Duran Duran’s self-titled debut – though not their last self-titled album – is a classic example of brash youth at work; while it was the subsequent Rio that turned them into megastars worldwide, Duran Duran itself set the stage with a rush of energetic, slick but not overly polished songs. The blend of crisp funk rock and further synth gloss, with Simon Le Bon’s punchy, not-too-shrill delivery its own catchy factor, shown both on singles like “Girls on Film” and “Planet Earth” and deeper cuts like the moody hit of “Friends of Mine” and “Anyone Out There.”

– Ned Raggett