Estranged, which appeared on Appetite on Destruction, is Guns N’ Roses second-longest song overall. Like November Rain and Don’t Cry, the song’s lyrics were inspired by a short story that was written by Del James.
The music video was originally planned to be continuation of the story started in the videos for November Rain and Don’t Cry but that plan was abandoned when Axl Rose and Stephanie Seymour broke up before shooting on the video began. The storyline for the video was changed, though it still dealt with the same themes as the other two videos. This time, instead of ending with Axl thinking about Stephanie Seymour, the story ended with Axl swimming with the dolphins.
Yesterdays appeared on Use Your Illusion II and the video mixes pictures that were taken during the Use Your Illusion tour with black and white footage of the band performing in a warehouse. Looking at the photographs, you can see both Izzy Stradlin and Steve Adler, who had left the band by the time the video was filmed.
Director Andy Morahan is one of those directors who worked with everyone in the 80s and 90s. As I have mentioned elsewhere on this site, he directed Highlander III but he didn’t write it so don’t hold that against him.
Today’s music video of the day is one of the highlights of the Sammy Hagar era of Van Halen. This song peaked at #2 on the Billboard rock chart and it was also used as the theme song for a Sidney, a short-lived sitcom starring Eddie Van Halen’s then-wife Valerie Bertinelli.
This video was directed by Andy Morahan, who was nominated for a Video Music Award for his work here. Morahan also did videos for Wham, Kim Wilde, Simple Minds, Pet Shop Boys, and Guns ‘N Roses. He also directed the third Highlander film but he didn’t write the script so don’t be too hard on him.
When this music video first came out, it was one of the most expensive music videos ever made. It was also one of the longest. Axl Rose plays a singer who marries a model (who is played by real-life model Stephanie Seymour, who was dating Axl at the time.) Their marriage ends tragically. This video is often described as being a sequel to Don’t Crybut I think that, even though they’re based on the same short story and are thematically connected, Rose and Seymour are playing different characters here than in the first previous video. Seymour and Rose split up after making this video, which meant that the concept for the third video in the projected trilogy, Estranged.
Slash’s signature guitar solo was filmed in New Mexico. The scenes inside the church were filmed in Los Angeles’s St. Brendan Catholic Church.
This is a video that I used to laugh at but, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to better appreciate its themes of loss and regret.
He better be, just so I can justify picking this video during our annual Shattered Lens Horrorthon.
Neil Tennant and his ghost friend go for walk through London. Among the sights that we see: Waterloo Station, Tower Bridge, West Minster, the South Bank, Leicester Square, and a protest outside the South African Embassy. (This video was filmed at a time when South Africa was still ruled by Apartheid.) Both Fletch and Desperately Seeking Susan are playing at a cinema.
This was the video that first introduced the US to the Pet Shop Boys. Watching it makes me nostalgic for London.
First off, a big thank you to Lisa for covering the past few days!
“It’s a simple message isn’t it? ‘I’ve got the brains, you’ve got the looks, let’s make lots of money.’ A very insensitive thing that was meant to be a satire of Thatcherism. Actually, we’d written the Thatcherite anthem. But it’s very difficult to think, now, that there was a period before money culture. That was the changing moment. It wasn’t even an original thing to say because it was at the same time as Loadsamoney, Harry Enfield. It was that period where suddenly one’s sensitive left-wing soul was shocked by everything being about money. Now, of course, generations have grown that haven’t known anything else.”
— Neil Tennant
It’s amazing how things can get misinterpreted. I remember when I was a kid, Mercedes used Janis Joplin singing, “Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz” in their commercials. It used to drive my father crazy because the whole point of the song was that a Mercedes wasn’t a big deal and it was foolish to act like the car you drove had anything to do with your worth as a human being.
Right now, the song in today’s music video of the day is being used in an Allstate Commercial! Of course, in the commercial, all you hear is “Let’s make lots of money!” The commercial doesn’t include any of the lyrics that indicate that the singer is basically looking for someone who is dumb but good-looking so that he can be exploited.
There were two music videos for this song. This is the first one and it leaves no doubt what the point of the song actually is.
What was Flesh For Lulu? It was a British band that found some success in the 80s, a post-punk group whose music has often been described as a mix between the New York Dolls and The Rolling Stones. Judging by the name of their 6th album, Long Live The New Flesh, they were also fans of David Cronenberg.
I Go Crazy comes from that album. It become the band’s most successful song in the U.S., largely because it was used in the film Some Kind of Wonderful. This music video, one of two that was done for I Go Crazy, is a typical movie tie-in video, with clips from the film mixed with clips of the band performing in a garage. (In the 80s, every successful band had to do at least one video that featured them performing in a garage.) Parts of the video are edited to make it appear as if Mary Stuart Masterson has joined the band as their new drummer.
This video was one of several to be directed by Andy Morahan. Among the other artists with whom Morahan has worked: Wham, Orchestral Maneuvers In The Dark, The Pet Shop Boys, The Human League, Guns n Roses, Aerosmith, and just about everyone else who has ever recorded an album.
The year of 2016 has taken many of the music scene’s greatest. Prince, David Bowie and Glenn Frey just to name a few taken too soon. Now, George Michael joins his musical brethren as news of his passing on Christmas Day was announced and confirmed.
There’s not much to say other than any kid growing up during the late 80’s knew and listened to George Michael in some capacity or another. While he became famous as part of the British boy band WHAM! it was when he branched out on his own as a solo act that he hit megastar status. His solo debut album, Faith, would reach multi-platinum levels and each single released from the album and each video that ran in circulation on MTV would become instant hits.
My favorite song of his and this goes to his many excellent post-modern videos, would be the third single released from his debut album, “Father Figure.”.
Father Figure
That’s all I wanted
Something special, something sacred
In your eyes
For just one moment
To be bold and naked
At your side
Sometimes I think that you’ll never
Understand me (understand me)
Maybe this time is forever
Say it can be, woah
That’s all you wanted
Something special, someone sacred
In your life
Just for one moment
To be warm and naked
At my side
Sometimes I think that you’ll never
Understand me (understand me)
But something tells me together
We’d be happy, woah baby
I will be your father figure (oh baby)
Put your tiny hand in mine (I’d love to)
I will be your preacher teacher (be your daddy)
Anything you have in mind (it would make me)
I will be your father figure (very happy)
I have had enough of crime (please let me)
I will be the one who loves you
Till the end of time
That’s all I wanted
But sometimes love can be mistaken
For a crime
That’s all I wanted
Just to see my baby’s
Blue-eyed shine
This time I think that my lover
Understands me (understands me)
If we have faith in each other
Then we can be strong, baby
I will be your father figure
Put your tiny hand in mine (my baby)
I will be your preacher teacher
Anything you have in mind
I will be your father figure
I have had enough of crime
I will be the one who loves you
Till the end of time
If you are the desert, I’ll be the sea
If you ever hunger, hunger for me
Whatever you ask for, that’s what I’ll be
So when you remember the ones who have lied
Who said that they cared
But then laughed as you cried
Beautiful darling
Don’t think of me
Because all I ever wanted
It’s in your eyes
Baby, baby
And love can’t lie, no
(Greet me with the eyes of a child)
My love is always telling me so (Heaven is a kiss and a smile)
Just hold on, hold on
And won’t let you go, my baby
I will be your father figure
Put your tiny hand in mine
I will be your preacher teacher
Anything you have in mind
I will be your father figure
And I have had enough of crime
So I am gonna love you
Till the end of time
(I will be your father) I will be your (I will be your preacher) Father (I will be your father) I’ll be your daddy, whoa
I will be the one who loves you
Till the end of time
It’s Last Christmas by Wham! What is there to say? Okay, I guess I can say a few things such as that the only reason I didn’t go with one of The Darkness’ Christmas music videos is because I intend to use one of their’s for Valentine’s Day.
There are two interesting details that Wikipedia pointed out to me. The girl that Michael gave the brooch to “Last Christmas” wears said brooch right side up, while Ridgeley’s character wears it is upside down. Also, apparently this music video was the last time George Michael was filmed clean-shaven.
Andy Morahan directed this music video. He’s directed somewhere around 130 music videos. He also directed Highlander: The Final Dimension (1994), which makes the first three Highlander movies done by directors who made music videos.
It was shot by Peter Mackay who has shot only a handful of music videos, but they include songs like Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division, In The Air Tonight by Phil Collins, and Radio Ga Ga by Queen.
Ridgeley’s girlfriend is played by model Kathy Hill.
The video also has former backup singers Helen “Pepsi” DeMacque and Shirlie Hollimam in it along with Spandau Ballet’s bassist Martin Kemp who went on to marry Shirlie. Kemp also happened to be in an episode of the Highlander TV Show.
Through the Shattered Lens 