Thursday, May 21, 2020

Under The Influence: Rio



I'm not big on subjective lists.  So, coming up with the 10 albums that influenced your musical tastes is a chore.  Probably because it is personal and that you only heard an album if you bought it, borrowed it or copied it.  Things changed by the 1990s and since -- as you can just go to YouTube, Spotify or any other service to hear full albums.  So, a lot of it depends on what you got your hands on or what song on the radio made you part with money you made on your newspaper route.  Then there is the parental effect...they control the stereo in the car, so you listen to what they do.  Paul Harvey was a standard in Dad's car while Mom was more Pop radio with hints of country.  So what singles you heard would determine if you were interested in getting a whole album.

Duran Duran's 1982 sophomore effort, Rio, had a long simmering inspiration as I was affected by the singles and MTV domination as almost everyone else was.  "Hungry Like The Wolf," "Rio" and "Save A Prayer" were huge.  Later in junior high school, my friend Phil would make cassette copies from his rather vast collection for me.  He was a Duran Duran fan among other acts.  So, I played my copy of Rio over and over.  But one song, "The Chauffeur," specifically hit me as otherworldly.  That pan flute sound hooks you while the keyboard and bass take you elsewhere.  "New Religion," "My Own Way," "Last Chance On The Stairway," "Lonely In Your Nightmare" and "Hold Back The Rain" were great songs as well and got played on my little stereo enough to almost feel like singles.

Rio as well as the follow-up albums, Seven And The Ragged Tiger and Notorious, made me want to play music...form a band.  I'm not going to list those endeavors here but how can I not name an album that led me towards performing which led to journalism and all that you've seen here.  Only saw them perform once but it was well worth it.

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