Duran Duran release groovy cover of Electric Light Orchestra’s classic ‘Evil Woman’ - listen

10 October 2024, 11:12

Duran Duran have released a groovy cover of an ELO classic. Picture: Getty

By Thomas Edward

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They're returning to haunt this Halloween.

Last year, pop rock icons Duran Duran put together ghoulish cover versions of their favourite songs, titled Danse Macabre.

Taking tracks from the likes of The Rolling Stones, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Talking Heads, Billie Eilish, Cerrone, and The Specials, the synth-pop mainstays gave them a frightful feel for the ghastly season.

Ahead of their annual event, The Danse Macabre Halloween Party at New York City's beloved Madison Square Garden, they've offered up a couple more takes on classic songs of theirs and their idols.

The Danse Macabre - De Luxe arrives this Friday, and features a reworking of their 1984 hit 'New Moon On Monday' titled 'New Moon (Dark Phase)'.

More intriguingly, however, is their groovy rendition of Electric Light Orchestra's classic 'Evil Woman' - listen below:

Duran Duran – Evil Woman (Official Lyric Video)

Complete with a Halloween-themed animated music video, Duran Duran's take on Jeff Lynne's 1975 disco-rock number revives it with a foreboding, yet funky sensibility.

The deluxe release Danse Macabre also features contributions from former member Andy Taylor, who guests on 'New Moon (Dark Phase)' which you can also listen to below.

Duran Duran – NEW MOON (DARK PHASE) (Official Audio)

In an accompanying statement, keyboardist Nick Rhodes said: "When we released our Danse Macabre project last year it was born from a spontaneous decision to pull together a record which celebrated the madness and joy of Halloween.

"In doing so, we unlocked an unexpected box of curiosity and creativity, which led us to reimagine some of our older songs, record cover versions of some of our favourites, and write several new pieces.

"This year, the inspiration was somehow still lingering, and I loved the idea of expanding the collection, because we could… Why not add some of the songs that we considered initially now that we had the luxury of a little more time?

"This thought resulted in another new song, a cover of the ELO classic, 'Evil Woman', and a remake of 'New Moon on Monday'. The Danse Macabre De Luxe vinyl box set also includes several additional tracks which make it even more special. This somehow feels like justice for vinyl collectors!"

The 80s music legends promised to mix new music, their go-to covers, and "darkly reimagined versions" of their own biggest hits at the The Danse Macabre Halloween Party.

Jeff Lynne's ELO - Evil Woman (Live at Wembley Stadium)

After featuring on their fifth album, Face The Music, 'Evil Woman' swiftly became accepted as one of Electric Light Orchestra's signature hits, and is a mainstay of their setlists even today.

"I wrote this in a matter of minutes," bandleader Jeff Lynne revealed in an interview with Rolling Stone in 2016.

"The rest of the album was done. I listened to it and thought, 'There’s not a good single.' So I sent the band out to a game of football and made up 'Evil Woman' on the spot.

"The first three chords came right to me. It was the quickest thing I’d ever done. We kept it slick and cool, kind of like an R&B song.

"It was kind of a posh one for me, with all the big piano solos and the string arrangement. It was inspired by a certain woman, but I can’t say who. She’s appeared a few times in my songs."