Peavey Congratulates Bassist John Taylor and Duran Duran on 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nomination

Peavey Electronics® congratulates bassist John Taylor and his band Duran Duran on their nomination to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2022. Duran Duran is celebrating this honor shortly after the release of their 2021 album, Future Past, which paid homage to their dedicated fans and marked the 40th anniversary since the release of the band’s debut single.

“What a surprise and an honor! To be nominated by such a highly esteemed organization is truly special in this, our 40th year,” Taylor wrote in a statement posted on Duran Duran’s website. “For decades now, Duran Duran have been inspired by the incredible support of our beautiful and diverse fanbase around the world. To be considered by the Hall of Famers is truly next level. Let’s hope we make the cut!”

Perhaps the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame puts it best by describing Duran Duran as a band of “delicious dichotomies.” While they are known for their undeniably catchy pop tunes, they also produced some of the most intricate musical arrangements of their time, with a signature combination of synthesized keyboards and distorted glam rock guitars.

“They were new wave outsiders who became music video stars — Tiger Beat fashion pinups who rocked arenas,” the biography states.

From the start, the rhythm section has been a strong foundation, literally and figuratively, for Duran Duran. John Taylor co-founded the band in 1978 with keyboardist Nick Rhodes in Birmingham, England. The addition of drummer Roger Taylor, guitarist Andy Taylor, and vocalist Simon Le Bon formed what the British press called the “Fab Five.”

Taylor’s bass playing has been a steady — and undoubtedly underrated — anchor throughout Duran Duran’s studio albums and extensive touring career. He gravitates toward the new Trace Elliot® bass amplifiers and Peavey speaker cabs. During live performances, he prefers a TE-1200 amp to drive 8x10 Peavey bass cabinets, all while helping him dial in a “pinpoint” sound that’s narrow and strong and doesn’t get in the way of other frequencies in Duran Duran’s electronic-driven style.

On their first self-monikered album, Duran Duran pushed musical and cultural boundaries in a new decade of the 1980s. The newly launched MTV music video platform made the group superstars around the world, as they released wildly successful albums throughout the decade, including Rio, Seven and the Ragged Tiger, and Notorious. Even while they skyrocketed to popularity and filled arenas, they remained “dance club darlings.”

The 1990s would usher in a shift from synthesizers to distorted guitars, and Duran Duran kept pace. They evolved with a second self-titled album in 1993 that charted two Billboard Top Ten singles “Ordinary World” and “Come Undone.” Being honored alongside the original band members is guitarist Warren Cuccurullo, who played a critical role in the band’s resurgence on the pop charts during this era.

As described by TotalNtertainment, fans are able to vote for Duran Duran every day at vote.rockhall.com or in person at the museum in Cleveland. The top five artists comprise a fans’ ballot that will be tallied along with the other ballots to select the 2022 inductees.

The Hall of Fame’s international voting body takes several factors into consideration, including the artist’s length and depth of career, their body of work, innovation, superiority in style and technique, and their influence on other artists. Duran Duran’s collaborations with newer artists, such as Janelle Monáe, Justin Timberlake, Tove Lo, Ana Matronic, and their work with producers Timbaland and Mark Ronson, will likely factor in.

With more than 100 million records sold and 18 hit singles in the U.S., it’s clear that Duran Duran has achieved numerous benchmarks during their illustrious career, making an indelible impression on pop music and the industry as a whole.