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Most Memorable Music Videos

What does that have to do with books, right?

Well, I like to listen to music when I read books, sometimes. Especially adventure stories. I like it when the events I'm reading are reflected by the tempo or theme of a song, and I often find some soothing classical music calming, as well.

So today I was watching an online reviewer of some notoriety talking about her favorite songs from a certain era, and she played some music videos to highlight what she was talking about. However, I didn't think any of the videos were very memorable, unlike some of the songs.

SO I decided to make this list, which are my top 6 most memorable music videos. It would have been more, but I wanted to leave myself room to expand later, if I felt like it. Also, I didn't want to include Thriller, because I think it's over-referenced for things like this. Too bad, it has my favorite horror actor Vincent Price reading lines :(

So without further ado, here are the top six most memorable music videos I've ever seen (and one honorable mention).


6) Bad Reputation by Joan Jett.

First of all, I love this song and it actually is killing me to put it so far down the list. Joan Jett is one of my favorite singers ever.

What I really love about this video is the intentionally low-price production that makes it so wonderful. With the silent-movie-style conversations.

However, for me, the most memorable part of the song is her iconic leather top/scarf look and the scene with the blackheart van.


5) Wookie Wookie, in the Kitchen by Machoman.

I honestly only recently heard of this song, but that sneer... dear lord, I will never forget it.

Every time I see Machoman do that sideways sneer I can't help but try to emulate it. I swear if I could do that, I could have any woman I wanted.

However, what I really love about this song (other than the random use of the word Wookie), is the rediculous lyrics and dancing working together to make this one of the most FUN music videos I've ever seen.

All of the girls are over the top, but look at Machoman when he dances, or the girl with the pigtails. They're having a blast just goofing around with kitchen tools and food. So much of this video could have been too inuendo-intensive, but they add a playfulness that makes this song PG even to the most perverted mind.


4) Here it Goes Again by Ok Go.

The Treadmill Guys. Say that, and everyone knows who you are talking about.

That's what this video started for the YouTube generation. "It starts out easy, something simple..." is absolutely true. Four guys, eight treadmills and one continuous reel of footage.

It's insanely hard for a music video to be made in even a few days of shooting, and these guys made it all in one go.

I'm sure there were screwups, but they didn't have jump-cuts to help them. Everything was done in one go. Moving and singing along the whole way. Amazing


3) I Want to Break Free by Queen.

Probably the most memorable of Queen's music videos. Who can forget seeing Freddie Mercury walk out with the vaccuum and miniskirt for the first time?

The imagery, or course, is the usual top-notch Queen, but something about this one sits the most strongly in my memory.

Maybe it's that the band-mates in drag are so expressive. It's definitely a must-watch at least once.


2) Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson.

From the moment micheal throws his coat back and tosses the quarter from his hip, you can tell this will be one of his best.

I first saw this music video in a Michael Jackson movie retrospective, but I've been addicted to it ever since. Michael, of course, is in top form. But the coreography and acting is so amazing in this video it surpasses anything else I've ever seen Michael in.

Not only does this make Michael Jackson, Human Punchline, look bad-ass, but it sends your mind flying, making up some wonderful Casablanca-style story for all the assorted characters around him. Who is the woman with the fan, and why does everyone follow her direction so quickly? Why does everyone give Micheal his cut as he walks by them? And was it a 7 or 11 that the craps-player just pulled off?

The whole thing is memorable, but I could have done without the blue-fogged moment where the song just stopped. With it, it's still amazing, without it, it would have made this song nuber one.


1) Video Killed the Radio Star by the Buggles.

The strange and surreal scifi look of the whole thing, the strangly touching sound, and the british-invasiony appearance of the whole thing really sticks in your head.

Now every time I hear piano notes sounding even a little like this song's core, I picture the silver-clad woman in her tube.

For me, the real eye-catcher is still the techno twins dancing on tv, and staring at nothing, and the little girl watching her radio self-destruct. I'll always love this music video.

But why the top spot, right? Well, to be honest, it's because this music video began the whole thing, in a way. It brought music videos to the fore of entertainment as the debut music video on MTV, back when they still relied on music as their cash cow.



And for an Honorable Mention? It has to be Princes of the Universe, another song by Queen. I can't make Princes of the Universe a part of the list, though because even though the transitions are seamless, they're still using movie footage, and not just music video footage to create the effects (And please leave Smooth Criminal out of this. That was barely a movie to begin with).


So there you go. Please flame me below because I left out someone I've never heard of but you love. I'm always happy to see a good music video. Just include a youtube link or something.

Best replacement characters

I know it is off topic, but I've been rewatching some of the recent cinematic scifis and got inspired to point out the best actors portraying old roles. Interestingly, there aren't that many of them out there, so the list is short, but here are the best 5:



The New Spock.
He was true to the original character, but a little too emotional...

Dumbldore
When the first dumbledore was taken from us unexpectedly, so many people thought the movie series was going to end. And yet, the following movies proved that nothing is set in stone, and like the amazing return of ACDC after Bon Scott's death, a new dumbledore came to the screen, bringing the same sense of child-like silliness and wisdom beyond even his own years.

Most impressive.

Gandalf.
Everyone has seen this portrayal, and few others, but this is the most recent gandalf, and he did a damn fine job of that serious but still slightly humorous personality that made earlier portrayals, especially on the stage, so wonderful.

The New McCoy.
Oh dear lord, that was an amazing portrayal! I never though Deforest could be replaced, but I have been proven wrong. I bow to you, sir!

The New Obi Wan.
Guiness left big shoes to fill, and he did. The new Obi Wan saved the prequels.

I just did this list on the fly, so understand that I didn't put ANY effort into it, and don't hate me too much for my generic choices. I just felt like posting something this month. I might make a repalcement of this later, with better thought-out people.

MY COLLECTION

By the way, you'll come to notice that as time goes by Ill mention a LOT of creature features, both cinematic and novelized. This is because they are my greatest weakness. I can't get enough of giant gila monsters terrorizing the southern united states (Giant Gila Monster - a movie from the 40's and 50's fantastic giant monster movie craze) and bigfoot chasing bible-thumpers through the pacific northwest (Monster by Frank Peretti... expect to see this book show up soon in review. It's another one I don't have a copy of on hand right now).

My monster novel collection, in particular, is spectacular. (I am SO humble, huh?)

Seriously, though, I have relied so heavily on ebay it isn't even funny. Books like Swamp and Night of the Crabs are so rare I have to get them from online used book stores from Europe... Britain, mostly.

I will, perhaps, cover a good list of these novels at a later date, and a good selection can be found on my librarything account (the screenname is dracorotor on there, you should have a look around at anyone else's collections linked to the rarer books, though. Who knows what you can find), but I am putting it off a lot lately because I'm lazy. Yep. If anyone is really interested in a list, though, or a recomendation, I'll be happy to help. Leave a comment here and either use a blogger screenname I can contact you at with a response, an e-mail, or a facebook page. something like that.

FG: "Jaws 2" by Hank Searls

Now this is a gem, it really is.

Remember the second Jaws movie? The first shark is long dead and a new one has arrived at amity island, and once again the town refuses to accept a shark until the deaths start stacking up.

Well, this is the novelization of the screen play that is a sequel to a movie based on another book... and if that doesn't sound confused enough, this book references the first novel written by Peter Benchley. And yet, not only does this book not suck, it actually works on the same level or even a higher one than the sequel film.

In my opinion Jaws 2 is a long-forgotten gem of cinema and when I saw this book on a forgotten, dusty back shelf in a nearby used book store, I was excited to enjoy a direct novelization... and on that score I was disappointed, and I'm very happy about it. The story only vaguely resembles the movie as it appeared on film, covering other details like a children/teen ragatta, a bit of military research and corruption, the mafia and a casino being made in a last-ditch effort to regain the popularity the town had before the first shark's rampage.

I won't ruin the plot of this book, in the event you can come accross it at some point, but I'll suffice by saying that the story might cover some similar scenes, but the differences between the book and the movie it claims to be based on are so great that it might as well be the written form of a fifth movie (ignoring the italian rip-off movie called jaws five in my mental list of films).

Definitely pick it up, and keep a look out for any of the author's other works. I asked some people knowledgeable about authors around that time, and they tell me he was pretty popular for these novelizations, so I wouldn't be surprised if you were able to find other gems like this out there at your own used book stores.

FG: Extinct by Charles Wilson

Extinct, once bound for a miniseries on NBC, was dropped due to its price in effects. As a result, this rare book in a very small market (Megaladon Thrillers) got lost in the shuffle of time and publishing.

I didn't have to look hard to learn about this book, but getting my hands on it was a pain. I would up finding a copy on a small-time used book seller's website and having it shipped to my apartment. I wondered as I opened the packaging if this would be any good.

I no longer worry that I wasted the money I had spent on it. Extinct fills a void I've had in my monster story bookcase (not kidding, I really have one case just for them. I have a $#!T-ton of books!) where the best go. And I'm saying that without even finishing it!

There are flaws, of course, and you could easily call this a B-movie if it were on film instead of paper, but I love my books with a little cheese in them from time to time, and this on feels good. It's actually a lot like Jurassic Park or Meg in its pacing and creative story telling with regards to the monster.

You get some hints very early (the cover) that a megaladon or great white is featured, and the story really does play with your head, too. The people in the book learn after the reader what is happening, and at first throw around all kinds of theories to explain the mounting body count. The book has a bit of good suspense with a bunch of boys fishing near the middle of the story, and the reader keeps getting lead on until the moment arrives, but otherwise the suspense is light and airy, like a good beach read might be.

Actually, here is where the book shines: Clues constantly disagree and the people take all sorts of avenues to the right conclusion in the end. Some people go monster crazy right off, while others are unwilling till the end to accept the truth of what is happening. but everyone in the story is haunted with a growing fear of what they can't see just below the surface. It's an interesting feeling, being pulled into the story, and yet not feel the tension that everyone else does (all though you will sometimes). I wouldn't, before reading this book, think that was a good way to write, under any circumstances. Since reading Extinct, though, I've come to see that in the hands of a skilled writer, you can get that odd sensation and the book can be better for it. If I had to summarize how that feels, I'd say it feels like you're watching a movie inside your mind. Its odd, but not problamatic in the hands of a good author.

If you're a hard-core science type, you'll feel a little peeved with this book, which is pretty dated in terms of 2000's science, but isn't all that bad, really, when you put yourself in the mindset of the day. I'm totally fine with old science, as a Jules Verne fan, so I was able to ignore the tiny foibles and follow the story. If you can too, that take this as a hardy encouragement to seek out this book for yourself and enjoy a good summer read.

FORGOTTEN GOLD (FG For Short)

This is something new I'm going to try out. I love to peruse the Strand in New York City, Rainbow Books in Michigan, and any other forgotten used book store I can find, and sometimes I stumble on a real treasure... or not.

Either way, if I find a book that is amazingly good or lovably bad, I'll bring it up here to share it with anyone who stumbles on this blog.