Duran Duran Side Project Gets Its Due

The year was 1985. Members of Duran Duran, the most popular band in the universe, decided to take a year off, but the boys didn't rest. Instead, the band split into two side projects. John and Andy Taylor formed the guitar-driven Power Station with the late Robert Palmer and charted big hits that spring and summer. It was a fine (but very short) album that should have had one more single... the underrated "Harvest for the World."

As 1985 came to a close, Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes and Roger Taylor released the synth-oriented album 'So Red the Rose' under the moniker Arcadia. I remember it well because I got the vinyl for Christmas that year. Although Arcadia only produced one less Top 40 hit than the Power Station (three to two, if you're scoring at home), to this day Arcadia has always seemed to be the much less successful of the two projects. The masses may have loved the Power Station, but the die-hard Duran Duran fans, I believe, preferred this one. No matter which camp you are in, EMI is about to give us all a chance to reassess 'So Red the Rose' with a stellar three-disc deluxe set.

Disc one is the original nine-track album, plus single mixes, B-sides from the album's four singles, plus the non-album single "Say the Word" from the soundtrack to the 1986 film 'Playing for Keeps.' Disc two features 12 more remixes, while the accompanying 10-track DVD features the music videos and making-of vignettes for each clip. Mark you calendars for the April 20 release, and check back next week for more exciting news on the Duran Duran deluxe front.

Arcadia - Election Day (Consensus Mix) (mp3)
Arcadia - Goodbye Is Forever (mp3) - ripped from my 25-year-old vinyl!

Tracklist
Disc One:
1. Election Day
2. Keep Me In The Dark
3. Goodbye Is Forever
4. The Flame
5. Missing
6. Rose Arcana
7. The Promise
8. El Diablo
9. Lady Ice
10. Say The Word (Playing For Keeps) - 7″ Edit
11. She Moody And Grey, She's Mean And Restless
12. Election Day – Single Version
13. Goodbye Is Forever – Single Remix
14. The Promise – 7″ Mix
15. The Flame – 7″ Remix
16. Say The Word (Theme from Playing For Keeps) – Soundtrack Version

Disc Two:
1. Election Day – Consensus Mix
2. Goodbye Is Forever – 12″ Extended Vocal Mix
3. The Promise – Extended Version
4. Rose Arcana – Extended
5. The Flame – Extended Remix
6. Say The Word (Theme from Playing For Keeps) – Extended Vocal Remix
7. Election Day – Cryptic Cut
8. The Promise – 12″ Mix
9. Goodbye Is Forever – Dub Mix
10. Say The Word (Theme from Playing For Keeps) – Extended Instrumental Remix
11. Election Day – Early Rough Mix
12. Flame Game – Yo Homeboy Mix

DVD:
1. Filming Election Day – Paris, France. September 1985.
2. Election Day – Directed by Roger Christian, Produced by Chrissie Smith
3. Filming The Promise – Cote D’Azur, France. December 1985.
4. The Promise – Directed by Marcelo Anciano, Produced by Ruth Orme
5. Filming Goodbye Is Forever – London, England. January 1986
6. Goodbye Is Forever – Directed by Marcelo Anciano, Produced by Ruth Orme
7. Filming The Flame – London Docklands. April 1986.
8. The Flame – Directed by Russell Mulcahy, Produced by Chrissie Smith
9. Filming Missing – London, England. December 1986.
10. Missing – Directed by Dean Chamberlain