Forming in Birmingham in 1980, Duran Duran quickly evolved out
of the New Romantic scene that spawned them and by 1984 were the biggest pop
band on the planet. But in the eyes of many fans, it’s the first two albums, Duran Duran and Rio
that carry the strongest resonance and are held in the greatest
affection.
Here the lines begin to blur. Famously ‘fusing the Sex Pistols
with Chic’ (!), Joanne Joanne – five London based female musicians (including,
too perfectly, two Joannes) – conceptually align themselves with Duran’s classic
1981/ 1982 oeuvre, performing faithfully – and exclusively – songs from that
period, out of love - and as Nick Rhodes might have once quipped ‘for aesthetic
reasons’.
‘Sound Of Thunder’, ‘Planet Earth’, ‘The Chauffeur’, ‘Hold Back
The Rain’ and all the rest are vividly, weirdly brought back to life by the
five. Not only that, but collectively - and with tongues firmly in their cheek -
Joanne Joanne inhabit the recent memory of the time: The early days at the Rum
Runner, Le Bon’s summer on an Israeli Kibbutz in ‘79, that ‘81 Old Grey Whistle
Test appearance - all are referenced in onstage banter, particularly from
‘Andy’. It’s a lot of fun.
They ‘don’t do Rio’.
But they do do the Night Versions.
And the B-sides. Plus the odd wild card might sometimes be thrown in as a
surprise.
of the New Romantic scene that spawned them and by 1984 were the biggest pop
band on the planet. But in the eyes of many fans, it’s the first two albums, Duran Duran and Rio
that carry the strongest resonance and are held in the greatest
affection.
Here the lines begin to blur. Famously ‘fusing the Sex Pistols
with Chic’ (!), Joanne Joanne – five London based female musicians (including,
too perfectly, two Joannes) – conceptually align themselves with Duran’s classic
1981/ 1982 oeuvre, performing faithfully – and exclusively – songs from that
period, out of love - and as Nick Rhodes might have once quipped ‘for aesthetic
reasons’.
‘Sound Of Thunder’, ‘Planet Earth’, ‘The Chauffeur’, ‘Hold Back
The Rain’ and all the rest are vividly, weirdly brought back to life by the
five. Not only that, but collectively - and with tongues firmly in their cheek -
Joanne Joanne inhabit the recent memory of the time: The early days at the Rum
Runner, Le Bon’s summer on an Israeli Kibbutz in ‘79, that ‘81 Old Grey Whistle
Test appearance - all are referenced in onstage banter, particularly from
‘Andy’. It’s a lot of fun.
They ‘don’t do Rio’.
But they do do the Night Versions.
And the B-sides. Plus the odd wild card might sometimes be thrown in as a
surprise.
