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Duran Duran music biography continued...

(guitar) formed Duran Duran in 1978 with their friends Simon Colley (bass, clarinet) and Stephen Duffy (vocals). Taking their name from a character in Roger Vadim's psychedelic sci-fi film Barbarella, they began playing locally. By the end of 1980, after some line-up changes, Duran Duran had gained enough notoriety in the developing romantic movement to score a record deal with EMI. Their self-titled debut album arrived soon after and reached number three upon its release and stayed in the U.K. charts for 118 weeks. The band quickly followed the album with Rio in the spring of 1982. Rio entered the charts at number two, and its singles -- "Hungry Like the Wolf" and "Save a Prayer" -- became Top Ten hits. Duran Duran were now sensations in Europe, but began to break into the American market when MTV put their cutting edge music videos in rotation. MTV's constant playing of the videos paid off, and "Hungry Like the Wolf" became a Top Ten hit early in 1983. Rio followed that single into the Top Ten, eventually selling over two million copies. What followed for the group were a string of Top Ten singles in both the U.S. and the U.K., culminating in 1984's non-LP single, "Wild Boys," which reached number two in the U.K. and the U.S., where Duran Duran mania was in full swing.



By 1985, Duran Duran's grip on the charts had eased and after the band completed the title track for the James Bond film A View to a Kill, the group went on hiatus. Several members opted for solo careers that never amounted to much, and in March of 2001 three of the members regrouped, sparking rumors that the quintet would be back together again soon. The rumors happened to be true and for the next three years, a reconfigured lineup toured and recorded sporadically. They signed with Epic during this time, and released Astronaut in 2004, followed by Red Carpet in 2007. Says Rolling Stone: "Not until the last Duran Duran fan passes from the earth shall its name go unhonored. And Duran Duran fans shall never, never pass from the earth, not as long as there is sand somewhere upon which Rio can dance."