The Chauffeur
Encyclopedia
"The Chauffeur" is a Duran Duran
song from their second album Rio
. The song was written by Simon Le Bon as poetry, several years before Rio was even begun. Two different versions of the song were originally recorded by Duran Duran, and the song has been covered by three mainstream artists. Two music videos of the song have been made at different times, by different directors. Unusually for the band, the song's title does not appear anywhere in the song's lyrics, but the refrain from the song has been used by Duran Duran
as the title of both a tour video and a book.
The word chauffeur does not appear in the lyric at any point, however the song is written from the point of view of someone who is driving another person, a woman, on a hot day.
Some versions of the song feature words at the end of the track, spoken sotto voce
by a man. This monologue is taken from a natural history recording - the man is speaking about insects in the grass.
The song refrain Sing Blue Silver
was used as the title of the band's video covering its 1983-84 tour. A book of the same name was also produced to support the tour, showcasing still photography by official tour photographer Denis O'Regan
.
's 1974 film, The Night Porter
, and the photography of Helmut Newton. A woman in an erotic costume is driven in a vintage car 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 watches while a third woman (Perri Lister
), a topless blonde in an open-bust corset, performs a sensuous dance to the accompaniment of the instrumental coda of the song — clearly an homage to Charlotte Rampling
's topless "Dance of the Seven Veils" in The Night Porter
.
The video featured on the 1983 video album entitled Duran Duran
. It has also been included on the 1999 "Greatest VHS compilation and 2003 "Duran Duran: Greatest — The DVD" compilation.
Sleepthief
created a video to accompany the release of The Chauffeur as a single, featuring project member Kirsty Hawkshaw
. In this video, which seems at first to have a lighter, dreamier tone than the original, a uniformed chauffeur at separate times drives two different women in evening clothes to an assignation with a man. The women encounter each other twice at the man's house, the first time to observe the assignation, the second time to encounter a murder. The chauffeur then drives the two women away.
2."The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)" (3:48) - Early acoustic demo version of the song that got its only official release as one of the b-sides on the "Rio" single. This version of the song is almost two minutes shorter than the final version.
CD: Part of "Singles Box Set 1981-1985
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
song from their second album Rio
Rio (album)
Rio is the second studio album by the British rock band Duran Duran, originally released worldwide on 10 May 1982. It reached #2 in the UK and #1 in Australia....
. The song was written by Simon Le Bon as poetry, several years before Rio was even begun. Two different versions of the song were originally recorded by Duran Duran, and the song has been covered by three mainstream artists. Two music videos of the song have been made at different times, by different directors. Unusually for the band, the song's title does not appear anywhere in the song's lyrics, but the refrain from the song has been used by Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
as the title of both a tour video and a book.
The Song
The origins of the lyrics for The Chauffeur have become part of the Duran Duran legend.In May 1980, while the band were working for Paul and Michael Berrow, who at the time ran the Rum Runner night club in Birmingham, one of the Rum Runner bar maids recommended her ex-boyfriend to be their new lead singer. Simon Le Bon auditioned in May of 1980, bringing with him a book of poetry and lyrics, including the lyrics to the song which would eventually become The Chauffeur.The word chauffeur does not appear in the lyric at any point, however the song is written from the point of view of someone who is driving another person, a woman, on a hot day.
Some versions of the song feature words at the end of the track, spoken sotto voce
Sotto voce
Sotto voce means intentionally lowering one's voice for emphasis. The speaker gives the impression of uttering involuntarily a truth which may surprise, shock, or offend...
by a man. This monologue is taken from a natural history recording - the man is speaking about insects in the grass.
The song refrain Sing Blue Silver
Sing Blue Silver
Sing Blue Silver is a documentary about Duran Duran's 1983-1984 World Tour directed by Michael Collins. A sixty-minute edited version of the documentary was aired on MTV under the title Blue Silver....
was used as the title of the band's video covering its 1983-84 tour. A book of the same name was also produced to support the tour, showcasing still photography by official tour photographer Denis O'Regan
Denis O'Regan
Denis O'Regan is a renowned English rock photographer. His imagery is particularly associated with the punk movement, Queen, David Bowie, and Duran Duran, and O'Regan has photographed everyone from AC/DC to ZZ Top, documenting Punk, New Romanticism, Grunge, and Heavy Metal along the way...
.
Music videos
The Chauffeur is one of two non-single tracks on Rio to have its own music video. None of the band appear in the video. It is a moody black-and-white piece inspired in part by Liliana CavaniLiliana Cavani
Liliana Cavani is an Italian film director and screenwriter. She belongs to a generation of Italian filmmakers that came into prominence in the 1970s and includes Bernardo Bertolucci, Pier Paolo Pasolini and Marco Bellochio. Cavani became internationally known after the success of her 1974 feature...
's 1974 film, The Night Porter
The Night Porter
The Night Porter is a controversial 1974 film by Italian director Liliana Cavani, starring Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling.- Synopsis :...
, and the photography of Helmut Newton. A woman in an erotic costume is driven in a vintage car 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 watches while a third woman (Perri Lister
Perri Lister
Perri Lister , is an English actress, dancer, and singer. She featured in her first film in 1980, and has since appeared in films and television series...
), a topless blonde in an open-bust corset, performs a sensuous dance to the accompaniment of the instrumental coda of the song — clearly an homage to Charlotte Rampling
Charlotte Rampling
Charlotte Rampling, OBE is an English actress. Her career spans four decades in English-language as well as French and Italian cinema.- Early life :...
's topless "Dance of the Seven Veils" in The Night Porter
The Night Porter
The Night Porter is a controversial 1974 film by Italian director Liliana Cavani, starring Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling.- Synopsis :...
.
The video featured on the 1983 video album entitled Duran Duran
Duran Duran (1983 video)
Officially titled simply Duran Duran , this video compilation is sometimes unofficially referred to in print as the Duran Duran video album or Duran Duran: The First 11 Videos...
. It has also been included on the 1999 "Greatest VHS compilation and 2003 "Duran Duran: Greatest — The DVD" compilation.
Sleepthief
Sleepthief
Sleepthief is an American electronic music recording project formed by producer and composer Justin Elswick. Elswick began writing music for the album ten years prior to its release. The album was mixed, mastered, co-produced, and co-arranged by Israel Curtis...
created a video to accompany the release of The Chauffeur as a single, featuring project member Kirsty Hawkshaw
Kirsty Hawkshaw
Kirsty Hawkshaw is a British dance/electronica/house/trance musician and songwriter. She is known for her participation as lead vocalist for the group Opus III, and her collaborative work with other musicians and producers....
. In this video, which seems at first to have a lighter, dreamier tone than the original, a uniformed chauffeur at separate times drives two different women in evening clothes to an assignation with a man. The women encounter each other twice at the man's house, the first time to observe the assignation, the second time to encounter a murder. The chauffeur then drives the two women away.
Song versions
1."The Chauffeur" (5:22) - The standard version of the song. Probably Duran Duran's most known non-single song.2."The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)" (3:48) - Early acoustic demo version of the song that got its only official release as one of the b-sides on the "Rio" single. This version of the song is almost two minutes shorter than the final version.
CD: Part of "Singles Box Set 1981-1985Singles Box Set 1981-1985Singles Box Set 1981–1985 is a boxset by Duran Duran. Comprising thirteen CDs, it was released by EMI on and covers the era from Duran Duran to Arena , as well as non-album single "A View to a Kill" ....
" boxset
- "Rio (Part 1)" – 5:11
- "The Chauffeur (Blue Silver)" – 3:48
- "Rio (Part 2)" – 5:29
- "My Own Way" [remix] – 4:34
Appearances on other Duran Duran albums
- Duran DuranDuran Duran (1983 video)Officially titled simply Duran Duran , this video compilation is sometimes unofficially referred to in print as the Duran Duran video album or Duran Duran: The First 11 Videos...
- Arena
- Greatest
- Singles Box Set 1981–1985
- The Essential CollectionThe Essential Collection (Duran Duran)The Essential Collection is a compilation album released in 2000 by the band Duran Duran. It was re-released in 2007 and almost exclusively covers material from their first two albums, Duran Duran and Rio.-Track listing:# "Girls on Film" – 3:28...
Cover versions
- DeftonesDeftonesDeftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California, founded in 1988. The band consists of Chino Moreno , Stephen Carpenter , Chi Cheng , Frank Delgado , and Abe Cunningham . Currently Sergio Vega is standing in on bass while Cheng recovers from a car accident...
- B-Sides & RaritiesB-Sides & Rarities (Deftones album)-DVD:# "7 Words"# "Bored"# "My Own Summer "# "Be Quiet and Drive "# "Change "# "Back to School "# "Digital Bath"# "Minerva"# "Hexagram"# "Bloody Cape"# "Engine Number 9"# "Root"-Credits:...
. This version was used in the film Resident Evil:Apocalypse and appears on the Resident Evil: Apocalypse-Original Soundtrack CD and on The Duran Duran Tribute Album. - SleepthiefSleepthiefSleepthief is an American electronic music recording project formed by producer and composer Justin Elswick. Elswick began writing music for the album ten years prior to its release. The album was mixed, mastered, co-produced, and co-arranged by Israel Curtis...
- on the album The Dawnseeker Sleepthief have recorded ten remixes of the song, which were released as an EPon iTunes in 2007. Sleepthief also created a video to accompany the release of The Chauffeur as a single. - The LoveCraveThe LoveCraveThe LoveCrave is an Italian gothic metal band from Milan. The LoveCrave means "Hundredth Rave of Love"...
- Italian gothic rock band The LoveCrave included a cover of The Chauffeur on their 2006 album The Angel and the RainThe Angel and the Rain-Single declutching:* 2006 – Zilloscope 11/06 – "Little Suicide"* 2006 – Cold Hands Seduction Vol.64 – "Vampires "* 2006 – Loud Sounds – "Nobody"* 2006 – ClubTRAX Vol... - Sneaker PimpsSneaker PimpsSneaker Pimps were a British trip-hop band formed in Hartlepool, England in 1994. They are best known for their first album Becoming X and particularly the singles "6 Underground", "Spin Spin Sugar", and "Tesko Suicide" from the same album...
- British trip-hop band Sneaker Pimps recorded the cover of The Chauffeur for a various artist album Meli-Melo - Tre luxTré LuxTre Lux is the solo trip hop project of Tina Root, the vocalist of Switchblade Symphony.-A Strange Gathering:Her first full-length album, A Strange Gathering, was released September 19, 2006...
- recorded a cover of The Chauffuer that features on the album A Strange Gathering released in September 2006 - Josh GabrielJosh GabrielJosh Gabriel is an electronic dance music DJ and producer, formerly of Gabriel & Dresden with Dave Dresden.-Early Years :In 1988-89, a 20 year old exchange student from California Institute of the Arts, was living in The Hague in The Netherlands and studying at the Institute of Sonology...
Gabriel & Dresden recorded a cover under the release Josh Gabriel Pres. Winter Kills - Winter Kills. Released in June 2011.