Do You Believe in Shame?

"Do You Believe In Shame?"
Single by Duran Duran
from the album Big Thing
B-side	"The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" "God (London)" "This Is How a Road Gets Made" "Drug (Original Version)"
Released	10 April 1989
Recorded	Davout Studios, Paris
Genre	Rock, New Wave
Length	?:??
Label	EMI - DD 12
Writer(s)	Eleanor Broadwater, A Delmar Hawkins Jnr, J Stanley Lewis, Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes & John Taylor
Producer	Duran Duran, , Jonathan Elias, Daniel Abraham
Duran Duran singles chronology
"All She Wants Is" (1988) "Do You Believe In Shame" (1989) "Burning The Ground" (1989)

"Do You Believe In Shame?" is the nineteenth single by Duran Duran. Released 10 April 1989 it was the third and final single from the Big Thing album.

About the song

The song was dedicated to three of the band's fallen friends: record producer Alex Sadkin, artist Andy Warhol, and Simon Le Bon's childhood friend David Miles. Le Bon has since said that "Shame" is the first part of a trilogy of songs written as a tribute to Miles, the other songs being "Ordinary World" and "Out of My Mind".

There was a successful legal challenge over the close resemblance of the melody of "Do You Believe In Shame?" to that of the Dale Hawkins classic "Suzie Q" (more famously covered by Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Rolling Stones). The writing credits were changed accordingly.^[1] The members of Duran Duran have always denied that they intentionally copied any other works, and that the similarity of the two songs was based on what they described as a "basic blues progression".

Single release

"Do You Believe In Shame?" was released to coincide with the band's Electric Theatre Tour which kicked off in Newcastle on 15 April 1989. As such, the 7" triple pack issued by EMI in the UK featured tour dates in the artwork.

The song's first week of release was complicated by the fact that the original CD single was discovered to have an overlong playing time that disqualified it from some of the sales charts. The CD single was recalled two days after its release, and reissued a few days later, but for several days during the song's initial promotion, the CD was unavailable in shops.

Music video

The lyrical video for "Do You Believe In Shame?" was filmed by Chinese director Chen Kaige, who was later to direct acclaimed films such as Farewell My Concubine. It was set in New York City, and shows the three members of Duran Duran in separate storylines. Nick Rhodes appears to be mourning a friend; he attends an auction and bids on a snow globe, which he later throws in the bin along with other mementos. Most likely this is an allusion to Andy Warhol, whose possessions were auctioned off after his death. John Taylor appears to be searching for faith and connection; he attends a Catholic church, and then a birthday party for a little girl. While singing, Simon Le Bon seems to be watching the world around him, observing people on the streets, including a little girl who drops her crutches in order to hop up a flight of stairs and a blind man who confidently crosses the street in front of oncoming traffic.

The Roosevelt Island Tramway is featured halfway through the video.

At the end of the video, a long line of dominos can be seen falling in succession forming a question mark, akin to the single's sleeve.

B-sides, bonus tracks and remixes

EMI really went to town on the amount of material for this release. In lieu of a remix of the single track, they issued a wealth of bonus material across a number of formats - triple 7" pack, 3" CD and limited edition numbered 10" single.

"Official Bootleg: The LSD Edit", a previously promo-only edit of Big Thing album tracks "The Edge Of America" and "Lake Shore Driving" finally had its commercial debut, "LSD" presumably an acronym for "Lake Shore Driving". The song was renamed to "The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" for release on the "Do You Believe In Shame?" single.

The original Daniel Abraham mix of "Drug (It's Just A State Of Mind)" also surfaced on this single. John Taylor believed in this mix of "Drug" so vehemently, he's since said he almost quit the band over the mishandling of the track.

Other gems include an edit of Big Thing album track "Palomino" and a live version of "Notorious" recorded in Rotterdam which was previously from the promo-only 12" EP Duran Goes Dutch.

Also included in the pack were two spoken word pieces by Simon Le Bon; "God (London)" and "This Is How A Road Gets Made". They featured during the tour as intros to the band coming on stage. Simon swears in "God (London)" and hence it was released in two versions, censored and non-censored.

Covers, samples, & media references

The song appears in the 1987 film 'Tequila Sunrise'.

Chart positions

Despite the amazing collectibility of this release, it could reach no higher in the charts than #30 in the UK and #72 in the US. It also reached #14 in Italy.

Track listing

7" Triple Pack (UK)

EMI DDA 12 (Simon Le Bon picture sleeve)

1. "Do You Believe in Shame?" – 4:23
2. "The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" – 3:30

EMI DDB 12 (Nick Rhodes picture sleeve)

1. "Do You Believe in Shame?" – 4:23
2. "God (London)" – 1:36
3. "This Is How a Road Gets Made" – 0:47
4. "Palomino (Edit)" – 3:30

EMI DDC 12 (John Taylor picture sleeve)

1. "Do You Believe in Shame?" – 4:23
2. "Drug (Original Version)" – 4:20

10": EMI 10 DD 12 (UK)

1. "Do You Believe In Shame?" – 4:23
2. "The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" – 3:30
3. "Notorious (Live)" – 4:06*

*Recorded live at the Ahoy, Rotterdam, 1987.

12": Capitol V-15456 (US)

1. "Do You Believe in Shame?" – 4:23
2. "The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" – 3:30
3. "Notorious (Live)" – 4:06
4. "Drug (Original Version)" – 4:20

CD3: EMI CD DD 12 (UK)

1. "Do You Believe in Shame?" – 4:25
2. "The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" – 3:32
3. "Notorious (Live)" – 4:16
4. "God (London)" – 1:40
5. "This Is How a Road Gets Made" – 0:49

• released on 3" CD like the other two Big Thing singles
• contains the censored version of "God (London)", bleeping the profanity
• the same tracks also appeared on a US 3" CD C3-44337-2 (includes the uncensored "God (London)")

CD: part of "Singles Box Set 1986-1995" boxset

1. "Do You Believe in Shame?" – 4:25
2. "The Krush Brothers LSD Edit" – 3:32
3. "God (London)" – 1:40
4. "This Is How a Road Gets Made" – 0:49
5. "Palomino (Edit)" – 3:30
6. "Drug (Original Version)" – 4:20
7. "Notorious (Live)" – 4:16

Other appearances

Apart from the single, "Do You Believe in Shame?" has also appeared on:

Albums:

• Big Thing (1988)
• Tequila Sunrise OST (1988)
• Singles Box Set 1986-1995 (2004)

Personnel

Duran Duran are:

• Simon Le Bon - vocals
• Nick Rhodes - keyboards
• John Taylor - bass guitar

With:

• Warren Cuccurullo - guitar
• Steve Ferrone - drums
• Daniel Abraham - primitive guitar

Also credited:

• Jonathan Elias - co-producer
• Daniel Abraham - co-producer and mixer

External links

• TM's Duran Duran Discography

References

1. ^ ASCAP writing credits