Images may be subject to copyright
On this day, 18 November 1980, Birmingham’s New Romantics Duran Duran, played Cardiff’s Top Rank filling the support slot for Hazel O’Connor.
While on tour with O’Connor, a bidding war erupted between Phonogram and EMI to sign Duran Duran; the band eventually sign with EMI records, persuaded by A&R man Dave Ambrose, who had signed The Sex Pistols and Kate Bush.
John Taylor and Nick Rhodes formed Duran Duran in Birmingham, England, in 1978, where they became the resident band at the city's Rum Runner nightclub. They were doing jobs at the club, John working the door and Nick deejaying for £10 a night. They began rehearsing and regularly playing at the venue. There were many nearby nightclubs where bands such as the Sex Pistols and the Clash played gigs; the most significant was called Barbarella's. They went on to name the band after "Dr. Durand Durand", Milo O'Shea's character from the sci-fi film Barbarella.
The band's first album, Duran Duran, was released on the EMI label in 1981. The first single, "Planet Earth", reached the United Kingdom's top 20 at number 12. A follow-up, "Careless Memories", stalled at Number 37. However, it was their third single, "Girls on Film", that attracted the most attention. The song went to Number 5 in the UK.
