Duran Duran – Seven and the Ragged Tiger

Release Date: November 21, 1983 via EMI (U.K) Capitol Records (U.S.)

The Seven is for us – the five band members and the two managers.  The Ragged Tiger is success.  Seven people running after success.  It’s ambition.  That’s what it’s about. – Simon LeBon, 1984 as told to Rolling Stone Magazine.

This explanation has stayed with me for a long time.  I spent thousands of days listening to Seven and have always considered it one of the best albums to come out of the 80’s.  In fact, it’s one of my favorite records, period.  Its predecessor, Rio, is a legendary album and is responsible for breaking Duran Duran out worldwide.  I’ve obsessed over both albums.  Believe me.  When I finally get around to putting out my top ten D2 favorite song list :spoiler alert: Lonely In Your Nightmare will be number one.  But Seven and the Ragged Tiger holds a special place in my heart.

I grew up on the westside of Detroit in an economically challenged area.  We didn’t have a lot of luxuries but what we did have was music.  A group of my friends all used the one record player that was around, to listen to the sweet sound of vinyl as the needle hit the record.  That crackle of the vinyl, right before The Reflex started, used to put a big smile on my face.  

You might wonder how a bunch of poor kids got their hands on these precious vinyl records.  The answer is: Columbia House 11 albums for a penny.  And if you ask me if I bought the required albums thereafter, I will tell you that I cannot recall.  What I can tell you is that this business model afforded kids like us to get these albums in our hands, albeit by mail.  So when I ordered my copy of the new Duran Duran record, Seven and the Ragged Tiger, I was beyond excited. By the time I got the full album, Union of the Snake was everywhere (radio, television, MTV, etc) and the Nile Rodgers remix of The Reflex was about to pounce on the Billboard Hot 100.

New Moon on Monday was the second single released and was the second song on Seven and the Ragged Tiger’s track listing. It was the album’s second top ten charting single in the U.S. and the U.K.  That’s an explosive way to start off an album’s cycle.  But the biggest song was set to top the charts.  The Reflex was released in April ’84 and went to number one in multiple countries including England and the United States.  The video changed the way “live concert” videos were produced and really brought in the viewer to have a show experience right from their own home.

The Ragged Tiger album’s greatness does not stop there for me. The third song (I’m Looking For) Cracks in the Pavement, went on, in live form, to be the b-side to the massive hit, Wild Boys.  The next two songs are really something of a look into the future.  Whether or not the band knew it at the time, I Take the Dice and Of Crime and Passion gave us a little glimpse into what their side projects, Arcadia and The Power Station, would sound like.  The synth driven I Take the Dice really showcases keyboardist Nick Rhodes’ pop sensibilities and lets vocalist Simon LeBon stretch his vocal experimentation, especially during the chorus.  While Of Crime and Passion gives us that edge that guitarist Andy Taylor brought to the group and, along with bassist John Taylor, would ultimately find its way to their side project, The Power Station.  But I wouldn’t say it’s a song that would’ve fit in current form on that Power Station album.  I’ve seen that written a few times and I wouldn’t want people to confuse Andy’s distorted/aggressive guitar with the sound in The Power Station.  They are a different animal and I’m only making a correlation to the edge Andy and John brought on that particular song.

Side two on the LP started with Union of the Snake.  As the first single/video from Seven, it really showed us a different side to Duran Duran.  Straight away you noticed a very polished, almost tighter sound in terms of the way the instruments sound.  Drummer Roger Taylor’s snare drum has a super tight and crisp feel to it.  There was also the overall tone of the album.  A little darker than you might have expected it to be.  Which seems like the complete opposite of opinions to come out of that pop era.  But there is a darkness and almost introspective mood going on throughout.

The rest of the album is an example of this tone.  Roger starts off Shadows on Your Side, which I remember the Solid Gold Dancers doing a routine to, way back when, during the show’s weekly countdown and new song segments.  The next song is Tiger Tiger.  Personally the visual of this song will always be the beginning of the band’s concert documentary, Sing Blue Silver.  Headlights, smoke from vehicle exhaust, winter chill and one of the biggest bands in the world traveling to their next arena-filled destination.

The album closes with The Seventh Stranger.  This was not an official release but was a staple in the band’s set list during that era and was a fan favorite.  It was also included on the multi-platinum live album, Arena.  It remains one of my all time favorite Duran Duran songs.

Seven and the Ragged Tiger went on to sell millions of copies worldwide and went to number one in several countries including their native England, which was the first and only time the band accomplished this on the album charts.  

Simon, Nick, John, Andy and Roger really had something special and, for a two album stretch, they touched something magical that so many bands fail to ever reach.  

The sound was helped along by producers Alex Sadkin and Ian Little.  Contributing musicians such as sax player Andy Hamilton, percussionists Raphael DeJesus and Mark Kennedy helped the bands sound evolve.  Another aspect to this album’s sound are back-up singers BJ Nelson and Michelle Cobbs.  Mixed all together, it produced a warm, full sound.

In November of this year, the album turned 35 years old.  While I’ve made new memories with the songs on this album, I will never forget the energy and excitement I felt listening to it back in 1984.  Life is better in so many ways today but there was something simpler back then.  Simpler in that I didn’t feel the need to be connected all of the time or distracted by technology.  Just a pair of hand-me-down headphones and a beat up old record player that had a needle so worn I had to put a stack of quarters on the arm just to make sure the record didn’t skip.

In my world of top tens, Seven and the Ragged Tiger will always have a place on my personal list of all-time favorite albums.

-Tommy Marz

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