Vegas, baby!

So where was I? Oh yes, Duran Duran...

I've faithfully followed the band all these years, through their highs and lows, and multiple side projects. I've seen them live every time they've toured the States, in huge halls and small venues and everywhere in between. I watched in sadness as first Roger, then Andy, and finally John left the band. Even though the band wasn't the same, I still kept returning to them.

Then, in 2002, we got the incredible news. The original five members were reforming the band and were going to play a select few live shows. Living so close to New York City, I've become spoiled about the amount of concerts I'm able to attend and assumed they would be playing in Manhattan. Well, not so for these reunion shows. They picked venues in Japan, LA and Las Vegas, and they sold out in record time. My best friend E and I thought we were out of luck.

I am lucky enough to be blessed with the world's greatest girlfriends. My other best friend, I'll call her Eye, happened to work in the music industry at the time. She suggested to me, why don't you go out to the Vegas show? I know someone, I'll be able to get you tickets. E and I put our heads together, consulted with our families, and made the decision. We were off to Vegas.

The show was scheduled for a Saturday night at the Hard Rock Hotel in the middle of July. We took an early flight out to Las Vegas and landed about noon local time. We dumped our luggage at our (much cheaper) hotel located conveniently next door and walked over to scope out the scene, pick up our tickets and get a place on the entrance line for a general admission show. When we arrived, the line was already snaking around the parking lot, and we later learned that the first people on the line had been there since 5 am. We sat down, on the sidewalk, in the July Vegas heat, to wait it out.

One of the things I've always loved about going to shows is talking to other people who are just as crazy about the band you're there to see as you are. We discovered we weren't the only people who'd traveled across the country to see the show. Some people had been the the LA shows earlier in the week and followed the band to Vegas. It was gratifying to learn we weren't crazy!

News of band member sightings inside the hotel flew up and down the line while we waited. Later in the afternoon the entire band made an appearance at the blackjack tables. Half the line ran in to see them and take photos while friends waited and held spots, and then the trade was made so the ones who'd waited could go inside. I admit to having my own blurry photos of John Taylor trying his hand at 21.

Finally, after what seemed like an interminable wait and individual trips to our own hotel to freshen up, we were allowed into the venue. Having been a Duran fan for so long and having seen so many shows together, we knew just what to do - grab hands, go to the left and get as far forward as humanly possible.

Another thing old time fans know about Duran - they are never on time. A show scheduled for 9 pm will start closer to 9:30.

Finally, the lights were lowered, and the shrieks were ear piercing. It was just like old times! The entire band came to the front of the stage, back lit, and just stood in front of the crowd, taking it all in. I'd been lucky enough to see the original five live back in 1984, but for some fans, like E, this was the first time they'd ever seen all of them on stage together. It was overwhelming. They broke off one by one and then ripped into "Friends of Mine" from their first album. To start off with a lesser known song seemed like a gift to the die-hard, old time fans, and we rocked out. The floor underneath us all vibrated throughout the night because we were dancing like crazy.

Duran Duran roared through all their classic songs and debuted some new material they were working on for an upcoming album, and the night flew by. After the show, E and I were exhausted and exhilarated and spent hours reliving the show moment by moment. It seemed unreal that we had been there at all.

We flew home the next morning, sure it couldn't get much better than that. We were wrong...