Duran Duran: All You Need Is Now – review
(Tape Modern)
Dave Simpson
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 17 March 2011 22.40 GMT
4 out of 5 stars

Duran superfan Mark Ronson's goal when producing their 13th album was to make the imaginary followup to 1982's Rio, when they wrote enormo-hits and hung out on expensive yachts. Given that the Brummies are now in their 50s and have made some very clunky albums, this seems absurd. However, they have unearthed their missing mojo. Ronson has sprinkled guests like Kelis and Ana Matronic over his postmodern sheen, but the surprise is the quality of the songwriting. The title track and groove-thrusting Too Bad You're So Beautiful are once-heard, sing-the-chorus pop stonkers. Déjà vu almost overwhelms The Man Who Stole a Leopard and Leave a Light On's echoes of The Chauffeur and Save a Prayer respectively, but this is Duran sounding as good as people remember. Is it too late to become a Durannie?

Courtesy Guardian.com