paolo's pen: Music Video

Showing posts with label Music Video. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees for 2010

ABBA

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Free as the wind blows

This blog supports efforts to curb

climate change.

Blog Action Day vs. Climate Change, October 15, 2009

http://www.blogactionday.org/

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Where were you in 1984? Were you in college? In high school? Or in elementary school perhaps, just like me? A yuppie? Heck, even if you were not born yet, if you just remotely happen to like pop music, there's no way you could have escaped 1984.

For 1984 was the year of pop. If there's one single year that plotted the course of popular music of the '80s and beyond, this was it. The year left no doubt who would define the music of the decade -- a triumvirate the like of which has never been seen again -- whose influence on pop culture extends

to this very day. You'd be surprised to learn that most of the songs that you associate with the '80s were actually released in 1984, eternal reminders of our youth, or at least of that last '80s-themed movie you saw or that last '80s-themed party you went to.

Though the album Thriller was released in 1982, it was in 1984 that Michael Jackson cemented his reputation as the King of Pop. Christmas 1983 saw the release of the Thriller video. But just in the first quarter of 1984, Michael: officially released "Thriller" as the last single off the album; saw Thriller certified by the Guinness Book of World Records as the biggest-selling album ever; infamously burned his hair and scalp while making that Pepsi commercial; won 8 Grammys including record and album of the year; and was the subject of a TIME cover illustrated by Andy Warhol. Later in the year he got his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and had the then-largest-grossing tour ever with The Jacksons. Definitely not shabby.

Madonna released her debut album in 1983, its popularity carried over to the following year with the release of the classic singles "Lucky Star" and "Borderline." But it was in September of 1984, at the first-ever MTV Video Music Awards (in which The Cars' groundbreaking "You Might Think" video won the top award) when the world truly first took notice of Madonna, when she writhed onstage wearing a wedding dress. Her second album and smash single Like A Virgin was released a few weeks later, accompanied by that video shot in Venice, Italy.

Michael Jackson may have ensured his status as the King of Pop, and Madonna may have proven to be the most enduring, but there's no doubt who owned 1984. In 1984, the world turned purple with the release of Prince and the Revolution's Purple Rain, arguably the year's best album and an instant classic. Out of the album -- a melding of hot funk, rock, and polished

pop -- came tumbling classic after classic: from the first single "When Doves Cry," to "Let's Go Crazy," "Take Me With U," "I Would Die 4 U," to the live recording of the ballad "Purple Rain." The album, and the accompanying hit movie, established Prince not just as a star, but also arguably rock's finest frontman, and a songwriting genius, not to mention being pop's most enigmatic and prolific.

Apart from the triumvirate of Prince, Madonna, and Michael Jackson, 1984 saw a multitude of artists release their signature hits: Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time," Bruce Springsteen's "Born In The U.S.A." and "Dancing In The Dark," Van Halen's "Jump," Billy Idol's "Eyes Without A Face," INXS' "Original Sin," Phil Collins' "Against All Odds," and Sade's "Smooth Operator."

1984 also saw one of the best musical comebacks ever, when Tina Turner strutted onto MTV in high heels, denim jacket, tight leather skirt, and that hair with the hit "What's Love Got To Do With It," inspiring a hundred thousand drag queens the world over to do the same. The year also showcased the staying power of several acts, most noteworthy of which were Lionel Richie (with a bunch of singles from the best-selling album of his career, winning the Grammy album of the year award in 1985), Chaka Khan with "I Feel For You," Paul McCartney with "No More Lonely Nights," and Queen with the anthem "Radio Ga Ga." Speaking of comebacks and staying power, 1984 also saw the release of Bob Marley and the Wailers' posthumous classic compilation Legend, introducing Marley and his music to a new generation, and the album eventually proving to be everyone's favorite entry-level initiation to reggae and Jamaican music.

Hip-hop was still at its formative stage and would not gain mainstream acceptance until two years later with Run-D.M.C. and the Beastie Boys, but in 1984, one of hip-hop's most enduring classic -- Grandmaster Melle Mel's "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)," an anti-drug anthem -- filled the airwaves in America and Europe.

But not all the pop that the world consumed voraciously came from America, for 1984 was also the peak year of the so-called Second British Invasion (the first being in the '60s), not seen again until the rise of Britpop in the mid-'90s. Leading the pack were the golden boys of MTV -- Duran Duran -- who unleashed "The Reflex" and "The Wild Boys" to the world in 1984. Culture Club memorably burst onto the scene, led by a cross-dresser in shockingly red hair and kabuki make-up whom I really thought was a woman until I read the name ("Why is her name Boy George?"), prancing across TV screens with "Karma Chameleon," "Miss Me Blind," "Mistake No. 3," and "The War Song." The Police released "King of Pain" off Synchronicity, won the Grammy song of the year award for "Every Breath You Take," then broke up. Wham! (George Michael and that other guy) told us to wake them up before we go-go, then also unleashed the immortal "Careless Whisper" and "Last Christmas." Eurythmics gave us "Here Comes The Rain Again." Depeche Mode came out with "Somebody," "People Are People," and "Master and Servant." Tears For Fears made us "Shout." Spandau Ballet, The Cure, and Bananarama all had new singles. The Smiths came out with their self-titled album and told the world that they're miserable now (but when was Morrissey not?). U2 uplifted us with "Pride (In The Name of Love)." And before the year ended, Bob Geldof of The Boomtown Rats had corralled most of them in a studio as Band Aid to sing the second British invasion's glorious anthem, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," which directly spawned 1985's similarly stellar (if inferior) "We Are The World" by USA for Africa, as well as the defining concert of the '80s -- Live Aid -- the crowning glory of which was Queen's set, with Freddie Mercury leading a sea of people through "Radio Ga Ga."

(But where was rock during this time of boys in make-up and hairspray and ladies who looked like drag queens? In America and the U.K., hardcore punk and post-punk were still in full swing, and alternative rock was taking roots, with memorable releases from bands such as the Minutemen, Hüsker Dü, The Replacements, Minor Threat, Meat Puppets, R.E.M., Dead Can Dance, This Mortal Coil, and Cocteau Twins. In the last quarter of 1984, Tommy Tanchangco formed the hardcore label Twisted Red Cross in the Philippines, releasing tape compilations the following year featuring bands such as Urban Bandits, Wuds, Betrayed, Dead Ends, and Ethnic Faces.)

By 1984, barely three years after it was founded, MTV had already become the taste maker when it came to music consumption, with bands wanting to be in it, not only to be heard but to be seen. Suddenly, singers had to be attractive, fit, young, and trendy. Along with radio, MTV gave exposure in 1984 not just to established acts, but most especially to memorable one-hit wonders that the '80s have become known for, like Frankie Goes To Hollywood's "Relax," The Psychedelic Furs' "The Ghost In You," Dead or Alive's "You Spin Me 'Round (Like A Record)," Shannon's "Let The Music Play," Sheila E.'s "The Glamorous Life," Robin Gibb's "Boys Do Fall In Love," Talk Talk's "It's My Life," Thompson Twins' "Hold Me Now," Torch's remake of "(Build Me Up) Buttercup," and Nena's "99 Luftballons." The first MTV generation bought music in droves, mostly in cassette form. At that time, cassettes had already been outselling vinyl due to the popularity and portability of boom boxes and the Sony Walkman. In the same year, CDs were first manufactured in America.

In Asia and Latin America, 1984 also signaled the start of Menudo-mania, with the boy band from Puerto Rico (featuring lead Robby Rosa and later on new member Ricky Martin) releasing hugely popular singles within the year such as "Like A Cannonball" and "If You're Not Here (By My Side)."

In the Philippines, the youth culture zeitgeist of 1984 was not only ignited by American and British acts. In the same year, the movie Bagets was released, featuring a popular teenage cast, and the soundtrack spawning not only Raymond Lauchengco's "So It's You" and "Farewell," but most especially "Growing Up" by Gary Valenciano, who had another hit that year with "Reachin' Out" from the movie Hot Shots. (Gary V. would go on to become the country's very own Michael Jackson, releasing hit songs and albums and routinely selling out venues for his energy-packed concerts). Bagets also sparked a fashion craze in the country, when teenagers and kids started wearing clothes in primary and secondary colors like the characters in the movie (I certainly remember wearing shirts and short pants in a combination of red, yellow, blue and green, sometimes with the Bagets logo).

Whoa, what a year! There may come a time when a year like 1984 might come our way again -- a rare moment when talent, mass appeal, positivity, youth, and commerce aligned -- but I certainly doubt it. In the meantime, let's hit the boom box and say happy 25th birthday to the hits of 1984.

Monday, June 29, 2009

Appreciation: the "Thriller" video

The truth is, "Thriller" isn't my favorite Michael Jackson video (that would be "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"), not because it's not good (quite the opposite!) but because it still gives me the creeps. I'm definitely not a huge fan of horror movies, except zombie and vampire movies, and whenever I chance upon the Thriller video on MTV at night, I quickly change the channel.

I saw the premiere of Thriller on local TV sometime around Christmas 1983 (if I'm not mistaken) with my teenage cousins. At that time, I did not remember the choreography or the song; instead, what I remembered most was Michael Jackson's fake werewolf eyes at the end, with Vincent Price's maniacal laughter in the background. It did not help that there were scenes of chases and monsters breaking into a house and other stuff that scared me as a seven year old.

Director John Landis said in an interview that the Thriller video was a "vanity project," not being part of any marketing plan for the album that didn't need any extra marketing. When the video was released, the Thriller album had already been in stores and selling like crazy for more than a year. Believe it or not, the song 'Thriller" was already the seventh single from the album, a strange song about a horror movie whose funk is as polished as it is dirty. The director also said that Michael Jackson wanted to do the video after seeing Landis' "An American Werewolf In London." Michael and Landis did something different with the video: it was actually more like a short film than a "promo" for a song, with the same muddy cinematography as the horror flicks so much in vogue at that time (which, along with Elmer Bernstein's additional musical score, just made it scarier). After "Thriller," music videos became longer and more ambitious, with storylines to boot. (Right. Blame "Thriller" for "November Rain.") Not only is the video an out-and-out horror film; like the song with its inspired Vincent Price cameo, the video is also a tribute to the horror movies made by Hammer films in the 50's and 60's, some posters of which appear in the cinema lobby in the video.

Never mind all those details. The thing that really made the video a cultural landmark was the choreography by Michael Peters and Jackson. That extended dance break in the middle where Michael is fully made up as a zombie? Pota, that's hand-down the coolest dance sequence ever captured in a music video. As Tyra Banks might say, that was totally FIERCE. That was the sequence that spawned a lot of copycats, inspired Regal Films in the '80s to put dance numbers in their movies, and turned Bollywood into the dance showcase that it is now, not to mention the Goli Mar and prison Thriller YouTube sensations, and countless Thriller dance-offs in wedding parties, high school reunions, and 80's-themed parties. Even if Michael Jackson had stopped making records after Thriller, that bit right there would still have ensured his immortality.

I already had the Thriller album before the eponymous single was released. "Billie Jean" was a huge hit, but the the only thing I remember about "Billie Jean" when I was a kid was the way Michael's path in the video would light up when he steps on it. I'm pretty sure I only started reaching for the Thriller tape after I had watched the Thriller music video, which was in constant play in local music video programs, and widely imitated in noon-time variety shows. In a way, the Thriller video, adjudged the Best Music Video of the '80s in numerous polls, was what made Michael Michael: the red-jacketed icon with the scary eyes and the moves to end all dance moves, the Michael the world loved and what it had just lost.

The video:

Friday, June 26, 2009

Why I'll never forget Michael Jackson

The Jackson 5's hits

The Jackson 5 Christmas Album

Got To Be There

The Jackson 5 - Never Can Say Goodbye

The Wiz - Ease On Down The Road

Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough

Rock With You

Michael does the Moonwalk at Motown 25

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

Billie Jean

Thriller

P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)

Human Nature

Smooth Criminal

Man In The Mirror

Black or White

In The Closet

Michael.

I don't think the twentysomethings and below truly know who the world just lost today. Anyone born around the time of the "Bad" and, uhm, the "Dangerous" albums will never truly grasp why Michael Jackson mattered. The Michael they knew was the suddenly-white-skinned guy with the funny nose, scary face, and the controversies -- from his sexuality to vitiligo to child molestation to his "fatherhood" to baby dangling to bankruptcy and other nutty behavior. To them he was Janet's older brother, the crazy guy at the Neverland ranch, the burka-wearing lunatic with the Spiderman-masked kids, that old guy idolized by Britney and Justin, the has-been clinging to past glories. That fart who claims he is the "King of Pop" like, wtf? :-(

Go to your favorite entertainment or news website and read the coverage, because his achievements and significance in entertaiment, culture, and black history are just too many to mention here. The fact is, his claim that he was the King of Pop was justified. The younger generation can never fathom what that meant, so I'll try to explain: put together at their peak the popularity and ubiquity of Alanis, Leo, Britney, BSB, N*Sync, High School Musical, the Jonas Brothers and that Twilight guy, and they will still not measure up to Michael Jackson around the time of "Thriller," when he was everywhere, a force of nature, a cultural phenomenon whose appeal transcended nationalities, color, and age. He was on MTV, on our cassette players and turntables, bedroom walls, pins on our shirts, stickers on our notebooks and lunchboxes. People copied his moves, his style, and he seriously helped shape the music of the '80s, the art of the music video, and the emergence of hip-hop into the mainstream. Millions stayed up to watch world premieres of his videos, new singles on the radio. His appearances were events. Remember that time when the Beatles claimed they were bigger than Jesus? Michael was bigger than the Beatles.

I was about six when Michael was the hottest thing on TV and the radio. I remember watching the premiere of the Thriller video with my teenage cousins. If I'm not mistaken, there was even a Michael Jackson dance-alike contest on Eat Bulaga. My brother and I would put medals and pieces of colored cloth on our shirts and dance in front of the TV imitating Michael. One time I almost got into serious trouble for attempting to filch a stick of gum from a vendor outside our school (the gum included a free Michael Jackson card).

Of course I also got a cassette copy of the Thriller album. As a boy, songs like "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'," "P.Y.T.," and of course "Billie Jean" became the soundtrack of my life at that time. One day I got the shock of my life when I saw my younger brother taping over "Billie Jean," singing "Dear Mama" (the theme song for a Regal movie showing that time) in front of the cassette recorder. Playing back the tape, I also heard my father convincing my brother to, was it to take a bath or to eat, I don't remember exactly. And I think there was also me shouting and turning off the machine. Well, my father's dead and my brother has gotten married and probably doesn't remember this incident. But the tape has survived, kept in a box at home, the memories alive like Michael and his music will forever be.

(PBA09qr16s11)

Thursday, April 16, 2009

It is never too late

Articles:
Here's why we love Susan Boyle
Just who is the singer Susan Boyle?

Friday, January 23, 2009

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees for 2009

Run-D.M.C.

Metallica

Jeff Beck

Little Anthony and the Imperials

Bobby Womack

Wanda Jackson

Friday, December 26, 2008

08 : Circus

My favorites for 2008.

D-D-DON'T STOP THE BEAT

The ladies ruled my music player.

1. Estelle feat. Kanye West - American Boy

2. Rihanna - Don't Stop The Music

3. N.E.R.D. feat. Julian Casablancas and Santogold - My Drive Thru

4. Amy Winehouse - Love Is A Losing Game

5. Amy Winehouse - Tears Dry On Their Own

6. Madonna feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland - 4 Minutes

7. Kylie Minogue - Wow

8. N.E.R.D. - Everybody Nose (All The Girls Standing In The Line For The Bathroom)

9. Keane - Spiralling

10. Shelby Lynne - Anyone Who Had A Heart

11. Coldplay - Viva La Vida

12. The Pussycat Dolls - When I Grow Up

13. Vampire Weekend - Oxford Comma

14. Rihanna - Disturbia

15. Madonna feat. Pharell Williams - Give It 2 Me

16. M.I.A. - Boyz

17. Duffy - Mercy

18. M.I.A. - Bird Flu

19. I'm From Barcelona - We're From Barcelona

20. Carrie Underwood - All-American Girl

21. Dengue Fever - Tiger Phone Card

22. Black Kids - I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You

23. Ne-Yo - Closer

24. MGMT - Time To Pretend

25. Om Shanti Om soundtrack - Deewangi Deewangi

INNERVISION

It's still too early to know what really were the best films of the year. Here are some that are supposedly excellent and that I'm really looking forward to watching (of course, we'll hopefully get to see them after weeks of being subjected to bad Indiana Jones rip-offs and unnecessary horror sequels this holiday season).

Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea (Hayao Miyazaki)

Milk (Gus Van Sant)

Slumdog Millionaire (Danny Boyle)

Che (Steven Soderbergh)

The Wrestler (Darren Aronofsky)

Man On Wire (James Marsh)

Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman)

Happy-Go-Lucky (Mike Leigh)

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (David Fincher)

Frost/Nixon (Ron Howard)

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Woody Allen)

Doubt(John Patrick Shanley)

Waltz With Bashir (Ari Folman)

My favorites among the non-2008 movies I saw this year:

1. Phantom India (Louis Malle) - This landmark, but little known, 1969 7-hour opus by Louis Malle (Elevator To The Gallows, Les Amants), resurrected on DVD by Criterion Collection, is perhaps the greatest documentary on India ever filmed. This is not your typical BBC or Discovery Channel routine job. It is a highly personal account of the filmmaker's journey across India, with a narration by Malle himself. While watching it, I felt there was something oddly familiar about it. Then it hit me: oh my god, it sounds like a blog, perhaps the best travel blog you'll ever come across. The film reveals as much of India as the filmmaker's soul, with a camera that sees everything, and a narration that is reflective, inquisitive, judgmental at times, funny, and ultimately, beautiful. (Phantom India's companion documentary, the of-the-moment "Calcutta," is more typical of a western documentary on Asian poverty, and doesn't benefit from the filmmaker's insightful narration, therefore a less enduring work). Like its subject, Phantom India is timeless, massive, intimate, surprising, challenging, quirky, and utterly, achingly beautiful. Required viewing for everybody interested in India, if not for the entire human race.

2. Syndromes And A Century (Apichatpong Weerasethakul) - I don't know what it means (yet), but like Wong Kar-Wai's In The Mood For Love, I'll probably watch it again and again to find out. Intriguing, intoxicating.

3. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg) - Of course I've seen it before, but not on DVD. It has lost none of the excitement and fun.

4. Days of Being Wild (Wong Kar-Wai) - One of those movies that took me forever to see. Wong Kar-Wai's star-studded 1990 film, a sort-of-prequel to In The Mood For Love, reveals that the director's hopeles romantic stylings have been there all along. Immerse yourself in Christopher Doyle's cinematography, Xavier Cugat's "Perfidia," and the charisma of the young cast, but the romance and yearning are all Wong Kar-Wai's. The movie was partly shot in the Philippines, and I've never seen Manila so lovingly shot in a movie as in this one (perhaps the only other time I've seen Manila photographed in such a manner was in Jim Libiran's "Tribu," but that was set in the slums). Tita Muñoz makes a cameo as Leslie Cheung's Filipino mother. Go see it.

5. Network (Sidney Lumet) - "I am mad as hell, and I am not gonna take this anymore!" Also, still the most acidic fuck-you to corporate media in the history of corporate media and fuck-yous.

6. 3 Days To Forever (Riri Riza) - The main characters spend the movie driving from Jakarta to Jogjakarta, passing through Puncak Jaya, Bandung, and other Indonesian towns, stopping to party, smoke stuff, get laid, enjoy the views. It's the fantasy road trip I haven't taken! Yet!

ENTERTAINMENT!

AMORICA

ARE YOU EXPERIENCED?

The hits:

1. The whole Nepal experience (finally coming to this blog very soon, I think!) - to top it all off, I was able to visit/see the country's UNESCO World Heritage Sites, all 10 of them!

2. Finally stepping on Indian soil - a dream come true

3. My brother's wedding

4. The Eraserheads reunion concert

5. Nearly passing out becaue of the heat, hunger, and exhaustion in Ayutthaya, Thailand - I'd prefer to pass out because of travel anytime, than because of, well, anything else!

The pits:

1. People moving on - sad, but inevitable

2. The doctor's diagnosis that reminded me that I'd been living a very sweet life indeed

3. When the most stupid and rude mechanic was sent to fix my computer and wiped out almost all my travel photos - like your whole family dying on you, at least for three days (silver lining: there were backups, but not for everything!)

4. Prices just keep going up, up, up...while the salaries stay the same.

5. Cory Aquino apologized to Joseph Estrada for EDSA II?? I'm sorry, but was she out of her mind? She should then apologize to all of us who went to EDSA for four straight days to hopefully drive away the drunken, womanizing, stealing, good-for-nothing bastard out of office. Early this month, I attended a screening of the Mike de Leon (et al) Ninoy-era documentary "Signos," and after the screening, a middle-aged former street activist stood up and voiced out his disenchantment and dismay over those people whom they counted on during the Marcos era, who had/have not really done anything --and in fact, they themselves--did/have done harm to the Filipino people. Well, I'm 32, and I feel the same way now. God bless this country.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Before the merriment, a song

And kids, SANTA CLAUS DOESN'T EXIST! It's all a LIE!

Friday, January 25, 2008

The amazing Mr. Bond

"Quantum of Solace" is the title of the new James Bond film showing later this year. I can't wait. I wasn't really a big Bond fan. The films were not really well-written and (not that) well-made. The guys who played Bond were more like well-chiseled mannequins than real actors (except Connery). Not to mention the campiness and absurdity of it all (James Bond in space, anyone?), although that may have been the point as the franchise is the ultimate in male fantasy. However, it all changed with 2006's "Casino Royale." Totally loved that movie. Everybody thought the blond Daniel Craig was the wrong choice to play Bond, but they were proven wrong. I knew Craig is a pretty intense actor, having seen him beforehand in Layer Cake and Sylvia. He brought gravitas and much-needed realism (to a point) in his new role, and the film was a back-to-Ian Fleming-basics affair, revealing Bond for what he actually is: a heartbroken, killing machine, not the martini-shaking kiss-kiss-bang-bang of old (well, maybe not).

To whet your appetite for the next Bond film, here are the famous opening sequences of the last 22 James Bond films. Enjoy.

Dr. No (1962)