find out more about 33 1/3 books at their official blog and get plenty of great stories about musicians in a variety of genres. I’m looking forward to reading many of their titles, including the ones about Tom Petty’s Southern Accents album and the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds.
Annie and I spoke in more detail about her background, her Duran Duran journey, the writing process for the book, and our shared love of Rio, with some good album discussion. You can see that full conversation below. Enjoy!
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