Big Thing (Duran Duran album)

Last updated

Big Thing
Duran Duran - Big Thing.png
Studio album by
Released17 October 1988 (1988-10-17) [1]
Recorded1987–1988
Studio Davout (Paris)
Genre
Length44:48
Label EMI
Producer
Duran Duran chronology
Notorious
(1986)
Big Thing
(1988)
Decade
(1989)
Singles from Big Thing
  1. "I Don't Want Your Love"
    Released: 19 September 1988
  2. "All She Wants Is"
    Released: 19 December 1988
  3. "Do You Believe in Shame?"
    Released: 10 April 1989
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [2]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [5]

Big Thing is the fifth studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran. It was released on 17 October 1988 by EMI Records. Produced by the band, Jonathan Elias and Daniel Abraham, it continued the sonic musical change the band explored with their previous album Notorious (1986).

Contents

Unlike Notorious which was funk and R&B oriented, Big Thing strives for a more diverse approach. Side 1 consists of intense techno tracks with synthesized bass lines and rhythmic guitar riffs, while Side 2 leans towards a more avant-garde feel with a post modern atmosphere. The band features drummer Sterling Campbell and guitarist Warren Cuccurullo, who previously started work with the band on Notorious after the departure of Andy Taylor. Both would become members of the group in 1989.

The album was a moderate commercial success, reaching number 15 on the UK Albums Chart and number 24 on the US Billboard 200. The album received mixed reviews by critics, but some praised the experimental compositions and the band's evolving musical style. The album would be spearheaded by two top 20 hits: the first, "I Don't Want Your Love", which went to number 14 in the UK and number 4 in the US, with the second single "All She Wants Is" reaching number 9 in the UK and number 22 in the US, the last of Duran Duran's top 10 hits during the 1980s.

Like Notorious, the album would develop a cult following for the band's changing musical direction. A CD reissue (with one bonus track) was released in 1994. The album was reissued again by EMI in 2010. [6]

Singles

  1. "I Don't Want Your Love" (September 1988) #14 UK, #4 US
  2. "All She Wants Is" (December 1988) #9 UK, #22 US
  3. "Do You Believe in Shame?" (April 1989) #30 UK, #72 US

Promotional singles

  1. "Official Bootleg: LSD Edit" (as the Krush Brothers)
  2. "Big Thing" (UK and Mexico only)
  3. "Too Late Marlene" (Brazil only)

Track listing

1988 original release

All songs written and arranged by Duran Duran

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Big Thing"3:41
2."I Don't Want Your Love"4:06
3."All She Wants Is"4:34
4."Too Late Marlene"5:08
5."Drug (It's Just a State of Mind)"4:36
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."Do You Believe in Shame?"4:23
7."Palomino"5:19
8."Interlude One"0:32
9."Land"6:12
10."Flute Interlude"0:32
11."The Edge of America"2:37
12."Lake Shore Driving"3:03
Bonus track on 2006 CD reissue
No.TitleLength
13."Drug (It's Just a State of Mind)" (Daniel Abraham mix)4:20

As neither of the UK CDs show the track listings the difference between them can be identified by the catalogue numbers. These are:

2010 reissue

CD one
No.TitleLength
1."Big Thing (Nocymb)"3:41
2."I Don't Want Your Love"4:06
3."All She Wants Is"4:34
4."Too Late Marlene"5:08
5."Drug (It's Just a State of Mind)*"4:18
6."Do You Believe in Shame?"4:23
7."Palomino"5:19
8."Interlude One"0:32
9."Land"6:12
10."Flute Interlude"0:32
11."The Edge of America"2:37
12."Lake Shore Driving"3:03
CD two: Singles and B-sides
No.TitleLength
1."I Don't Want Your Love" (7" mix)3:47
2."All She Wants Is" (45 mix)4:36
3."I Believe/All I Need to Know" (full version)6:21
4."The Krush Brothers LSD Edit"3:30
5."God (London)"1:40
6."This Is How a Road Gets Made"0:47
7."Palomino" (edit)3:30
8."Drug (It's Just a State of Mind)" (remix)4:36
9."Big Thing" (7" mix)3:53
Mixes
No.TitleLength
10."I Don't Want Your Love" (Big mix)7:24
11."All She Wants Is" (US master mix)7:19
12."Big Thing" (12" mix)6:40
13."All She Wants Is" (Eurohouse mix)7:34
DVD: Big Thing Live – Palatrussardi, Milan, Italy, 12 December 1988
No.TitleLength
1."Introduction/God"1:57
2."Big Thing"4:10
3."I Don't Want Your Love"4:48
4."Hungry Like the Wolf"4:28
5."Do You Believe in Shame?"4:39
6."All She Wants Is/Planet Earth"5:47
7."This Is How a Road Gets Made/Winter Marches On"4:20
8."Palomino"5:47
9."Too Late Marlene"5:52
10."Girls on Film"3:43
11."Notorious"4:54
12."Skin Trade"5:58
13."Is There Something I Should Know?"4:56
14."The Wild Boys/Drug"8:02
15."Band Introduction/Save a Prayer"7:48
16."The Reflex"4:03
17."Rio"3:41
18."The Edge of America"9:42
The Videos
No.TitleLength
19."I Don't Want Your Love" 
20."All She Wants Is" 
21."Do You Believe in Shame?" 

Japanese bonus disc

Toshiba EMI also released Big Thing in a two-disc set, which featured not only the complete album, but a five-song live CD, Previously released as Duran Goes Dutch (US promo EP, 1987):

  1. "Notorious" (live)
  2. "Vertigo (Do the Demolition)" (live)
  3. "New Religion" (live)
  4. "Hungry Like the Wolf" (live)
  5. "American Science" (live)

Personnel

Duran Duran

Additional musicians

Technical

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Big Thing
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [22] Silver60,000^
United States (RIAA) [23] Gold500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

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