You can get off to a fast start. You can sustain your opener with the main course, not filler. But can you end on a high note? Sometimes I wonder if recording a strong closer is the most difficult thing to pull off when it comes to album rock. When it comes to the cream of the crop in music, I can think of more strong openers than strong closers. Nonetheless, I still have my favorites which I’ll be featuring on Mental Jukebox all month.
My childhood isn’t complete without this album. Few recordings are as connected to my early musical discovery years as Rio. This was an album that a family friend introduced my brother and I to. He raved about the singles. He went on and on about the ballads. And he paid proper homage to “The Chauffeur”. Rio was full of radio-friendly songs that paired nicely with elaborate and exotic video shoots. The album is sugary and sweet, which is what makes the final track a bit of a pleasant surprise. “The Chauffeur”, a fan favorite, is the indisputed anomaly on the album.
“Hungry Like The Wolf”, “My Own Way” and “Rio” grab you, but “The Chauffeur” grows on you. The closing track from Rio revealed a darker, more mysterious side to the pop band. “The Chauffeur” put Duran Duran’s versatility on full display, with a moodier synth experiment from Nick Rhodes and even Simon Le Bon on the ocarina. The track is atmospheric and even visual. I can picture a long, aimless drive by the chauffeur late at night every single time I hear it. It’s not just a great Duran Duran anthem, it’s one of the greatest closing tracks of the eighties.
“WITH A THOUGHT TO STIFFEN BROODING LIES. AND I'LL ONLY WATCH YOU LEAVE ME FURTHER BEHIND.”