Remember Music Videos?

Back when I was in college it was all about music videos.

I know right where I was when Springsteen’s ‘I’m On Fire’ dropped.

I know that I was in the living room of my townhouse and that George, Gorf and Fluff were sitting right there. 

(May have been beer involved).

We cheered when Mark Goodman said, “Let’s see that again.”

The videos for ‘Thriller’ and ‘We Are the World’ were momentous events.

A video vixen from a Whitesnake video recently passed away at 59 years old. We all watched that video very closely.

And I have to be honest…

…I miss the videos era. 

Back then the song wasn’t really out until you saw the video.

Bruce did a few where he was an actor. The Cars had all kinds of computer graphics. All the hair band guys would jump and lip-sync poorly.

I also remember that Billy Squier was a huge star and he made such a horrible video for ‘Everybody Wants Me’ that he quickly fell out of favor.

I bring this all up because I watched a video by The Traveling Wilburys and my heart ached when I saw George Harrison, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty.

“Those were the days.”

Of course, videos are made these days but it’s mostly just the lyrics scrolling or the singer in black and white…

…nothing like the cinema events they used to be.

Some that I recall without any effort.

Mick Jagger’s ‘Just Another Night’ - I was a huge defender of anything Mick did. (Or does for that matter). His solo records weren’t up to the standards of the Stones but I have them all. I loved that record.

Glory Days - Bruce is warming up on a baseball field and pretending to pitch to a lineup. His pitching form is all right. His first wife picks him up at the field and he mutters, “Nettles got me in the bottom of the 9th.”

Thriller - I never was a fan of Michael Jackson but the girls loved him and we all loved the girls so we would let the videos play and mock him the entire time. Little secret though, “Billie Jean” was a great song. Until one night when it was on and I was dancing with a girl (very poorly) and she looked right through me at another guy who had just walked in. I had really liked that girl. She had really, really liked the other guy.

Can’t listen to three seconds of ‘Billie Jean’ without feeling that pain.

‘We Are the World’ - all the biggest stars were involved. It was to raise money for Africa. We don’t seem to do things like that anymore.

They played the video every half an hour.

Bruce was awesome but so was Dylan and Paul Simon and Billy Joel and so many more.

It’s still a video that stirs something inside.

I think of Pat Benetar with ‘Love is a Battlefield’ and all the things Madonna stirred up back then.

I do sound old…

…but they aren’t making music like that anymore.

Hour after hour.

Drinking beer and watching videos.