Turntable Talk – Did Video Kill The Radio Star?

This blog is my entry for Dave over at A Sound Day’s “Turntable Talk.” Kudo’s to Dave for picking some fantastic topics, and at the same time letting us participants “run” with it. The following are the instructions we were given:

We were told we ” …don’t have to write literally about the question, but we’re looking for your thoughts on all things music video – how much did MTV change the music of the ’80s? Since there were already British acts making videos regularly in the 70s, do you think it would have taken off in a big way even without the American MTV influence? Did it kill careers… or make careers that shouldn’t have happened? Do you have favorite ones you still like to watch? Do you miss the days when MTV (or Much Music in Canada, or European equivalents) ran music videos instead of reality TV and old reruns? Really, approach it how you like, but I’m curious to get thoughts on the Video Revolution.“

My Conundrum

There have been many people who truly believe that video killed the radio star. As a child of the 70’s and 80’s, I lived through the beginnings of MTV. When I think about music videos, there are so many that I will forever associate with the songs. For example:

Take On Me – a-ha
Sledgehammer – Peter Gabriel
Rhythm Nation – Janet Jackson
Bad, Billie Jean, Beat It, Black or White, and of course, Thriller – Michael Jackson
Vogue – Madonna
Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana
Buddy Holly – Weezer
Weapon of Choice – Fatboy Slim
Dire Straits – Money For Nothing
Legs – ZZ Top
Land of Confusion – Genesis
Hot For Teacher – Van Halen
Simply Irresistible – Robert Palmer
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun – Cyndi Lauper
Run DMC and Aerosmith – Walk This Way
California Girls – David Lee Roth
Got My Mind Set on You – George Harrison
Stuck With You – Huey Lewis and the News
Faith – George Michael
White Wedding – Billy Idol
Opposites Attract – Paula Abdul

The list could go on and on! Those are just the ones that I pulled off the top of my head (and I am probably forgetting some big ones)!

The more I thought about it, I kept coming back to “Video killed the radio star.” Perhaps that is the case (as some proclaim), but I can think of one artist who made videos and it got him mainstream attention.

MTV Welcomes Weird Al Yankovic

According to Wikipedia, the discography of Mr. Yankovic consists of fourteen studio albums, nine compilation albums, eleven videos albums, two extended plays, two box sets, forty-six singles and fifty-four music videos.

Those fifty-four music videos helped to take Weird Al Yankovic to the mainstream world. Let’s face it, the only place you could hear him on the radio was on the Dr. Demento Show, which was often aired in the worst possible time slot because of the crazy content. When Al ventured into the video realm, more and more viewers wanted to see – and hear – more of him!

Parody songs have been around forever, and very rarely ever got radio play. Novelty records were big in the 50’s and 60’s, and there were a few here and there in the 70’s. When Al comes on the scene in 1983, he took it to a whole new level, using videos.

1983’s “Ricky” is credited as being his first video. It was a parody of Toni Basil’s “Micky.” It was a parody base on the TV show I Love Lucy. The video was shot in black and white and still looks great today.

From there, Al continued to use video to gain exposure on MTV. His next single was “I Love Rocky Road” which parodies Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock and Roll.” Instead of a greaser bar, it is set in … an ice cream parlor.

Al’s next video is really the one that really stands out as the one that moved him to a whole new level. Yes, he is a parody singer, but with the video for “Eat It” (a parody of Michael Jackson’s Beat It), not only is the song parodied, but so is the video. Al’s video is literally a shot for shot remake of Jackson’s. Throughout the video, instead of switchblades there are rubber chickens and kitchen utensils, and gags for almost everything in the Beat It video.

I can’t say whether or not the video is responsible for this, but the song won Al a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Recording in 1984. The video won for Best Male Performance at the 1984 American Video Awards!

From that point on, Al continued to make music videos for his singles. Art Fleming appeared in the “I Lost on Jeopardy” video, non-stop visual gags were plentiful in the “Like a Surgeon” video, and the James Brown “screams and shrieks” in “Living With a Hernia” were all more painful than soulful.

In 1988, Al once again parodied Michael Jackson. If I had to pick a “perfect” Weird Al parody video, it this would be one of two. Al won another Grammy Award for Best Concept Music Video for “Fat.” He even got permission from MJ to use the same set as the original video. Al’s makeup took three hours to apply every day and his fat suit weighed 40 pounds. Every time I hear the line, “Ding Dong, Yo!” I still crack up.

I mentioned that “Fat” is one of two “perfect” videos. The other would have to be the fantastic video for “Smells Like Nirvana” (a parody of Smells Like Teen Spirit). Al famously got permission for this parody from Kurt Cobain himself when he was performing on Saturday Night Live. In this Grammy-nominated video, Al satirizes Nirvana and the grunge movement, shooting on the same set as the original video and using the same actor who played the janitor (Rudy Larosa). Dick Van Patten has a cameo, which for whatever reason is extremely funny to me. Why Dick Van Patten??!! Someone said that Tony Hawk makes an appearance in the video, too. I’m not sure I know where.

Weird Al has certainly used music videos to his advantage. It takes a lot of creativity to write a good parody (I mean, come on, there are a lot of crap ones out there – just look on YouTube), but to take an already funny song and create a video that brings about even more humor, just enhances the song. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again, Weird Al is a musical genius.

There have been many other great videos that have followed. To name a few: Amish Paradise (featuring Florence Henderson), Headline News (featuring The People’s Court’s Doug Llewelyn), Gump (featuring Ruth Buzzi and Pat Boone), The Saga Begins (the fantastic Star Wars tribute), White and Nerdy (featuring Donny Osmond and Seth Green), and so many more.

Yes, video may have killed the radio star, but it certainly helped boost the career of Weird Al Yankovic.

I Made It 15 Days! A New Record!

I’m out! I got “Whammed” on Tuesday by a co-worker.

Another co-worker and I were just talking about this on December 1st. Do you play Whamageddon? Do you even know what it is? If not, I’ll tell you.

It’s probably one of the stupidest and silliest games of the holiday season. The objective? Avoid hearing Last Christmas by Wham from December 1st to December 25th (although there are some people who try to avoid it the entire month of December).

Here are the rules:

When I was working part time at Cars 108, it was especially difficult to avoid hearing it, because the station played all Christmas music during the holidays. However, now that Covid has pretty much forced my retirement from radio, I have a bit more control over things.

Yes, I still do flip through the channels on the radio, but it is mostly Sirius XM stations that probably wouldn’t play the Wham version. However, there were times that my wife and I were driving where we were scanning through local stations and the risk factor was higher. I thought for sure if I was gonna be “Whammed” it would be driving in the car, but that is not what happened.

One of our co-workers was listening to a variety of music on YouTube Tuesday night. I know for a fact that she was here the night me and my other co-workers were talking about Whamageddon. Whether she heard the discussion or not, I don’t know.

She was playing Christmas songs of her choice – meaning, she was searching and then selecting the songs to play. She literally turned to us and said, “Here’s one for you” and started Wham! My buddy and I looked at each other and were like, “Really!? Why would you play that?!” She said she had no idea about the game. That was NOT the way I thought I’d lose the game! I am sure that there was a look of disgust and defeat on our faces!

I suppose I’ll give it a go again next year … Maybe I can go longer than 15 days!

Tune Tuesday – Feelin’ Good

One of my followers asked how picked my songs for Tune Tuesday. To be honest, I have no rhyme or reason for the songs that end up here. Last week, I wrote about Marvin Gaye for his birthday, and the week before that it was Nat King Cole for his birthday. Today, it just happens to be a song I heard while in my car this afternoon. It also happens to be a song that fits where I am in my life right now.

In the past year I have been blogging, I have written much about weeding out negativity, and the positive changes that have happened in my life. I have written about reaching a point where I thought of ending my life, only to come through dark times to find true love and true happiness. This song totally fits where I am now – Feeling Good!

buble

The Song

The song was written by singer, songwriter, and actor Anthony Newley for the musical “The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd”. Despite being covered by many artists (including Traffic, The Pussycat Dolls, George Michael, Joe Bonamassa, and John Coltrane – just to name a few), prior to Michael Buble’s version, the best known version was by the amazing Nina Simone. She recorded it for her 1965 “I Put a Spell on You” album. Her version was never released as a single, but became known because of a Volkswagen advertisement in 1994.

Michael Buble’

I was first introduced to his music from a friend of mine who worked at All Access. Kelly knew I was a big fan of the “Great American Songbook”, and the music of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Billie Holiday, and other great vocalists. We spent a lot of time talking music. She sent me a copy of Buble’s debut album and I was pretty impressed. I was not only impressed with his vocals, but I was impressed with his band and the arrangements of the songs. When his next album, “It’s Time”, hit stores, I made sure to pick it up.

Feelin’ Good is the opening cut from the “It’s Time” album. It was released as a single, coincidentally this month in 2005. The song opens with a slow fade up, and Michael’s vocal. It’s soft and smooth and then the band kicks in with a big bass line, a sloppy and bluesy brass line, and you are hooked. Everything about the arrangement of this song is perfect. I love Nina’s version, but after you hear Buble’s version, it sounds “unfinished”. It sounds weak and like it needs a few more musicians.

Buble’ acknowledges the influences of Dean, Frank, Tony Bennett, and continues to keep those wonderful songs alive (as well as some originals of his own). Many people think of him and think of his Christmas music, which is sad. He has SO many great songs.

As I reflect on where I am now in my life, I have found a happiness that I never knew I could experience. I have found a love that many only dream about. Ask me how I am feeling, and I will tell you I am “Feeling Good!”

Feeling Good

Birds flying high
You know how I feel
Sun in the sky
You know how I feel
Breeze driftin’ on by
You know how I feel

It’s a new dawn
It’s a new day
It’s a new life
For me
And I’m feeling good
I’m feeling good

Fish in the sea
You know how I feel
River running free
You know how I feel
Blossom on the tree
You know how I feel

It’s a new dawn
It’s a new day
It’s a new life
For me
And I’m feeling good

Dragonfly out in the sun,

You know what I mean, don’t you know
Butterflies all havin’ fun,

You know what I mean
Sleep in peace when the day is done, that’s what I mean
And this old world is a new world
And a bold world
For me
For me

Stars when you shine
You know how I feel
Scent of the pine
You know how I feel
Oh freedom is mine
And I know how I feel

It’s a new dawn
It’s a new day
It’s a new life

It’s a new dawn
It’s a new day
It’s a new life
It’s a new life
For me

And I’m feeling good
I’m feeling good
I’m feeling so good
I feel so good