"Notorious" is the fourteenth single by the English new wave band Duran Duran. It was released internationally by EMI on 20 October 1986. "Notorious" was the first single issued from Duran Duran's fourth albumNotorious, and the first released by Duran Duran as a 3-piece band after the departure of Roger Taylor and Andy Taylor. It was a commercial success worldwide, reaching number seven on the UK Singles Chart and number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, behind "Walk Like an Egyptian" by The Bangles, and was a success in various other countries.
About the song
"Notorious" marked the debut of the new streamlined trio version of Duran Duran, as Andy Taylor and Roger Taylor had left the band by the time the album was released. In fact, the acrimonious nature of Andy Taylor's departure was reflected in the song to a certain degree. According to songwriter Simon Le Bon, the lyric "Who really gives a damn for a flaky bandit" was a direct dig at the guitarist. As a trio, the band had enlisted the help of Nile Rodgers to take over production duties. His funk influences can be heard throughout the single - for example, the tempo and the use of The Borneo Horns brass section. Rodgers also played the guitar on the single.
Music video
The video for "Notorious" was shot on 23 September 1986 by directors Peter Kagan and Paula Greif, and bore an uncanny resemblance to the video the duo had filmed in June of that year for Steve Winwood's "Higher Love". The video was shot in black and white Super-8 with a hand-held camera, with quick cuts and changes of zoom and focus, a style that Kagan and Greif also used for the video to Scritti Politti's "Perfect Way". It featured the three-piece band performing the song on a sound stage, with scantily clad dancers in the background choreographed by Paula Abdul. The young modelChristy Turlington appeared in outdoor scenes with the band. A still photo from this location was used as the cover of the album Notorious.
For the first time, the B-side to the 7" single was not an original recording; "Winter Marches On" was an unaltered version of the Notorious album track. Before this, Duran Duran had always provided either completely original songs or previously unheard remixes on the B-side. As a first for the band, "Notorious" was released as two separate 12" singles. The first had a Nile Rodgers produced "Extended Mix" while the second featured a remix by The Latin Rascals. There are 3 official mixes of "Notorious":
Notorious - 3:58
Notorious - 5:14
Notorious - 6:23
and 1 DJ Remix
Disconet Remix 6:33 – 1:30 dub intro, with the rest of the song more comprehensively remixed and rearranged; in particular, the guitars and percussion are accentuated.
This version is available on the "Disconet Dance Classics Volume 3" CD.
As a perennially popular song in their back catalogue, "Notorious" appears in various Duran Duran megamixes, most notably:
When the track made its debut on Montrealradio stationCHOM during the 20 October 1986 edition of the nightly radio show "Rock And Roll News," DJ Randy Renaud declared that by the next night, the song "Amanda" by Boston could "kiss the number one spot goodbye." By the next night, CHOM had received enough requests for the song that it supplanted "Amanda" from the #1 spot on the stations nightly countdown show, "The Top Six At Six."
Charts
Weekly Charts
Peak position
Covers and other appearances
Donnie Darko featured the song during a scene in which Donnie's sister's dance group perform at a talent show and Donnie burns down a motivational speaker's house.
Appears at the end of the trailer for the film Notorious.
The Notorious B.I.G.'s 1999 posthumous rap hit "Notorious B.I.G." sampled the song.
Chic perform the song during their concert with Kimberly Davis and Folami on lead vocals.
The song was used to promote Oxygen's "Notorius Crimes Weekend" in 2020.
