Rio (song)
"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.
For other songs, see Rio (disambiguation)."Rio"
- "The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)"
- "Hold Back the Rain"
- "Rio" (part 1)
- "My Own Way"
August 1982
AIR (London)
- 5:33 (album version)
- 4:40 (single version)
- 5:11 (part 1)
- 5:29 (part 2)
- 4:34 (US single version)
- 3:57 (US single remix)
The song was the fourth and final single lifted from the band's second studio album of the same name and was edited for its release. It was issued worldwide in October 1982 and became a Top 10 hit in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 9 on 11 December 1982.[4] As of October 2021, "Rio" is the third most streamed Duran Duran song in the UK.[5]
"Rio" was released as the third single from the album in Australia, and debuted on the Kent Music Report top 100 singles chart dated 6 September 1982.[6] The song did not attract much notice in the United States upon its initial global release but received early airplay at KROQ-FM in Los Angeles as early as 2 August 1982.[7] After the band's breakthrough hit "Hungry Like the Wolf" found success in the American charts in December 1982, Capitol Records reissued the single in March 1983 to be the band's second US top 20 hit, peaking at number 14.
Production[edit]
The song originated from an idea by John Taylor about Rio de Janeiro – "the truly foreign, the exotic, a cornucopia of earthly delights, a party that would never stop"; Simon Le Bon wrote the lyrics to the song, and chose not to write about the city but about a girl named Rio.[8] Its verses were inspired by their earlier song "See Me, Repeat Me" and the chorus was taken from "Stevie's Radio Station", a song written by the band TV Eye, featuring lead vocalist Andy Wickett, who went on to be one of Duran Duran's early lead vocalists. The song was a favourite of Nick and John and was incorporated into Duran Duran live sets during Wickett's tenure.[9]
Nick Rhodes created the unusual sound at the beginning of the song by throwing several small metal rods onto the strings of a grand piano in the studio.[10] The recorded sound was then reversed to create the intro.[11] Rhodes produced the synthesiser lead using the arpeggiator on a Roland Jupiter-4 set to random while playing a Cmaj7 chord.[12] The tenor saxophone solo was performed by Andy Hamilton. The laughter on the track was that of Rhodes's girlfriend at the time.
Critical reception[edit]
Cash Box called it "a perfect follow-up to 'Hungry Like The Wolf'", saying that "the melody's warm sea breeze contrasts effectively with the menace in 'Wolf' and is equally catchy."[13]
Music video[edit]
Director Russell Mulcahy filmed the music video for "Rio", which featured images of the band in Antony Price suits, singing and playing around on a yacht speeding over the crystal blue Caribbean Sea. The yacht in the music video was the Eilean.[14][15] Short segments show band members trying to live out their assorted daydreams while being teased by a body-painted woman, played by Reema Ruspoli.
The music video was shot over the course of three days in May 1982 on the island of Antigua.[16] The yacht scenes were filmed on the bay at English Harbour, the beach scenes at Miller's Beach, and the segment featuring the raft at Shirley Heights. Some close ups were filmed later on the Solent due to a film processing error.
Director Mulcahy originally planned a scene where the band members got chased off the island by people wielding guns, but did not have enough film stock left to shoot this. He had to borrow a tourist's camera to shoot the part of John Taylor playing a saxophone on a mountaintop. When the video was featured on VH1's Pop-Up Video, it mentions that after the video was completed, Mulcahy, Le Bon, and Taylor went for a swim and were inches away from sharks when the yacht captain yelled for them to get out of the water. Rhodes was reportedly seasick during the filming, and has often said "I hate boats unless they're tied up and you're having cocktails on them."[17]
While in Antigua, the band also filmed a video for the album track "Night Boat", which appeared with "Rio" and nine other videos on the Duran Duran video album released in 1983.
B-sides, bonus tracks and remixes[edit]
There are 13 different official mixes of "Rio", many of which are edits of the album version or Kershenbaum remix with fades in various places.[18]
The B-side of the November 1982 original United Kingdom single was "The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)", an acoustic version of the moody album track. The B-side of the April 1983 reissue in the United States was an upbeat remix of "Hold Back the Rain". The B-side of the 12-inch single included a remix of "My Own Way".
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.
12-inch: EMI / 12 EMI 5346 United Kingdom
7": Harvest / B-5175 United States (1982)
7": Capitol / B-5215 United States (1983 reissue)
CD: Part of Singles Box Set 1981–1985