Once Duran Duran captivated MTV viewers with their video for “Hungry Like the Wolf” in 1982, the English band became an unstoppable force for the next four years. They rattled off a string of nine hits that registered on the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, seven of which reached the Top 10. By 1986, they had lost two-fifths of their lineup with the departure of guitarist Andy Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor (not related to Andy or Duran Duran bassist John Taylor, or Queen drummer Roger Taylor). Over the course of the next several years, Duran Duran would also shrink in popularity. But with the 1992 release of “Ordinary World,” the band would reverse that trend.
The lead single from Duran Duran’s second self-titled album, frequently referred to as The Wedding Album, was certainly notable for its unexpected popularity and its even more surprising change in musical direction. As great of a comeback story as this downtempo, ethereal song is, we shouldn’t overlook Simon Le Bon’s heartfelt lyrics. Though he was initially reluctant to reveal their meaning, he has since shed light on what the song is about.
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Le Bon’s Search for Perspective in Grief
“Ordinary World” is the second of three Duran Duran songs for which Le Bon wrote lyrics about his friend David Miles, who died of a drug overdose in 1986. (“Do You Believe in Shame?” from Big Thing, released in 1988, was the first song of the trilogy. “Out of My Mind” from Medazzaland, released in 1997, was the third.) Through the lyrics, Le Bon addresses the depth of the grief he feels over the loss of Miles, but he also looks ahead to a time when he won’t feel as much weight from that grief. Le Bon’s hope for a brighter, more familiar future is central to the song, as he expresses repeatedly through the choruses.
But I won’t cry for yesterdayThere’s an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldI will learn to survive
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The word “somehow” does a lot of heavy lifting in the chorus. In the first verse and pre-chorus, Le Bon makes it clear that he is still disoriented from the loss of his friend. Le Bon sings, Came in from a rainy Thursday / On the avenue / Thought I heard you talking softly. Then he needs to turn on “the lights, the TV, and the radio” to try to re-orient himself. But he admits that he “can’t escape the ghost of you.” In the pre-chorus, Le Bon is longing for the world as it was when Miles was alive.
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some’d sayWhere is the life that I recognize?Gone away
Le Bon returns to this theme in the second verse, as he remembers back to a time when Miles said to him, “Pride will tear both of us apart.” He has a conversation with his absent friend, replying, Pride’s gone out the window / ‘Cross the rooftops, gone away / Left me in the vacuum of my heart. However, in the third verse, Le Bon tries to place his grief in a larger perspective, as he sings, Here beside the news of holy war and holy need / Ours is just a little sorrowed talk.
Great Lyrics, Questionable Delivery?
Right from the opening line of “Came in from a rainy Thursday,” Le Bon does a brilliant job of setting the scene for his listeners, and the entirety of “Ordinary World” brings us into Le Bon’s tortured inner dialogue. Le Bon himself, though, had some doubts about his vocal delivery, at least for one of the song’s lines.
In an interview with Stereogum, Le Bon recounted the time when he sang “Ordinary World” as a duet with Luciano Pavarotti at a benefit concert for the non-governmental organization War Child. When they reached the third verse, and Le Bon sang the lines, Papers in the roadside / Tell of suffering and greed, Pavarotti answered him with a similar phrasing of “suffering and greed.” Le Bon was horrified at hearing someone else sing the lines with his phrasing. He recalled thinking, “Oh, f-! And that [phrasing] was my idea! That sounded terrible, and it was my idea.”
The Impact of “Ordinary World”
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“Ordinary World” peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Duran Duran’s highest-charting single since “Notorious” reached No. 2 in 1987. It was certified Gold in March 1993. The Wedding Album was certified Platinum, and it hit No. 7 on the Billboard 200. It became Duran Duran’s fourth Top 10 album and their first since Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983), as well as their last before Paper Gods (2015).
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The electronic dance duo Aurora, featuring Naimee Coleman, covered “Ordinary World” in 2000; their version reached No. 37 on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart. Adam Lambert covered the song for his 2023 album, High Drama. He released it as the album’s lead single, but it did not chart. “Ordinary World” was also included on the soundtrack for the 2004 film Layer Cake, starring Daniel Craig.
Duran Duran was never quite able to match the phenomenal frenzy they created in the early ‘80s with their Rio album and the groundbreaking videos that accompanied those singles. However, with “Ordinary World” and its follow-up single, “Come Undone,” they came awfully close. It was a stunning comeback, and more importantly, “Ordinary World” became one of Duran Duran’s signature songs. Regardless of its chart success, Le Bon and his bandmates had come up with something special. After all, when Pavarotti sings your song, it’s a good sign you’ve written a classic.
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