Music Video of the Day: Hands by Jewel (1998, directed by Nick Brandt)

Posted on September 30, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

Jewel was not only an inspiring singer who went from being homeless to being a superstar but she was also an everyday hero, as seen in this video. In this video, Jewel comes across a collapsed building and saves a life. This video was directed at an abandoned apartment complex in West Covina, California.

Jewel has said that she wrote this song, during her pre-stardom, after she was tempted to steal a sundress from a store in Pasadena. She felt so bad about even considering being a thief that she wrote a song asking when she had lost faith in herself.

This video was directed by photographer Nick Brandt, who has also done videos for Michael Jackson, XTC, and Moby.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Insane In The Brain by Cyrpess Hill (1994, directed by Josh Taft)

Posted on September 29, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

This 90s anthem was filmed at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco. Though it might be hard to believe today, a music video that featured people openly celebrating smoking weed was something that still took a lot of people by surprise in 1994.

Director Josh Taft worked with just about everyone in the 90s. Taft has directed videos for Alice In Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Nas, A Tribe Called Quest, Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam, Mad Season, and Fuel. Taft has also worked as a commercial director, doing ads for Adidas, Reebok, Nike, Energizer, Sprite and Nissan Xterra. In 2013, he directed a documentary called Alive & Well, which profiled 7 individuals living with Huntington’s Disease.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Harley Davidson by Brigitte Bardot (1967, directed by François Reichenbach and Eddy Matalon)

Posted on September 28, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

Happy birthday, Brigitte Bardot!

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Not A Dry Eye In The House by Meat Loaf (1995, directed by Howard Geenhlagh)

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

Today would have been the 76th birthday of Meat Loaf.

The video for Not A Dry Eye In The House features Meat Loaf looking over an empty stage and singing about his long lost love, who was also a starlet. The video was directed by Howard Greenhalgh, who has also done videos for Culture Club, Eels, Iron Maiden, Pet Shop Boys, Placebo, Elton John, Sting, Suzanne Vega, and others. Probably his most acclaimed video is the one that he directed for Soundgarden’s Black Hole Sun.

(He also directed the video for Come With Me, Puff Daddy’s take on Led Zeppelin’s Kashmir. Don’t hold it against him.)

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: The Rumour by Olivia Newton-John (1988, directed by Brian Grant)

Posted on September 26, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

Today would have been Olivia Newton-John’s 75th birthday and today’s music video of the day is one that she did in the late 80s.

The Rumour was the title track off of Newton-John’s 13th studio album. The song was written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin and features John on the piano. The video features a stage-bound hotel, where rumors begin and spread with the help of the paparazzi. The snake crawling across a typewriter lets us know all that we need to know about Newton-John’s feelings towards the scandal-obsessed tabloid press.

This was one of the many music videos to be directed by Brian Grant, who worked with just about every prominent musical artist of the era.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Mama Said Knock You Out by LL Cool J (1990, directed by Paris Barclay)

Posted on September 25, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

This song was written at a time when some critics were saying that LL Cool J’s popularity and creativity was waning. The “mama” of the title was LL Cool J’s grandmother, who told LL Cool J to keep doing what he was doing and “knock his critics out.” Don’t call it a comeback because LL Cool J never left and this song and music video proved it.

The video was directed by Paris Barclay, who would go on to become one of the busiest and most respect television directors in the industry. A winner of multiple Emmys and a two-time president of the DGA, Barclay has directed episodes of NYPD Blue, Lost, Sons of Anarchy, ER, The West Wing, CSI, The Shield, House, and a countless number of other shows.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Foolin by Def Leppard (1983, directed by David Mallett)

Posted on September 24, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

When you’re Def Leppard, people will play the harp while in the middle of the fire for you.

This is another video overseen by the prolific David Mallett, who directed several videos for both Def Leppard and just about every other big act of the era.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: (Don’t Fear) the Repear by The Alice Band (2002, directed by Rob Dickens)

Posted on September 23, 2023 by Jedadiah Leland

The Alice Band was a girl group put together by Rob Dickens in 2000. They weren’t together for long and they only released one album before breaking up but they did manage to stick around long enough to record this cover of Don’t Fear The Reaper.

This video was directed by Rob Dickens, the British music industry executive who put the group together in the first place. There’s no word on whether he felt the cover needed more cowbell.

Enjoy!