Liverpool’s Frankie Goes To Hollywood caused a furor in the UK with their debut single, “Relax,” which was banned by the BBC for its purported sexual content. 23: Frankie Goes To Hollywood: Two Tribes (1984) The video also featured fleeting cameos from several celebrities, including actor Danny DeVito and comedian John Candy.
In the tune’s spooky video, director Ivan Reitman depicted Parker as a spectral figure and used footage from the actual movie alongside CGI animation. One of the big blockbuster movies of the 80s, the supernatural comedy Ghostbusters boasted a title song from R&B musician, Ray Parker Jr., whose catchy number haunted pop charts and dance floors around the world. The video was famous for Lennox’s striking androgynous look – cropped, punky orange hair juxtaposed with a formal suit and tie – and also used surreal, mind-bending imagery to emphasize the contrast between technology and the natural world. “Video Killed The Radio Star” was the first ever video to air on MTV when the channel launched on August 1, 1981.Ģ5: Eurythmics: Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (1983)Īnnie Lennox and Dave Stewart’s synth-pop classic about the complex nature of human desire put Eurythmics on the map as an international act their fame was accelerated by the song’s accompanying Chris Ashbrook-directed video, which was an MTV staple in the pioneering music channel’s early days. It was shot by Australian director Russell Mulcahy, whose use of slow-motion sequences, razor-sharp editing and neon lighting became staples of 80s pop videos. 27: The Buggles: Video Killed the Radio Star (1979)īefore he became an influential record producer, Trevor Horn was one half of the British duo The Buggles, whose debut single “Video Killed The Radio Star” came out in late 1979 and was accompanied by a groundbreaking video which set the tone for how pop was visually represented in the next decade. Choreographed by noted British dancer Arlene Phillips, this vibrant dance spectacle encapsulates the 80s in all its gaudy glory. Director Brian Grant used the technique to good effect in his dazzling video for this Whitney Houston Grammy-winning hit, which contrasts the singer’s lonely life as a performer with an imagined fantasy sequence where she dances with a succession of male partners. The representation of reality and fantasy by the contrasting use of monochrome and color film is a cinematic trick that was popularized by the 1939 movie, The Wizard Of Oz.
Unleashing her anger, Benatar initiates a rebellion that culminates in a tense dance battle with the club owner who is quickly sent packing.Ģ8: Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me) (1987) It shows Benatar leaving home after an angry confrontation with her controlling father and journeying to a big city where she ends up as a taxi dancer in a seedy club where women are exploited by a bullying pimp. 29: Pat Benatar: Love Is A Battlefield (1983)īrooklyn-born Pat Benatar’s feisty rock anthem “Love Is A Battlefield” inspired a Bob Giraldi video whose theme was empowerment and seeking liberation from oppressive forces. The video’s surprise denouement – where romance triumphs over materialism – reveals that “Material Girl” isn’t as emblematic of 80s avarice as many would like to think. Taking its inspiration from the famous scene in the 1953 movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes where Monroe sings “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend,” the video’s storyline depicts Madonna being pursued by a film director who unsuccessfully tries to woo her by flaunting his wealth.
Madonna channeled Marilyn Monroe in the iconic video to “Material Girl,” the Nile Rodgers’ produced song that crowned her the queen of pop in 1984.