The first three tracks - Notorious, American Science & Skin Trade - are the best Duran Duran stuff I've ever heard and are worth buying the album for alone.

The rest of the album is just OK IMO.

I love the brassy, funky sound. The album's first side is awesome (Notorious, American Science, Skin Trade, A matter of feeling and Hold me). The second side is just ok, but Meet el Presidente is another highlight, though.

This is their most elegant, sophisticated album yet. And it's pretty clear that they were paying homage to the soul/funky albums of Roxy Music and Bowie (Siren, Manifesto, Young americans, Station to Station); also, the influence of Prince's Parade is pretty obvious.

It's a shame that most of the fans didn't understand this album back in 1986 (as well as being angry by the loss of Andy and Roger Taylor)

WHile I am a fan of the song, This album never warmed up to me. I am not a big fan of Skin Trade (namely becaus they included that track instead of Do you believe in shame on the first GH) or Meet el Presidente.

I felt Big Thing was a much better album, but that's probably because Warren got involved.

superspaceboy said:

?

I have never understood why Big Thing is so loved by the Duran Duran fan community; it's terribly dated, the whole pseudo-house/rave sound is boring, filler is here and there, and the singles sound much better in their single-edit/mix versions (specially I don't want your love).
I mean, it's a much better album than Liberty, Meddazland , Pop fucking Trash or even Astronaut, but it's still their weakest 80's album, in my opinion...
[Edited 1/28/08 10:48am]

JoeTyler said:

Each to his/her own I guess. I think it was a departure in sound for them (which is why the Wedding album did so well). I know they say it's house/rave based, I certainly didn't hear it and I'm from Chicago. For me it was my first Duran Duran album, so it remains a favorite of mine.

I think it's a very rich album with a lot of textures beyond the pop sound they were known for. A song like Notorious is very easy for them to pull off. I think the songs on Big Thing were not so easy, but certainly worked With songs like Land, Too Late Marlane, Do you believe in shame & Drug.

I don't think it's thier best...nor is it their worst (up above mentions though I heard Pop Trash was a decent albeit different album).

superspaceboy said:

Yeah i agree, i always loved Big Thing and its one of their best i think. Notorious i liked, Liberty i liked a few songs. I think those 3 records were DD adapting to the holes in the band and looking for how to adjust to it. Big Thing the CD sounds very low however, kind of like Prince Sign o The times in many ways. It was a very broad array of styles, with the songs you mentioned and also Palomino. It still ranks as one of my faves from DD in their catlog.

lastdecember said:

Yes Palomino is a great song. A lot of folks don't know that Warren was filling in the gaps since Notorious. It really wasn't until the Wedding Album that he was made a full fledged memeber, even though he worked on Big Thing, and Liberty prior to the Wedding Album.

superspaceboy said:

Warren is missing from the DD formula.

superspaceboy said:

Yeah Warren was a huge part of DD, he brought new elements to them that i feel werent there before, and the change had to happen in some way since that new-wave style was ending they needed some new directions to go in at that poin. I really think that if Warren hadnt joined than DD would have ended, because he bridged that gap.

MikeMatronik said:

The irony that i find is that SONY shelved the first DD record that they did for them and in its place came Red Carpet. Sony turned it down saying it was "negative sounding" i think this had alot to do with Andy leaving, i dont think he was feeling what Timberland and Timberlake were going to do and he left the band. Im hoping that the demos for that album surface, since alot of demos from Astronaut did.

lastdecember said:

The fabled "Reportage" album. It was supossed to be very political in content.

I still think Warren was superior to Andy. The trio Nick, John & Warren are what made the DD sound fresh and great.

MikeMatronik said:

Yeah im sure Sony is thinking now, what the hell were we thinking. I think people would have accepted it more than Red Carpet, alot of fans werent digging the album, but in concert dug it a little more

YAY YAY YAY all the way! "Notorious" is one of the top 3 fave Duran releases. Anytime they work with Nile Rodgers, I automatically take notice. That was probably the last release that I liked from beginning to end for another decade or so. Check out the singles box set with various mixes of Notorious, Skin Trade, and Meet El Presidente.

MikeMatronik said:

Yeah i agree, its ironic, but i remember when the Wedding Album came out and seeing this interview and Warren saying it was strange because he was "american" and his style was more Euro and Andy was "British" and he was an american old style rock n roll player.

lastdecember said:

I like this album alot. Still it's a shame that John's bass is almost non-existant...and no guitar. But Nick is still there.

lastdecember said:

And Warren was the Zappa "fanatic"

lastdecember said:

Maybe the lyrical content was a bit...anti-republican or something like that. But I'm afraid of Simon's political lyrics (he's a very weak lyricist imo)...Still that spoken work B-side "God (London)" was fab.

Yay! And I can say that for Nile Rodgers production alone. But even with 2 Taylors missing, they still turned out some pretty good tunes: title track, American Science, Matter of Feeling, Meet El Presidente, Skin Trade.

MikeMatronik said:

Yeah im not sure what to think of this album, its the least i have listened to one of their albums in their whole output. I think mainly because it seems like a Simon solo record, and im not really sure why John was so "big" on the talk of the record, considering if he wasnt listed in the liner notes i wouldnt even know he was in the band anymore.

Song to song, Red Carpet Massacre is the best DD album since Rio.
Simon singing is excellent and Nick's synths are EVERYWHERE on EACH song of the album; ok, John and Roger "disappear" in the Timbaland's electronic/dance tracks, but they are featured heavily in the organic/conventional rock songs (The Valley, title-track, Falling Down, Box full of honey, Tricked out, She's too much and Dirty great monster)

It's a shame 'cos this album could have been a HUGE comeback, but the fans are too angry about Andy's loss (who needs that overrated prick, anyway?) and the "commercial" Timbaland's sound; also it's pretty clear that DD isn't big time in America anymore (Nite Runner is a solid single, but it isn't Ordinary world, that's for sure...)
[Edited 1/28/08 17:33pm]

JoeTyler said:

OK, I'm gonna be nice and simply say that I strongly disagree with you. I believe their latest album is quite weak.

NWF said:

I'm not surprised, since 90% of the fans believe the same

The funny thing about Red Carpet is: for the first time since the Wedding Album, the press has given positive reviews to a DD album, while the fans are talking shit about it

JoeTyler said:

I think for the most part to me at least, the album has this cold feel to it, and thats fine if its Britney Spears "Blackout" album than it works for the , but it just doesnt feel like them at all, and though DD has often taken turns like this in music, this seems like the band isnt even there.

JoeTyler said:

I'm a huge Duran Duran fan, but I have to agree. This album is hotter than I ever expected it to be! If you didn't buy it from Japan or through iTunes, you have to check out the bonus track "Cry Baby Cry." IMO, it's better than all of the songs that made the album.

As for Notorious, I agree with most of you. It has some fantastic songs, but it's a little uneven.

AlexdeParis said:

I think if it would have the inclusion more of the "live" sound of John and Roger in their it would have been stronger. The beats that Tim uses dont hold my interest that long, some songs, are better, but some just come off as being songs that didnt make Timberlakes album. With that said i dont think this album would have been big either way. Its release in November was a huge mistake, it really got lost in the shuffle and DD got lost too. My guess is that Sony just wanted to get it out at that point, i think their contract is up too with Sony.

lastdecember said:

And how do you know that? Looks a subjective statement to me...


Anyway, I agree about the dreadful release date of the album, as well as the non-existent promotional campaign of Sony

MikeMatronik said:

Me too. It's almost as if you can hear what the album would have sounded like with out outside producers.