Top 10 Alert!
Song#: 3685
Date: 10/15/1988
Debut: 49
Peak: 4
Weeks: 16
Genre: Synthpop, Dance-Pop, Rock
Pop Bits: After their second album, 1983's #8 double-platinum Seven and the Ragged Tiger, Duran Duran took a break with members doing other projects. When they got back together for '86's Notorious, the band was pared to a trio. It was sort of a transition effort that got to #12 and went platinum mainly thanks to the title track's #7 showing. For their next LP, the band wanted to keep up with trends and chose to create a work that was a bit more experimental and had dance-pop sounds of the day. It was also an effort to move beyond their teen idol image and make something more mature. Big Thing would be ready by the fall of '88 and this first single would get pushed out. It would do very well in clubs and reach #1 on the Dance chart. The song would debut in the top half of the Pop chart and then proceed to #5 becoming the band's ninth Top 10 hit. Although the single did well, it didn't fully spark sales of the album, which peaked at #24 and only went gold. It was Duran Duran's first album to miss the platinum mark.
ReduxReview: Prior to this song coming out, I wasn't much of a Duran Duran fan. They sort of lost me with Seven and the Ragged Tiger and I virtually ignored Notorious. However, this single caught my ear and it brought me back on board with the band, if briefly. I thought it was a fun, funky, catchy track and was the best thing they had done since "The Reflex." I think it was the exact tune they needed at the time and it paid off with another Top 10 hit. I liked the song well enough to buy the album. While overall it wasn't a great LP, there were several tracks I enjoyed and I think it is one that is underrated in their catalog and this song still ranks alongside their best singles.
ReduxRating: 8/10
Trivia: Big Thing was co-produced by Duran Duran along with Daniel Abraham and Jonathan Elias. Elias had been working as a composer of movie trailer music and advertisements while also writing the scores to a few films. One movie Elias worked on (with score composer John Barry) was the James Bond entry A View to a Kill. Duran Duran would end up supplying that film's theme song, which turned into a #1 hit. It was around that time when Elias befriended the band. During their little hiatus, Elias would work with Duran Duran's John Taylor on a song for the film 9 1/2 Weeks. "I Do What I Do" was co-written by Elias, Taylor, and Michael Des Barres and recorded by Taylor. It would be a #23 Pop single. That led to Elias working on Big Thing. Elias then used his Duran Duran connection for his own 1989 album, Requiem for the Americas: Songs from the Lost World. The concept piece featured members of Duran Duran on several tracks including Simon LeBon writing the lyrics and singing "Follow in My Footsteps." The LP featured other guests including Susanna Hoffs, Toni Childs, Grace Jones, and Michael Bolton. Elias' second solo compositional effort, 1999's The Prayer Cycle, would also featured a list of guest stars including James Taylor, Alanis Morissette, Perry Ferrell, and Linda Ronstadt. His 2004 work, American River, would earn a Grammy nod for Best New Age Album.
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