The Chauffeur

"The Chauffeur"
Side B of the UK single
Song by Duran Duran
from the album Rio
Released10 May 1982
Recorded1982
Genre
Length
  • 5:10 (album version)
  • 3:48 (Blue Silver version)
LabelEMI
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Colin Thurston
Music video
"The Chauffeur" on YouTube

"The Chauffeur" is a song by English pop rock band Duran Duran.[5] It is the ninth and final song on their second album Rio, released on 10 May 1982.

Background

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The lyrics of the song were first written by Simon Le Bon as a poem, which he later used when he was auditioning for the band in 1980. The lyrics were later used in "The Chauffeur".[6][7][8]

Composition and lyrics

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"The Chauffeur" has been described as a dark-gothic romantic track with the help of keyboards from Nick Rhodes when recording of the song first started.[8][9][10] AllMusic reviewer Donald Guarisco wrote that "Simon Le Bon croons the lyrics in a lascivious fashion against a purely electronic soundscape composed of icy synthesisers and throbbing drum machines" and that the song "avoids conventional pop song structure in favour of staccato phrases that meander high and low in a dreamy fashion".[11] British music magazine Classic Pop described the song as a "sinister synth-infused comedown".[8]

Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger calls it a dub record: "The bass drops out, the beats drop in, the skinny digital tick-tock start-stop of them is interweaved with found sounds (casino chips dropping, the creak of metal, looped and warped speech) and more beat hiss, the last two minutes bring the flute back, echo it."[4] Ewing also highlights other unuusual elements in the track, including the "the skronky sound of a guitar pretending to crack" at 0:15, the bass (which "rears, buzzes [and] purrs" throughout) glitching at 1:00 and 1:08, and the synth flute solo at 2:15 that switches the song into an art rock-styled march.[4]

Critical reception

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The song was highly received by critics and gained popularity despite never being released as a single. Some even consider it to be one of the band's best.[8]

In a review of "The Chauffeur", AllMusic reviewer Donald Guarisco praised the song, calling it "one of the finest" and a "hypnotic ballad that has assumed an almost mythic status among the group's fans". He also wrote that the song "provided a stylish finale for the group's successful Rio album".[11] The A.V. Club's Stephen Erlewine described the song as a standout from Rio and ranked it the sixth-best song from Duran Duran's catalogue.[9] Gold Derby called the song "poetry and sex put to music, hypnotic and beautiful".[10] Ewing contended that only ABBA "were making more ominous chart music", saying of Duran Duran's track: "This is experimental exploitative peacock music, absurd but lovely. Right now, with authenticity and camp, art and pop so rigorously patrolled, it’s kept that rarest of qualities – the element of surprise."[4]

Music video

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The accompanying music video for "The Chauffeur" was directed by Ian Emes and draws inspiration from the 1974 film "The Night Porter".[11][12][13] The video features a woman in an erotic costume is driven in an Austin Princess limousine by a uniformed chauffeur. Elsewhere, another woman dresses herself carefully in lingerie and walks through the streets of London towards a rendezvous in an abandoned multi-storey car park. The chauffeur, (Perri Lister), then removes her chauffeur uniform to reveal a topless blonde in an open-bust corset and performs a sensuous dance to the accompaniment of the instrumental coda of the song.

Due to the content of the music video, it was blocked from appearing on MTV.[11][14][15]

Legacy

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The song has been covered by many notable artists. American alternative metal band Deftones covered the song on their 2005 compilation album B-Sides & Rarities and was later featured on their 2011 compilation album Covers.[16][17] The song was featured on the 2010 soundtrack album Greenberg by James Murphy.[11] American alternative rock band Warpaint covered the song as part of a Duran Duran tribute album in 2014.[18][19][20]

Track listings

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7-inch: EMI / EMI 5346 United Kingdom

  1. "Rio" – 4:40
  2. "The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)" – 3:48
  • Track 1 is the "single version".
  • Track 2 is the "early version", and is a shorter acoustic version of the moody album track.

7-inch: EMI / EMI 5346 United Kingdom

  1. "Rio" – 5:11
  2. "The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)" – 3:48

Note: Two different versions of this single were available in the UK, both with identical sleeves and labels.

CD: Part of Singles Box Set 1981–1985

  1. "Rio" (part 1) – 5:11
  2. "The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)" – 3:48
  3. "Rio" (part 2) – 5:29
  4. "My Own Way" (Carnival remix) – 4:34

Personnel

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Duran Duran

Technical

References

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  1. ^ Zaleski, Annie (10 May 2022). 40 Years Ago: Duran Duran Release the Masterful 'Rio'. Ultimate Classic Rock. Archived from the original on 20 February 2024. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  2. ^ Thompson, Dave (2000). Alternative Rock: Third Ear - The Essential Listening Companion. Miller Freeman, Inc. p. 343. ISBN 9780879306076. Archived from the original on 7 June 2024.
  3. ^ a b Treble Staff (11 May 2020). "A History of Synth-Pop in 50 Essential Songs". Treble. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d Ewing, Tom (6 December 2001). "Duran Duran - "The Chauffeur"". Freaky Trigger. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  5. ^ Duran Duran Revisit Rio. Uncut. 6 August 2008. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  6. ^ 6 Things You May Not Have Known About Duran Duran's RIO. Duran Duran. 23 July 2014. Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  7. ^ Freeman, John (8 May 2012). Cherry Ice Cream Smiles: Duran Duran's Rio Revisited. The Quietus. Archived from the original on 21 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d Making Duran Duran: Rio. Classic Pop. 30 June 2021. Archived from the original on 24 February 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  9. ^ a b Erlewin, Stephen (27 October 2023). Essential Duran Duran: Their 30 greatest songs, ranked. The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  10. ^ a b Duran Duran: 20 Best Songs Ranked. Gold Derby. 2 November 2022.
  11. ^ a b c d e Guarisco, Donald. AllMusic – The Chauffeur. AllMusic. Archived from the original on 21 June 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  12. ^ "The Charlotte News, 29 March 1984". The Charlotte News. 29 March 1984. p. 41. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  13. ^ Rapp, Allison (23 July 2023). Ian Emes, Filmmaker for Pink Floyd and Duran Duran, Dead at 73. Ultimate Classic Rock. Archived from the original on 31 October 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  14. ^ Reesman, Bryan (23 May 2017). Nothing Captured the MTV Revolution Better Than Duran Duran's 'Rio'. Observer. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  15. ^ "Billboard - Mar 30, 1985". Billboard. 30 March 1985. p. 57. Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  16. ^ The 14 Most Metal DURAN DURAN Covers From Around The World. Metal Injection. 10 March 2021. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  17. ^ Young, Simon (28 August 2020). Chino Moreno's 5 favourite Deftones cover versions. Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  18. ^ DeVille, Chris (16 June 2014). Warpaint – "The Chauffeur" (Duran Duran Cover). Stereogum. Archived from the original on 27 December 2021. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  19. ^ Britton, Morgan (16 June 2014). Warpaint cover Duran Duran's "The Chauffeur" for new tribute album. The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  20. ^ Camp, Zoe (16 June 2014). "Warpaint Cover Duran Duran's "The Chauffeur"". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
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