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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best album of the 80s - by far, 2 Jun 2005
For those familiar with the big hits on Rio (and if you aren't familiar, where you been?!) it should come as no surprise that this album is a pop masterpiece. However, what should come as a surprise is the outstanding level of musical and artistic complexity contained herein. To quote Nick Rhodes 'we thought we were creating an art-house album'. And they were. It is testament to the plethora of hummable tunes and the boys' pop-nous that the album became the huge international smash it was. It is therefore an album that can be enjoyed on a number of levels: slap it on at parties and get them dancing but put it on your headphones and marvel at the depth and originality.Let's start with the big picture: this is the best produced album of the best produced era in pop music. Trevor Horn eat your heart out (OK, the Lexicon of Love was a good effort), Colin Thurston was THE producer of the early 80s - witness Kajagoogoo and Thompson Twins. Rio has that oh-so-rare quality of allowing great depth and breadth whilst also allowing each instrument and part to be picked out and listened to individually. ie, you can hear the parts, the sum of the parts or even both together if you so wish! It is complex without being crowded. This makes for a really cultured listening experience which really rewards - particularly on a good hi-fi: this is what CDs were invented for. So what does it sound like? OK, so you'll know the tunes so I won't dwell. Instead let's deal with the music. All the tracks are held together by the outstanding rhythm section of Roger and John. The complexity of the work by both of them must be acknowledged - just witness the cymbal work on Last Chance and the bassline on Rio. John uses subtle use of slap mixed with complex finger play and the bass tone is excellent, providing depth yet maintaining a treble sound to mark out each line. Roger clearly appreciates the need to dance and underpins his play with driving rhythms. On top of this we have Nick adding synths on a number of levels. In particular, his sweeping string-based chords add texture to many tracks, building to a climax (witness Last Chance in particular - the best track Duran ever wrote which, in my humble opinion, says all you need to know about this album) yet never dominating. On many tracks Nick also takes synths to a new level for 1980s pop - the staccato popping that opens Hungry Like the Wolf or the build-up at the start of Rio are highly original. The real strength here is using synths for doing what only they can do - sound like synths and all the better for it. Andy uses guitar on a number of levels too - in particular matching choppy chords, carrying on from the debut album, with a number of catchy riffs (New Religion, Last Chance...). For a rock man his subtlety is noteworthy and a mark of the music on this album: nothing dominates, everything compliments. Simon's singing is great throughout and, again, very well produced. His lyrics sound as all good pop lyrics should - like they mean everything yet in themselves are meaningless. The ingredients create an album of rare depth and complexity. It was clear that the boys took their art very seriously and the result was a very serious piece of music. If it hadn't sold so well (what a crime) it would surely be held above the Lexicon of Love as the true pop masterpiece of the 80s. Buy it and you'll be rewarded on many levels.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic - a real summertime CD !, 3 Aug 2001
I loved Duran Duran in the eighties and Rio is their very best albumn. The songs just bring summer right to you - even when it is raining. This newly released version of the classic Rio is enhanced with three videos which take you right back to when white linen suits were so trendy. The videos also have little comments at the side during the showing giving you insights into the filming. As well as three videos, the enhanced version also has a complete discography, lyrics and a great photo gallery which takes me right back to being a teenager again ... A brilliant CD, buy it and buy it now !
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The quintessential 80's album, 23 Jan 2006
For those of us who were there, Rio is THE album of the 80's - from it's distinctive album cover to it's ground-breaking videos. Although most of us 'got' the tongue-in-cheekness of the Rio video and that iconic yacht shot, the critics never forgave them for it - and it has unfairly dogged them ever since. But look a bit closer, underneath all of that there is a very original, diverse and ageless body of work that stands the test of time where others from that era do not. Like other albums that were made in the vinyl era there is a distinction between what was 'Side 1' and 'Side 2'. Side 1 is the one to dance to with full-on guitar riffs alongside the creatively used synths. And perhaps that is why this album has aged so well. Synths give the music colour and form and interest - but do not dominate. This is pop music but it's not 'bubble-gum' pop it's big, brash, colourful, at once extrovert and introspective and always individual. Hold Back The Rain should have been a single; Hungry Like The Wolf, one of their most well-known hits, has a menace and energy to it that still comes across. But it is Side B that brings the revelations. One of my favourite ever Duran tracks is 'New Religion'. It blew me away when I first heard it, it's sombre, cathedral-like opening gives way to a clean, soaring guitar, a pumping bass-line and a dual chorus (pick the easy one or the hard one to sing along to) containing some of Le Bon's most interesting and original lyrics. It still gets my toe-tapping after 20 years. But there's more: the lush and beautiful 'Save A Prayer' with the distinctive synth hook and one of my favourite lyrics 'so you wanted to dance, so I asked you to dance but fear is in your soul, some people call it a one night stand but we can call it paradise'. It's just great. The album rounds off with a critical and fan favourite: The Chauffeur. It's spare and slow and again the lyrics are almost incomprehensible, but it has an atmosphere of melancholy and a sexy strangeness that is compelling. This track more than any other is the 'link' between the Duran of 'Rio' and the Duran of their eponymous debut - but also a taste of this band's creative strength which is often overlooked. You should buy this album because it represents an era by being outside of that era: no CD collection should be without it if you want to have the best of the best.
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