| "The Chauffeur" | |
|---|---|
 Side B of the UK single | |
| Song by Duran Duran | |
| from the album Rio | |
| Released | 10 May 1982 |
| Recorded | 1982 |
| Genre | |
| Length |
|
| Label | EMI |
| Songwriter(s) | |
| Producer(s) | Colin Thurston |
| Music video | |
| "The Chauffeur" on YouTube | |
"The Chauffeur" is a song by English pop rock band Duran Duran. [5] It is the ninth and final song on their second album Rio , released on 10 May 1982.
The lyrics of the song were first written by Simon Le Bon as a poem, which he later used when he was auditioning for the band in 1980. The lyrics were later used in "The Chauffeur". [6] [7] [8]
"The Chauffeur" has been described as a dark-gothic romantic track with the help of keyboards from Nick Rhodes when recording of the song first started. [8] [9] [10] AllMusic reviewer Donald Guarisco wrote that "Simon Le Bon croons the lyrics in a lascivious fashion against a purely electronic soundscape composed of icy synthesisers and throbbing drum machines" and that the song "avoids conventional pop song structure in favour of staccato phrases that meander high and low in a dreamy fashion". [11] British music magazine Classic Pop described the song as a "sinister synth-infused comedown". [8]
Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger calls it a dub record: "The bass drops out, the beats drop in, the skinny digital tick-tock start-stop of them is interweaved with found sounds (casino chips dropping, the creak of metal, looped and warped speech) and more beat hiss, the last two minutes bring the flute back, echo it." [4] Ewing also highlights other unusual elements in the track, including "the skronky sound of a guitar pretending to crack" at 0:15, the bass (which "rears, buzzes [and] purrs" throughout) glitching at 1:00 and 1:08, and the synth flute solo at 2:15 that switches the song into an art rock-styled march. [4]
The song was highly received by critics and gained popularity despite never being released as a single. Some even consider it to be one of the band's best. [8]
In a review of "The Chauffeur", AllMusic reviewer Donald Guarisco praised the song, calling it "one of the finest" and a "hypnotic ballad that has assumed an almost mythic status among the group's fans". He also wrote that the song "provided a stylish finale for the group's successful Rio album". [11] The A.V. Club's Stephen Erlewine described the song as a standout from Rio and ranked it the sixth-best song from Duran Duran's catalogue. [9] Gold Derby called the song "poetry and sex put to music, hypnotic and beautiful". [10] Ewing contended that only ABBA "were making more ominous chart music", saying of Duran Duran's track: "This is experimental exploitative peacock music, absurd but lovely. Right now, with authenticity and camp, art and pop so rigorously patrolled, it's kept that rarest of qualities – the element of surprise." [4]
The accompanying music video for "The Chauffeur" was directed by Ian Emes and draws inspiration from the 1974 film The Night Porter . [11] [12] [13] The video features a woman in an erotic costume driven in an Austin Princess limousine by a uniformed chauffeur. Elsewhere, another woman dresses herself carefully in lingerie and walks through the streets of London towards a rendezvous in an abandoned multi-storey car park. The chauffeur (Perri Lister) then removes her chauffeur uniform to reveal a topless blonde in an open-bust corset and performs a sensuous dance to the accompaniment of the instrumental coda of the song.
Due to the content of the music video, it was blocked from appearing on MTV. [11] [14] [15]
The song has been covered by many notable artists. American alternative metal band Deftones covered the song on their 2005 compilation album B-Sides & Rarities and was later featured on their 2011 compilation album Covers . [16] [17] The song was featured on the 2010 soundtrack album Greenberg by James Murphy. [11] American alternative rock band Warpaint covered the song as part of a Duran Duran tribute album in 2014. [18] [19] [20]
7-inch: EMI / EMI 5346 United Kingdom
7-inch: EMI / EMI 5346 United Kingdom
Note: Two different versions of this single were available in the UK, both with identical sleeves and labels.
CD: Part of Singles Box Set 1981–1985
Duran Duran
Technical
Duran Duran are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled in May 1980 as Rhodes, Taylor, singer Simon Le Bon, guitarist Andy Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor.
Rio is the second studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 10 May 1982 through EMI. Produced by Colin Thurston, the band wrote and demoed most of the material before recording the album at AIR Studios in London from January to March 1982. The band utilised more experimentation compared to their debut album, from vibraphone and marimba to the sound of a cigarette being lit and cracking ice cubes. Andy Hamilton played a saxophone solo on "Rio".
Nick Rhodes is an English keyboardist and producer, best known as a founding member and the keyboardist of the band Duran Duran.
Duran Duran is the debut studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 15 June 1981 through EMI. Produced by Colin Thurston, it was recorded in London and Oxfordshire between December 1980 and January 1981. The instrumental tracks were recorded quickly, but vocalist Simon Le Bon initially struggled to sing in the studio, leading to discussions about replacing him before EMI employee Dave Ambrose intervened.
Duran Duran is the seventh studio album and the second self-titled album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 15 February 1993 through Parlophone and Capitol Records.
Seven and the Ragged Tiger is the third studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 21 November 1983 through EMI and Capitol Records. Co-produced by Alex Sadkin, Ian Little and the band, recording sessions took place in France, the Caribbean and Australia between April and October 1983 following Duran Duran's decision to record outside the UK as tax exiles. Unlike their previous two studio albums, the sessions were marred by a lack of productivity and tensions rose between the band members over its direction.
Notorious is the fourth studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 24 November 1986 by EMI Records. Produced by the band with Nile Rodgers, its musical style differed from the band's previous albums with a funk rock sound. It is the first album to feature the band as a trio with singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and bassist John Taylor, as drummer Roger Taylor and guitarist Andy Taylor both left by the time the album was released. Andy Taylor would later be replaced by former Missing Persons guitarist Warren Cuccurullo, who completed recording parts of the album in addition to Rodgers and session drummer Steve Ferrone.
"Is There Something I Should Know?" is the eighth single by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 14 March 1983.
"Notorious" is a song by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released internationally by EMI on 20 October 1986 as the first single from their fourth studio album of the same name. It showcased a new direction for Duran Duran with a funk rock sound.
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"Do You Believe in Shame?" is a song by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 10 April 1989 as the third and final single from their fifth studio album, Big Thing (1988).
"Save a Prayer" is a song by the English new wave band Duran Duran, released on 9 August 1982 as the third single from their second album Rio (1982). It became Duran Duran's biggest hit on the UK Singles Chart, reaching number two. As of October 2021 "Save a Prayer" is the sixth most streamed Duran Duran song in the UK.
Medazzaland is the ninth studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran. It was released on 14 October 1997 by Capitol Records solely in North America, Latin America and Japan. The title is a reference to the anesthetic midazolam, which Simon Le Bon was given during dental surgery. It reached number 58 on the Billboard 200 and number 66 on RPM's albums chart.
"Planet Earth" is the debut single by the English new wave band Duran Duran, released on 2 February 1981.
"Girls on Film" is the third single by the English new wave band Duran Duran, released on 13 July 1981. It became Duran Duran's first top 10 hit on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 5 in July 1981, and an international hit reaching the top 20 in several countries, including number 1 in Portugal, number 4 in New Zealand and number 11 in Australia.
"Hungry Like the Wolf" is a song by English new wave band Duran Duran. Written by the band members, the song was produced by Colin Thurston for the group's second studio album, Rio (1982). The song was released on 4 May 1982 as the band's fifth single in the United Kingdom, and 8 June 1982 in the United States. It reached No. 5 on the UK Singles Chart, and received a platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).
"Rio" is the seventh single by English rock band Duran Duran. It was first released as a single in Australia, in August 1982, followed by a UK release on 1 November 1982.
"Ordinary World" is a song by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 19 December 1992 by Capitol as the first single from their second self-titled album (1993), commonly known as the Wedding Album. It was later released in the UK by EMI and Parlophone on 18 January 1993. The ballad, both written by the band and co-produced with John Jones, topped the US Billboard Top 40/Mainstream chart, the Canadian RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart, and the Italian Singles Chart. It also peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, number two in Iceland and Sweden, and number six on the UK Singles Chart. The song's music video was directed by Nick Egan and filmed in California.
Paper Gods is the fourteenth studio album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released on 11 September 2015 by Warner Bros. Records. The album was produced by Mr Hudson and Joshua Blair, who had worked with the band on All You Need Is Now (2010) and A Diamond in the Mind: Live 2011 (2012); Nile Rodgers, who had previously first worked on the band's "The Reflex", his remixed version reaching number one, "The Wild Boys" single and Notorious album; and Mark Ronson, who produced All You Need Is Now. The first single, "Pressure Off", features vocals from American singer Janelle Monáe. The album was supported by the Paper Gods on Tour.
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