Last night my wife and I attended the final show of the 2023 North American leg of Duran Duran’s Future Past Tour at Ocean Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. This was truly one of the most thrilling, jubilant shows I have seen the band perform and was the fourth time we saw Duran Duran on this leg of the tour, having caught both of their shows at Red Rocks in Colorado August 28 and 29, and their September 7 show in Philadelphia. All of those shows were superb, but last night there was an extra special yet bittersweet feeling in the air as the tour came to a close. In these days when we are losing so many of the artists we grew up with, I have been cherishing every single moment that I get to spend in the presence of those artists who have meant — and still mean — such a great deal to me. I always want to think about “next time” and tell myself that there will be more shows, but the truth is you never know. But what we can celebrate — and did celebrate last night — was that right now, here in the moment, we are still fortunate enough to have four of the five original members of Duran Duran touring together and firing on all cylinders. These guys aren’t just phoning it in; they’re putting their heart and soul into every show, and you can feel it in the air every single night. Supported by the wonderful backup vocalists Anna Ross and Rachael O’Connor, saxophonist Simon Willescroft, and the mighty and versatile guitarist Dom Brown, this incarnation of the touring band has been an absolute joy to experience live.
Here are some of my favorite photos that I took at the show, as well as a few videos. All photos © 2023 Chuck Earling.
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