19/100 Video - "Rockit" - Herbie Hancock (1984)

"Rockit" by Herbie Hancock was the first hit song to feature scratching.

The bizarre video, which features a host of animated mannequins, was one of the most innovative of the era. 

The video freaked me out as a teenager, with mannequins having seizures, banging their heads on tables. 

I went to bed thinking random items were going to burst out of closets and drawers.

Directed by Kevin Godley and Lol Creme, the very popular video won five video music awards in 1984: Best Art Direction, Best Concept, Best Editing, Best Special Effects, and Most Experimental Video. 

Along with Michael Jackson and Prince, Hancock was one of the first black artists to get significant airplay on MTV, but he barely appears in the video (he is shown in a few shots of the television sets), which was by design. 

20/100 Video - "Two Tribes" - Frankie Goes To Hollywood (1984)

"Two Tribes" by Frankie Goes To Hollywood is a hi-energy dance club track with an amazing bass line that peaked at #1 on the UK charts in 1984.

The video showcases a wrestling match between US President at the time, Ronald Reagan, and then-Soviet leader Konstantin Chernenko in front of an audience of representatives from the world's nations.

This clever metaphor for the Cold War degenerates into complete global destruction. Almost forty years later, the shocking ending of the earth exploding is still chilling to see.

21/100 Video - "Lost in Yesterday" - Tame Impala (2020)

 

This psychedelic pop masterpiece woos us with a gorgeous bass line, disco melody and an infectious chorus that will stay in your head for weeks. 

The ingenious video shows that repetition through rose-coloured glassed will often transform terrible memories into great ones. 

Watch closely at the interactions of the guests as each revolution of the four versions of the wedding becomes more epic and memorable.  

Worth a spin for fans of 70s / 80s pop.

Fave lyrics: “so if they call you embrace them, if they hold you erase them.”

22/100 Video - "Blinding Lights" - The Weeknd (2019)

 

The cinematic video for The Weeknd's massive hit "Blinding Lights" is a great fit with the music, both atmospheric and entrancing. The Grammys can go pound sand. 

 

Pleased to see the 80s continue to inspire millennials.

This slightly sinister synth-pop groove by a new age MJ is sprinkled with lush new wave hooks reminiscent of A-ha's classic singles. 

The video was shot with a Mercedes-AMG GT roadster in a starring role and a Mercedes SUV as a chase vehicle.

23/100 Video - "Midnight City" - M83 (2011)

Few bands evoke nostalgia like France's M83. 

The scenes with the kids exploring abandoned buildings takes me right back to the pig farm days of my childhood. Minus the supernatural powers of course.

It may be cheesy, but the explosive synth riff in the intro that's also the soaring chorus makes the dopamine overflow. 

How good is this Gouda? Well, the greatest 80s tune made outside of the decade very handily makes my desert island six pack o' tracks.