Customer Reviews

Duran Duran - Classic Albums: Rio

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This review is for the disc itself, not the documentary. I urge all of you that purchased this disc to hold on to your receipts. I had returned 4, yes 4 of these discs from two different stores. None of them had a single scratch on them and yet they all skipped in exactly the same places for the first 15 minutes or so of the main documentary. This DVD was not made properly. I tried those discs on 2 different DVD players and my computer, and had the same problem each time. It's possible there was just a bad batch of them made that ended up in my area, but it is also possible that they are all like this. I'm just warning you guys.

I am so angry because I can't get my money back. I'm stuck with a shoddy product. The company that made these discs better offer us compensation once they realize what they've done!

Overall, its nice to hear more about the making of this classic album. However, I felt there was WAY too much focus on the videos than the actual album itself. Unlike other installments of the Classic Albums series, this focused more on the videos than the "Behind the Scenes" of actually making the songs and what went into them and not a lot of "track by track" breakdown as normally seen in this series. Its ok, but I just felt it could have been so much more, especially when compared to the other "Classic Albums" series.

This is a must for any Durannie! They explain how the songs of the "Rio" album were created (album and videos), not only that, they also explain how the band was formed (with particular anecdotes). All the members of the band are interviewed (except for Andy, you know). This is a recent interview that shows picture and video footage never seen before from the early days. Besides that there are several songs from "Rio" that are performed on studio. The DVD is not faulty, I've played this disc on my two players and it played very well on both. I hope there will be more documentaries for more Duran Duran's albums.

In 1981, Duran Duran came into the limelight with two hit singles and their first album, but it was the follow-up, `Rio', which catapulted the band to global success. Against a backdrop of Thatcher's Britain, with riots, record unemployment and the conflict with Argentina over the Falkland Islands, Duran Duran released this optimistic, celebratory and uniquely visual album. `Rio' would go on to become one of the most successful albums of the Eighties and paved the way for Duran Duran to become one of the biggest bands in the world.

This Classic Albums DVD tells the story behind the writing, recording and subsequent success of `Rio' through interviews, musical demonstrations, and archive footage not included in the broadcast version. Original band members Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor and Roger Taylor are all interviewed along with director Russell Mulcahy, former manager Paul Berrow, journalist Beverley Glick, designer Antony Price and Bob Geldof amongst others. `Rio' captures Duran Duran at the height of their powers, with wall-to-wall hits and great videos: a Classic Album of its time.

Tracklist as follows:

SCENE SELECTION
Intro
Rio
In The Beginning
New Religion
Hold Back The Rain
The Chauffeur
Hungry Like The Wolf
The Sri Lankan Videos
Save A Prayer

BONUS MATERIAL
Videos
Save A Prayer
How To Make It In The USA
The Chauffeur And Simon's Lyrics
Early Days
The Rio Album Sleeve

LIVE SONGS FROM BOSTON
Rio
Save A Prayer
New Religion
Hungry Like The Wolf
The Chauffeur

Subtitles in Deutsch, English, Español, Français, Italiano, Nederlands, Português

Released on Eagle Rock Entertainment

USA - November 4th, 2008
Europe, EEC, Russia and ex Russian States, Middle East, South Africa - October 27th, 2008
Australia & New Zealand - November 22nd, 2008
South America - November 25th, 2008
Japan - November 19th, 2008

hey- this is a must see for anyone interested in the making of the music & videos for Rio. It's filled with detailed, behind the mixing board discussions about most of the songs along with archival footage of the bands rise to success along with insightful DVD extras and live performances. Be aware that this DVD didn't work properly in my DVD player but played fine on my computer (I use an iMac G5).

This DVD is indeed a 5 star video. The Live from Boston in the Bonus Material is the part I like most in which it's like a concert in the studio. Duran Duran has never change and never will. They were the fantastic, fabulous band in the 80's, 90's and until today 2000's. This documentary is so interesting that they have discussed how their videos were made and how they fiddle with their instruments to make the song. This is a "must have" video to all Duranie fans and to all wannabe professional musicians. I love this video, the guys are so gorgeous and natural. Magnifico.

Classic Albums: Rio by Duran Duran is a fantastic look back at a pop music phenomenon that helped shape the 1980s MTV generation. As a fan of Duran Duran since the mid-1980s, I have always been interested to learn more about what Duran Duran did behind-the-scenes to write and produce their music. This documentary features new interviews with the band, their former managers, as well as other associates and musicians (Bob Geldof, for example). Older archive footage of the band is also used here. There are some nice behind-the-scenes glimpses at the making of their videos in Sri Lanka (Hungry Like the Wolf, Save A Prayer). The documentary is honest and informative and moves along at a nice clip. I hope Duran Duran releases more documentaries like this for the Notorious, Seven and the Ragged Tiger, and [Arcadia's] So Red the Rose albums. The DVD package also includes a modern recording of live performances of some of their classic songs. Any Duran Duran fan, especially long-time ones from the 1980s, will love this release.

Classic Albums: ALWAYS GREAT. Needless to say, a Classic Albums episode about one of my favorite albums from one of my favorite bands, a no-brainer. Four of the original five Durans are present to break down the making of several of the key tracks, isolating each particular sound from the mix and explaining how and why it sounds the way it does. The show also serves as a nice time capsule about a moment in the group's career: about to become a huge worldwide sensation, but still in posession of their youthful exuberance. A real delight, even if you're not a hardcore fan.

Note: original guitarist Andy Taylor is not interviewed, as this show was produced shortly following his (second) split from the band.

This DVD Documentary on the FAB FIVE'S greatest album of all time....RIO....is a must have for all DURANIES!!! I'll admit, my first one had the "skipping" issues and flaws (bought it at Virgin Megastore), but once I purchased it through Amazon, I had no further problems! It is such a wonderful "look back" at a great album (my personal favorite out of all their albums). The guys look great and give some wonderful insight to the songs and the music. My only "down side" to the disc was that they did not discuss every song on the album(apparently for time purposes). Two of my favorites that were not discussed were "Lonely in your Nightmare" and "Last Chance on the Stairway". I guess since they were not "hits', they were passed by. To bad....those are great songs! But, the disc is wonderful and it is loaded with alot of information and history that every Duranie can their teeth into! So buy it and enjoy.........I love mine!!!! Bye...Donna "RHO" Rasco/Yucaipa, CA

It's cool getting insights into some of the tracks from Simon, Nick, John...and Roger even speaks, quite a bit! Too bad about Andy not participating, for whatever the varied reasons, but I'm glad they acknowledged his work.

I wish they had covered all of the songs on the album.

It might have been interesting to get commentary from some of their other contemporaries too, or maybe more time with the guys. I'm not sure why Bob Geldof got as much screen time as he did.

All in all, though, it was very fascinating and worth adding to any Durannie's collection.

Unlike the reviewer who had problems with their disc, mine played fine.