Duran Duran “1979 Demos Part 2: Dreaming of Your Cars” 1979/2020, limited edition purple vinyl. Pre-Simon Le Bon and Andy Taylor, when John Taylor (still going by Nigel) played guitar rather than bass and Andy Wickett (going by “Fane”) was on vocals. Nick and John are on keyboards and drums respectively, roles they continued to perform to this day. John also did the artwork for the cover. It’s my birthday today and I try to listen to and write about Duran Duran on my birthday each year…this year it’s something brand new to me. I’ve never heard three of the four tracks on this unofficial mini album (recorded at Bob Lamb’s studios in Birmingham, England in September 1979). The final track “To the Shore” appears on their debut album Duran Duran but the demo is totally totally different, almost unrecognizable. I’m fairly certain Simon rewrote the lyrics on the final version and the spacey, proggy guitar solos were removed as well. The other three tracks are “Dreaming of Your Cars” (which reminds me of The Police’s “Can’t Stand Losing You”), “Love Story” and “X Disco.” Of the three, “X Disco” is the most Duran – a funky, highly danceable bass line that sounds quite similar to the one on “Planet Earth” and vocals that aren’t nearly as good as Simon’s, of course, but in a similar style to his. The removal of Wickett and the addition of Andy Taylor were clearly excellent choices: having this demo is awesome from a collector/super-fan perspective but Duran Duran evolved dramatically forward in the years between ‘79 and ‘81 when they released their first full length album.