Hello friends! Today,
November 8, 2016, is our Presidential Election here in America. In
celebration of this important day, the Dial is beaming you an
election themed “Two Fer Tuesday” piece, featuring the music of
‘80s icon Simon Le Bon, and his groups Duran Duran and Arcadia.
Thinks there’s no connection between a British new romantic rocker
and our election process? Read on, for our look at Arcadia’s
“Election Day”,
and Duran Duran’s “Meet El Presidente”!
“Kind
of look to the day… opening eyes impale neon flickers…
She
moon, she turning away… the city’s her slave but he’s cheating
his mistress…”
An
offshoot project comprised of Le Bon and his fellow Duran Duran mates
Nick Rhodes and Roger Taylor, Arcadia only released one album, 1985’s
So Red the Rose, the
lead single of which was “Election Day”. An upbeat slice of new
wave synth pop that also featured Jamaican lyricist Grace Jones on
spoken dialogue, this was by far Arcadia’s most successful single,
peaking at US #6, UK #7, and the top of the singles chart in Italy.
Nick
Rhodes explained in a November 24 1985 Chicago Tribune article that
the song is about making decisions, both the right choice for a
positive change, and the way that a lack of courage causes positive
decisions not to be made.
However,
for years, I believed the song to be about a feeling of disgust and
helplessness felt by the populace toward the government, culminating
in an assassination attempt on a government official by the singer.
This was all due to a misheard line in the chorus… “Pull
my SHOT off and pray”.
Turns
out, the line is actually, “Pull my SHIRT
off and pray”. So, where Le Bon was simply
stating that that the summer is hot, and he needs some relief, for
years I thought something much more disruptive was about to go down.
Hey, I heard what I heard, and even now I still think that maybe the
whole “summer is hot” idea is a metaphor for serious political
stress.
“I
pull my shirt off and pray… we’re sacred and bound, to suffer the
heatwave…
Pull
my shirt off and pray… we’re coming up on re-election day”
Next the Dial turns its
receivers to spotlight a lesser hit from Simon, recorded with his
more iconic group Duran Duran, 1987's “Meet El Presidente”. The
third single pulled from the Notorious
LP, following the title track and “Skin
Trade”, “Meet El…” did alright in the
UK by reaching #24, but struggled greatly stateside, only managing
#70.
“Miss
November Tuesday, bend your rubber rules…
Take
your time but don’t take off your high heel shoes…”
The
lyrics relate the tale of a political figure’s mistress, and how
she holds power over the adulterer. He tries to placate her by buying
her cruises, as she dresses in revealing clothing and always makes
herself available to him, not only to further her own power hungry
goals, but also to camouflage her disgust at her own situation. As Le
Bon pointedly sings… “Hell hath no fury
like a young girl’s ego”. (Dig the
percussion on that line!) The song concludes by stating that she has
a gun, so this young woman is very aware that she can destroy this
figure’s career and indeed, his life, with either a public
admission of their relationship, or a well-timed bullet.
Despite
the provocative subject matter, “Meet El…” came at the
beginning of a chart slump for the band, as no additional singles
were issued from Notorious, and only 1988’s “I
Don’t Want Your Love” (from the Big Thing
LP) charted highly on both sides of the Atlantic in the following
several years.
It
wasn’t until their unexpected comeback, 1993’s Duran
Duran (The Wedding Album), which contained
the monster classics “Come Undone”
and “Ordinary World”,
that Duran Duran were returned to pop prominence, albeit briefly.
Could
this be considered pretentious art rock? Yeah, probably, but it’s
still great. Sure, the song is nowhere near as iconic as “Hungry
Like the Wolf”, “Rio”,
or “The Reflex”,
and it leans more toward dance funk, not the synth heavy new wave
they are primarily known for, but it still possesses that Duran Duran
quality that we’ve all come to expect. So sit back and enjoy it…
because the Dial knows best.
By
the end of our own Election Day, America and the rest of the world
will meet our new “El Presidente”. I'm not for political
commentary here, I’m just enjoying the music, and trying to make it
relate, however loosely. Though I think a lot of folks might have
preferred it if Simon Le Bon had been a choice for pres, I'm just
sayin'.
So
until the next time the Dial turns its signal to a forgotten classic
from the past... Good night ever'body!
“She's
on the case at dinner time... she's on the evening news...
And
if you dare step out of line... you're going to be abused.”
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