PUBLISHED BY ANDREW SPARKE, A NEW THREE-VOLUME SET OF BOOKS ENTITLED DURAN DURAN EN SCÈNE GATHERS TOGETHER AN ARCHIVE OF INCREDIBLE IMAGES TAKEN BY PHOTOGRAPHER PAUL EDMOND, WHOSE PORTFOLIO LEFT BEHIND A STUNNING TIME CAPSULE DOCUMENTING DURAN DURAN’S FORMATIVE YEARS IN BIRMINGHAM…

All Images courtesy of Maggie K de Monde and Andrew Sparke Publishing

The Duran Duran En Scène trio of books contains an incredible collection of intimate photos shot by the late Paul Edmond of the music scene in Birmingham at a time when Duran were just beginning to take off around the recording of Planet Earth. These books really are a rare glimpse into a period in the band’s career that is rarely accessible visually. “It was a vibrant and creative time,” recalls Edmond’s sister, musician Maggie K de Monde, also a big presence on the scene. “Boy George was living in Brum and all the bands – UB40, Dexys, Beat, Au Pairs and more – and fashion designers and club kids were hanging out at the Rum Runner and the Holy City Zoo. My band at the time was Swans Way, before Scarlet Fantastic, and we used to rehearse at the Rum Runner, as did Duran Duran. My band Playthings before that supported Duran several times.”

As well as documenting that lesser-seen period in the fivepiece’s ascendant early days, each volume of this series features the personal recollections of musicians and associates from the scene at the time, including Boy George and Mulligan from the band Fashion, Maggie herself, as well as introductions written by author Martin Tracey – the following intimate excerpts provide a taste of the series as a whole.

“My teenage bro was here, there and everywhere, snapping everyone,” enthuses Maggie to Classic Pop, “and so we have a fabulous time capsule of that period in his photo archive.”

Duran Duran in 1980, before the world was their playground

X“The thing about having Paul around, it was all very relaxed. Stylists didn’t exist back then, for better or worse we’re responsible for everything that’s going on in these pictures. It’s just the way we were at that time. And the way he was is that he was around, and he wanted to capture the vibe of what was going on. None of us knew where this was leading, but it was great having someone around to document it. Better than anyone else from that period, he captured those very early moments, the inception of the band, whilst we were stumbling about trying to find what our identity was going to be.”

NICK RHODES

HERE, THERE AND EVERYWHERE

Paul was born in Handsworth Wood, Birmingham. He went to school locally and then attended Repton School as a boarder until he left to study his A-Levels at Matthew Boulton College in Birmingham.

Paul had a part-time job at Dixons electrical store in Birmingham town centre where he acquired his first camera in 1979. It soon became apparent that he had a gift and as a young photographer and lover of music, fashion and nightclubs, Paul started taking pictures of bands, artists, designers and revellers on the Birmingham club scene.

Paul was a one-off, his talent unique and he had an eye for a great shot even though he was just a kid in Brum, a teenager with a camera on him at all times.