‘Beautiful Colors: The Posters of Duran Duran’, a 300-page art book, celebrates Duran Duran’s 40th anniversary via a comprehensive collection of posters from the group’s impressive, four-decade career.
Curated by Duran Duran archivist, author and activist Andrew ‘Durandy’ Golub, the book charts the band’s career through rare posters, from New Romantic roots in Birmingham through their latest world tour in support of the ‘Paper Gods’ album.
Speaking exclusively to Retro Pop, Andy opened up on the project and selected five key moments from the band’s trajectory – and the posters that tell their story…
1. Hazel O’Connor Megahype Tour
“On this tour, one of the band’s managers sold his flat to finance a supporting slot for the band. This secured the first big opportunity for Duran Duran to test out its early material in front of a live audience.”
2. ‘Rio’
“The ‘Rio’ album was a pivotal release for the band. This record included Hungry Like The Wolf, which broke the band in America.”
3. Live Aid
“This poster shows Duran Duran backstage at Live Aid, which was one of the band’s proudest milestones.
“Their set included the first performance of View To A Kill, and the members’ physical appearance clearly showed the rift that had formed within the band; John and Andy were in the midst of the Power Station tour with long hair and a hard rock sound, while Nick and Simon had formed Arcadia, completely opposite in its creative direction.
“After the Live Aid appearance, the original lineup would break up, not reuniting until two decades later.”
4. ‘The Wedding Album’
“‘The Wedding Album’ brought a sudden and dramatic resurgence for the band, allowing them to reach out to a new audience and proving their ability to reinvent themselves.”
5. ‘Astronaut’
“Duran reunited in 2003, playing to sold-out shows in Japan and releasing the ‘Astronaut’ album. This milestone was hailed by fans and showed the band how deeply loyal their audiences really were after so many years.”
‘Beautiful Colors: The Posters of Duran Duran’ is available now.
