Someone asked me a few months ago what my favorite 80s videos were, but I couldn’t think of anything other than Michael Jackson’s Thriller (which scared the crap out of me when I was little, and my older sister took full advantage of that. )
Then the other day I remembered the Genesis video for Land of Confusion and how cool I thought those celebrity puppets were. Plus it’s a good song.
I wanna know what YOUR favorite 80s videos are, for any reason whatsoever. Artistry, neat effects, cheese factor, etc.
(subquestion: what was the tv show that those celebrity puppets were on?)
I always have problems naming just one favorite for anything, probably because I’m just an eternal bench sitter… Anyways, some of my favs have to be Devo’s, ‘Whip it’, Ah-Ha’s ‘Take on me’ -which is one of the greatest video’s for animation ever -reminds me of the movie American Pop. Lastly, I’d have to include U2’s ‘Where the Streets have no Name’ - its been re-done a thousand times, and I know they ripped it off of the Beatles, but its still a great video.
Already the first three videos I thought of, “Sledgehammer”, “Whip it” and “Take On me”, have been named. Couple of others I can think of right way are T. Heads’ “Burning Down the House” and Don Henley’s “Boys of Summer”, which, come to think of it, both use projected imagery in clever ways.
First two that came to mind were Sledgehammer and Take On Me but they have already been listed so I’ll add Kiss by Prince and Thriller, Billie Jean by the wacko one
And She Was by the Talking Heads is the best non-Bjork video I’ve ever seen. (It’s the one that was done with animated photographs). The somewhat funny thing is, I was at lunch with some coworkers a while ago, and I mentioned that that video was one of the best I’d ever seen, and one of the guys at the table said, “Oh, that’s good to hear. I worked on that.” Apparently it was done by a very small production company somewhere in Marin.
Runner-up would be Close to the Edit by Art of Noise. (The little girl smashing up a piano with chainsaws and sledgehammers.)
There is only one video that captures the total cheese that was the 1980’s. Only one video that truly embraces dramatic lighting, big hair, shoulder pads and power ballads. That video is…
I can’t believe no one’s posted the one that sprang to my mind when I saw this thread. It’s gotta be Don’t Come Around Here No More by Tom Petty. C’mon, remember them all eating cake? And oh, I love that freaky Tom in a top hat.
OK, my list would include a number of the videos already mentioned, plus:
-Culture Club’s Karma Chameleon - that was a neat video. This is the one that’s set on a Mississippi river boat and there was so much stuff going on in the backround.
-Talk Talk - It’s My Life - lots of shots of wildlife with squiggly black dots. Sounds weird but it’s still one of my favorites
-Men at Work - Down Under
-Madness - Our House
-Huey Lewis and the News - If This is It - set on a beach with more funny stuff going on in the backround.
I’m sure there are lots more that I’ll think of as soon as I hit “submit.”
In general, I liked the videos where they really took some time to do something neat and had fun with it. I generally didn’t like concert videos as I thought that was sort of a cop out, but I admit to a secret liking for the Van Halen Jump video (and I am so NOT a Van Halen fan), simply because it looked like they were having so much fun making the video.
Some of the best have already been mentioned. “Don’t Come Around Here No More” was especially good. But let us not forget:
“Beat It” and “Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson - These were THE videos that started what we now consider to be videos. High production values and real budgets, actual directors, cool dancing, the whole nine yards. Prior to these videos, a rock video was basically about $1500 worth of 16mm film, some cheap lights, and a dry ice steam machine. Michael Jackson made the video an opportunity to make a real little MOVIE, a professional production. Basically, every pop video you have ever seen that has the pop star dancing and singing with a bunch of people dancing behind them is copying “Beat It.”
“Love is a Battlefield” by Pat Benatar. Terrible video in so many ways, but it sure tells you a lot about the 80s. And unlike almost all videos today, but a lot of videos then, it tells a story.
“Brothers in Arms” by Dire Straits. Another great animated video.
“Every Breath You Take” by the Police. Simple and black and white, but very cleverly done, and matches the mood of the song.
Any one of a number of Tom Petty videos - in addition to “Don’t Come Around Here No More,” you’ve got half a dozen great entries from Full Moon Fever - “Won’t Back Down,” “Free Falling,” “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” “You’re So Bad,” etc. All lighthearted, funny, well-produced and directed videos.
Skip- you forget the two coolest things about that video- Bonnie Tyler in a tight-fitting military-school-type uniform & glowing-eyed levitating (demon?-)choirboys.
I thought the coolest video in the 80’s was Golden Earring’sTwilight Zone. A mini movie set to a great song. Everything a guy in his late teens/early twenties could want.
Some of my old favourites have been mentioned, but not all. Here are a few more:
Peter Schilling, “Major Tom.” I’m not entirely sure what it was supposed to represent (piles of old tires? Schilling on TV?), but for some reason, I liked it and remember it.
Elton John, “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues.” Glurgy, yes; but telling a complete story in moving pictures, including various plot devices, in which the actors had to get their message across without words, in only about four minutes, must have taken some doing. It’s been a long while since I’ve seen it, but I’d still be impressed.
Ian Hunter, “All of the Good Ones are Taken.” This made me laugh out loud when I first saw it. Hunter’s song is good to begin with, but his actions in the video as he unsuccessfully tries to get the girl border on classic slapstick and other forms of physical comedy.
Interestingly, when I stop to think about it, none of my favourites involve dance numbers or concert scenes. Maybe that’s why I lost interest in pop and rock music videos after those days.
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