1986 was the year England's Fab Five was reduced to a trio. Drummer Roger Taylor bowed out due to nervous exhaustion, and guitarist Andy Taylor walked out in a huff for a solo career. The remaining members (Simon LeBon, Nick Rhodes, and John Taylor)were left in a funk and were unsure what musical direction to take. They decided to hook up with the ever-trusty Nile Rodgers, and the result is "Notorious," the band's most rhythm-oriented disc to date. The title track is near-flawless; never before has the group released a groove this tight and sedcutive. Simon LeBon gives us a never-before-heard falsetto in the single "Skin Trade," which features some guitar work that's unmistakably Nile. Moreover, things get moody in the angelic "Winter Marches On," and we're brought to the disc's closer, the stomping rokcer "Proposition." Did I fail to mention the group's forgotten and underrated single "Meet El Presidente?" "Notorious" is a solid album from start to finish and represents a step towards musical maturity for the band. Following the abrupt departure of two members, you have to give these guys credit for bouncing back with an impressive disc that doesn't disappoint.

The three years of waiting since the last Duran Duran studio effort were well rewarded when `Notorious' came out in late 1986. The band had teamed up with Chic guitarist and producer Nile Rodgers, a fierce horn section, some top drawer backing singers, future member Warren Cucurullo and legendary drummer Steve Ferrone to create a raw, funky sound that suited them perfectly. There is a remainder of Arcadia in `Winter Marches On' which has some great sampled strings on it, but apart from this song and the beautiful ballad `A Matter Of Feeling' it's pure Duran meets Chic meets Power Station. The real gems here are the title track, `American Science', `Skin Trade', `Vertigo' and `So Misled' (check out the horns and the bass on this one!), but the whole album is excellent. Compared to later Duran stuff it's a very accessible, no frills album with ten tightly arranged songs that were just waiting to be played live (I still recall the show they did in Copenhagen during their Strange Behaviour Tour in 1987 as one of the best concerts I've ever been to). The album sounds just as fresh as when it came out. Forget about all the techno/house and so-called `dance' crap - this is the kind of music people should get down and sweat to.

When Notorious came out, I didn't know what to think. It was a such big departure from the New Romantic/New Wave/Bubblegum Pop I was such a big fan of in 1984/'85. The boys had gone and split up. Powerstation and Arcadia were formed and then Duran Duran in stunted form regrouped, and I expected at the very least that Notorious would follow in the really HUGE shoes of Arcadia's 'So Red The Rose', but with the exception of a couple of tracks ('Hold Me' and 'Winter Marches On'), it did not.

Notorious is a strange album. I used to think it was inconsistent when it was first released. Upon further listening and recent revisiting, I've found that it has what the best Duran Duran albums contain: Cohesiveness. I don't recommend it as a starting place for would be Duranies, but it's more solid than Seven and the Ragged Tiger even if I can't say that this is a must have, based on the relative weakness of its singles. It's a transitional album that is neither as good as the first two Duran Duran albums or the subsequent release, Big Thing, and yet I'm inclined to give it five stars. Maybe because I can't give it ****1/2.

Highlights of the album are the non-singles: 'American Science', 'A Matter of Feeling', 'Hold Me', 'So Misled', 'Winter Marches On', and 'Proposition'. These songs seem to cover somewhat familiar ground soundwise, so the comfort level was never an issue with me. Together these songs could form their own wonderful EP.

The rest of the tracks could be released as a 12" dance club standards EP. That's not to insult them, though. Quite the contrary, actually, as the remixes of Notorious, Skin Trade, Vertigo (Do The Demolition) and 'Meet El Presidente' outclass and outshine their album counterparts. The best of them albumwise is 'Vertigo (Do the Demolition)'. It's quite catchy, and from the assortment of more dance oriented tunes on Notorious, Vertigo probably most closely resembles singles of earlier Duran times, somewhat in the ilk of Wild Boys.

So, Notorious is a solid transitional album, but if you're looking to get into Duran Duran and the Duran Duran sound, start at the beginning so you can more fully recognize and understand what they were trying to accomplish here.

I've been a Duranie since age 12, when Rio was released, and still hold steadfast to the new wave roots of my childhood.

Notorious, by far the band's best effort, is a collection of Duran's maturing, introspective poetry squarely founded on the colorful, highly-charged sound of their past hit albums. "Winter Marches On" recalls the somber romance of Rio's "The Chauffeur" while "So Mislead" and "American Science" reflect the group's fusion experimentation, probably directed by producer Nile Rodgers and Average White Band drummer Steve Ferone. Andy Taylor did lay down the guitar tracks, then left Duran for a solo pursuit. John Taylor's bass sound grows up on Notorious, maturing into well-constructed groves, especially on "American Science" and "Skin Trade".

Nick Rhodes, whose signature synthesizer sound brought distinction to the band's new wave hits in the early Eighties, appropriately broadens his musical pallete to add new ambiance to each song, especially on "Matter of Feeling" and the title track.

Duran's strength has always been to create a new world of sound and poetry with each album, while courageously hanging on to their new-romantic identity, despite the attacks of industry critics.

All I have to say is if you don't like Duran Duran, don't listen to them or try to review an album of theirs. I dislike R.E.M., so you know what I don't do? That's right, listen to their music or try to critic their work. Obviously, these Duran Duran haters who put it upon themselves to trash a great album, really just like to hear the sound of their own voices, or in this case, the content of their written word. Personally, Duran Duran is my favorite band and I will love them until the end of time. I loved the Notorious album. Vertigo, Skin Trade, and Proposition my favorite songs on the album but every song is pretty awesome. I also like how every song on the album sounded different and not like the cookie cutter pop that you get in today's cds. Every Duran Duran fan should take a look at this album. It is defintely worth it!