That's right hubbers!  I don't know if this is allowed but I will tell you a story about anyone you want to know about.  AND I can tell you the songs that are worth your while from that artist.

Who are you into? or thinking or getting into and just want a DJs opinion on?

What are you opinions about Duran Duran?  Just curious because I have always liked some of their songs.

Hey DJ,

We have an international audience here. Are you prepared to talk about Arab or Russian groups? Philippinian or Indian?

Misha wrote:

Hey DJ,

We have an international audience here. Are you prepared to talk about Arab or Russian groups? Philippian or Indian?

Duran Duran is from the UK.  They are pretty international in their popularity.  I like Arab music and love to watch belly dancing.   I do not know much about Russian music, maybe you can share some of this with us Misha .

Misha wrote:

Hey DJ,

We have an international audience here. Are you prepared to talk about Arab or Russian groups? Philippinian or Indian?

No.

SweetiePie wrote:

What are you opinions about Duran Duran?  Just curious because I have always liked some of their songs.

My opinion is that like all new wavers of their day, they wanted to be The Clash in the early days but when they found out what their strengths were, they weren't interested in being them anymore.

Duran Duran who gets their name from the villain character in the Jane Fonda space adventure Barbarella, had a few strengths.   

Here they are...the strengths and weird facts about DURAN DURAN off the top of my head at 2am

1.  They had a lead singer who could sing, a bass player who could play and they both had faces that were meant for MTV's teenage girl audience.   

John Taylor and Simon LeBon were to girls what David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen were to boys.   Someone to hang on your wall with big glossy poster.  VH Logo on the Notebook.

2.  They wrote very good pop songs!

Hungry Like The Wolf, Girls On Film, Save a Prayer, The Reflex & Ordinary World

3.  When they wrote bad ones, they covered it well with terrific videos!

The Wild Boys, Union of the Snake, New Moon on Monday, A View To A Kill

4.  None of the three guys named Taylor were at all related.  John (Bass) Andy (Guitar) & Roger (Drums) and Nick Rhodes' last name is really Bates.  I remember this totally true factoid ONLY because I used to imagine him in England as a boy being called in for tea, "Oh Master Bates...." 

5.  The some of the side projects the band did were okay, too.  Side projects are notoriously self-indulgent and forgettable.   

Andy & John Taylor joined up with Robert Palmer & CHIC drummer Tony Thompson to form supergroup The Power Station who scored 2 Fat Hits in the US.  They were "Some Like It Hot" & their hard rock rendition of T. Rex's 'Bang a Gong' which they titled "Get It On". 

Meanwhile, Simon, Nick & Roger were forming ARCADIA who had one hit with the blah single, "Election Day".   But it doesn't stop there.  Andy Taylor also did some writing for former Go-Go Belinda Carlisle's solo debut including a solo on her first single, "Mad About You".


6.  John & Andy Taylor were also active in the hollywood soundtrack game.  John Taylor did the theme song to what classic 80s skin flick???    You got it.   "I Do What I Do" was the theme to 9 & 1/2 Weeks!   Andy Taylor did the theme song to the pathetic 80s gymnastics movie AMERICAN ANTHEM called "Take It Easy". 

John's single reached #23 and Andy's went to #24.   (That I did look up!)

Andy's follow-up single in '86 was called "When The Rain Comes Down" and was featured on the Miami Vice II Soundtrack.  (Apparently TV Shows had sequels too?)

7.  They give respect.  They did an album of covers in order to honor the people who inspired them when they started.  The single from this album was a version of "White Lines (Don't Do It)" and it was just awful.   They even got Grandmaster Melle Mel to do some rapping on it but it didn't help.  Nice thought though.

It's 2:45 and i am done.

DJ Funktual wrote:

SweetiePie wrote:

What are you opinions about Duran Duran?  Just curious because I have always liked some of their songs.

My opinion is that like all new wavers of their day, they wanted to be The Clash in the early days but when they found out what their strengths were, they weren't interested in being them anymore.

Duran Duran who gets their name from the villain character in the Jane Fonda space adventure Barbarella, had a few strengths.   

Here they are...the strengths and weird facts about DURAN DURAN off the top of my head at 2am

1.  They had a lead singer who could sing, a bass player who could play and they both had faces that were meant for MTV's teenage girl audience.   

John Taylor and Simon LeBon were to girls what David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen were to boys.   Someone to hang on your wall with big glossy poster.  VH Logo on the Notebook.

2.  They wrote very good pop songs!

Hungry Like The Wolf, Girls On Film, Save a Prayer, The Reflex & Ordinary World

3.  When they wrote bad ones, they covered it well with terrific videos!

The Wild Boys, Union of the Snake, New Moon on Monday, A View To A Kill

4.  None of the three guys named Taylor were at all related.  John (Bass) Andy (Guitar) & Roger (Drums) and Nick Rhodes' last name is really Bates.  I remember this totally true factoid ONLY because I used to imagine him in England as a boy being called in for tea, "Oh Master Bates...." 

5.  The some of the side projects the band did were okay, too.  Side projects are notoriously self-indulgent and forgettable.   

Andy & John Taylor joined up with Robert Palmer & CHIC drummer Tony Thompson to form supergroup The Power Station who scored 2 Fat Hits in the US.  They were "Some Like It Hot" & their hard rock rendition of T. Rex's 'Bang a Gong' which they titled "Get It On". 

Meanwhile, Simon, Nick & Roger were forming ARCADIA who had one hit with the blah single, "Election Day".   But it doesn't stop there.  Andy Taylor also did some writing for former Go-Go Belinda Carlisle's solo debut including a solo on her first single, "Mad About You".


6.  John & Andy Taylor were also active in the hollywood soundtrack game.  John Taylor did the theme song to what classic 80s skin flick???    You got it.   "I Do What I Do" was the theme to 9 & 1/2 Weeks!   Andy Taylor did the theme song to the pathetic 80s gymnastics movie AMERICAN ANTHEM called "Take It Easy". 

John's single reached #23 and Andy's went to #24.   (That I did look up!)

Andy's follow-up single in '86 was called "When The Rain Comes Down" and was featured on the Miami Vice II Soundtrack.  (Apparently TV Shows had sequels too?)

7.  They give respect.  They did an album of covers in order to honor the people who inspired them when they started.  The single from this album was a version of "White Lines (Don't Do It)" and it was just awful.   They even got Grandmaster Melle Mel to do some rapping on it but it didn't help.  Nice thought though.

It's 2:45 and i am done.

Thanks DJ!  It was a lot of fun to read all this.  I really liked their videos and I still really like the song Rio.  I always like Hungry Like the Wolf, even though I was only four when it came out.  It was one of the first videos I remembered and it always reminded me of The Three Little Pigs .

Anyone else has a request, I'm always here!

You forgot to add that Duran Duran were also very cute

Uninvited Writer wrote:

You forgot to add that Duran Duran were also very cute

1.  They had a lead singer who could sing, a bass player who could play and they both had faces that were meant for MTV's teenage girl audience.   
Same Thing

Give me another one?  I'm hungry for more!

I was asking you about Santana but I figured he has such a large history . So I´ll go for Fat Boy Slim .

Ken dodd and the diddy men!

Norman Cook was a member of the UK new wave band The Housemartins.  They had a #1 single in the UK with their version of the Isley standard "Caravan of Love".  It was a minor hit here on NY radio.  It is a capella and I actually used it at my wedding.  Lovely.  Moving On...

His first hit as a DJ was with Beats International who we all know from "Dub Be Good To Me".

Then he formed Freakpower which had a Levi's ad attached to their song "Turn On, Tune In, Cop Out".

Then he made a solo album of house music under another pseudonym, Pizzaman.  They had 3 UK hits but nothing in the states.

Then he remixed Magic Carpet Ride under the nom du jour Mighty DubKatz.

Then finally he became FATBOY SLIM.  a lot freakin hits would follow...

1)  Brimful of Asha by Cornershop (REMIX)
2)  Everybody Needs a 303
3)  The Rockafeller Skank
4)  Praise You
5)  Right Here Right Now
6)  Weapon of Choice
7)  Star 69
8)  Sunset (Bird of Prey)
9)  Slash Dot Dash

He released a free mixtape in a NME magazine 1997

He released the amazing sample compilation A BREAK FROM THE NORM in 2001

His Greatest Hits package called Why Try Harder came out in 2006

waynet wrote:

Ken dodd and the diddy men!

You tell me.

OK, DJ - I'll play -

Let's hear something about my all-time favourites - Jethro Tull

I've seen them many times and rate Ian Anderson and Martin Barre as one of the al-time great Rock partnerships. The others in the band come and go. What do you reckon?

Van Halen DLR era

Paraglider wrote:

OK, DJ - I'll play -

Let's hear something about my all-time favourites - Jethro Tull

I've seen them many times and rate Ian Anderson and Martin Barre as one of the al-time great Rock partnerships. The others in the band come and go. What do you reckon?

I'll begin by saying that honestly....I am not a fan. But here goes.

This progressive-rock group from Blackpool, UK led by Ian Anderson (Vocals, Flute) and Martin Barre (Guitar)  The band's name comes from the 18th Century agriculturist / inventor of the seed drill.  (read: penis)

Prog-Rock was made famous by groups like Genesis, Yes & King Crimson.

The vision we all have of Anderson on one leg playing the flute is indelible and may be the ONLY reason we remember them.  Back in the late 60s these guys were a blues band led by then guitarist Mick Abrahams. 

I guess the lure of campy medieval hobbit-rock was too tempting. 

TRAFFIC and LOVE had used the flute prior in the 60s but the 68 emergence of TULL brought the flute to it's proper standing.

Re: AQUALUNG - Released May '71 (two months after I was born)
3,000,000 sold on this exploration of man's relationship with God. 

Re: Too Old to Rock-n-Roll, Too Young To Die - bad title for your album if your an over-the-hill rocker trying to make a comeback with a concept album about an aging rocker.

Other key member moves were:
Barriemore Barlow replacing Clive Bunker on drums in '72
John Evan (piano) '71-'77
John Glascock who died in '79 had replaced Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond on bass in '76 who had replaced Glenn Cornick in '71

They infamously won Metallica's Hard Rock / Heavy Metal grammy in 1988 for their album Crest of a Knave.  They responded to all the bad press of their winning with an ad in a british magazine stating "The Flute is a heavy metal instrument!"  Uh...yeah.

When Metallica finally won their grammy in '92, Lars Ulrich said, "Well thanks to Jethro Tull for not putting out an album this year."

Albums you need:
This Was - 68
Aqualung - 71
Songs From The Wood - 77

and the concept albums were:
Thick As A Brick
A Passion Play

Songs you probably heard:
Hymn 43
Aqualung
Cross-Eyed Mary
My God
Locomotive Breath
A Passion Play (edit #8)
Bungle In The Jungle
Minstrel in the Gallery
The Whistler

CHARTED OVER 25 ALBUMS!
Living In The Past

TiffanyDow wrote:

Van Halen DLR era

EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!!!!  I WANT SOME TOO!

The Van Halen Brothers (Eddie and the two years older Alex) were born in Nijmegen, Netherlands before moving to Pasadena, California in '68.   It is true that initially Eddie played the drums and Alex the guitar but that did not last.

David Lee Roth was in my opinion the greatest FRONTMAN in rock history!  The gymnastics and the pompous flare were all his.   Bass player and forgotten man Michael Anthony was a key backing vocalist who often covered Dave's inadequacies.  He however was not included in the world tour that Van Halen has done this year because Eddie wanted to bring his son Wolfgang along to take over.  Eeesh! 

POST DLR:  The first that Eddie asked to take over as lead singer was........

Go ahead think about it a minute...

Be prepared to be blown away...

The first person Eddie called and offered the job to was...

>>

>>

>>

Patty Smyth of Scandal. 

Goodbye To You, The Warrior...and then...Van Halen?
She actually refused and can you imagine if she hadn't?

Sammy Hagar (The Red Rocker) of the 70s band Montrose was eventually chosen in '86.
Gary Cherone of Boston band EXTREME (which they were not) was '96-'99

Okay, the DJ Funktual Essential VH mixtape in mostly chrono order.

runnin with the devil,
eruption,
you really got me,
ain't talkin' bout love,
jamie's crying,
little dreamer,
feel your love tonight,
ice cream man,
beautiful girls,
and the cradle will rock,
take your whiskey home,
everybody wants some,
dance the night away,
unchained,
oh pretty woman,
dancing in the street,
jump,
i'll wait,
panama,
hot for teacher.

why can't this be love?
dreams
get up
love walks in
poundcake
black and blue
when it's love
finish what ya started
feels so good
top of the world
right now
can't stop loving you

Thanks for the Tull stuff, DJ. I'm that bit older than you and so heard them first time around, and was a (not very good) orchestral flute player at the time, so was impressed with what IA was doing with flute. He now lives in semi retirement on a Scottish island, as 'laird' and puts most of his royalties into his fish farm and the local community infrastructure.

WOW! I learned some thing!

I agree - greatest frontman EVER. I got backstage to the DLR concert when I was 9 months pregnant with my son (I knew his manager from online and his sister so they got me a pass) and I met everyone BUT...DLR! Lol. He was hanging out with some Hooters girls in another room and wouldn't come to the meet n greet. Or maybe he didn't want to ruin his mojo seeing a pregnant lady. Who knows. I was bummed.

Didn't know about Patty Smyth - yuck!

LOL about Extreme (which they weren't). Exactly!

Hagar was ok but I was sick of all the Dave bashing on stage.

Thanks for the post!
tiff