Rio

“Rio” is the first track off of the same titled album released by new wave band Duran Duran in 1982.

The keyboard beat for the track was well-known among hardcore Duran Duran fans and synthesizer lovers, as it was produced using an arpeggiator, which is a tool that plays individual notes in a chord in a chosen pattern. The laughter on the track was actually a sample from the band’s keyboardist Nick Rhodes’ girlfriend at the time. In an episode of music media channel VH1’s “True Spin”, Duran Duran explained that “Rio” was actually a metaphor designed to demonstrate their desire to exceed in the United States.

As with most Duran Duran music videos, the video was directed by none other than Russell Mulcahy. It features members of the band in suits by the iconic British brand “Antony Price”. They are filmed singing and dancing around on a yacht (named “Eilean” while it speeds over the Caribbean Sea – as well as shots of women lying in the sand and swimming in the sea, which can be assumed to be a love interest for the band. The video was filmed in 1982 on the island of Antigua and was uploaded to YouTube in July 2018. As of September 2019, the video has almost 1.8 million views.

Release Date: August 1982 (Australia), 1st November 1982 (UK), & 2nd April 1983 (US)

Songwriter/s: Duran Duran

Producer/s: Colin Thurston

Label/s: EMI / Harvest / Capitol

Music Video Release Date: 1983

Music Video Director: Russell Mulcahy

Chart Rankings: When released, “Rio” charted at #60 in Australia, #3 in Canada, #14 in Finland, #9 in Ireland, #36 in New Zealand, #9 in the UK, #14 in the US Billboard Hot 100, #5 in the US Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and finally #14 in the US Cash Box Top 100 chart.