Module 5

MTV

MTV: Music Television

On August 1, 1981 (8-1-81), Music Television (MTV) premiered on closed circuit television as the first program to air music videos twenty-four hours a day. By taking advantage of the new technologies of cable television and stereo sound for television, MTV became as important to promoting songs and artists as radio had been throughout the twentieth century. Appropriately, the first music video to air was the Buggles 1979 hit “Video Killed the Radio Star.”

Back to the Future

Back to the Future

In 1985, rock and roll celebrated its thirtieth anniversary, marked by the 1955 explosion of new artists including Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Bill Haley and Elvis Presley. The year 1985 also produced the feature film Back to the Future by filmmaker Robert Zemeckis. The unique storyline transported audiences back to the year 1955 through the experiences of the main character Marty McFly who drove a Delorean time machine back to the year of his parents’ first encounter in high school. Back to the Future proves to be an important part of rock history, featuring music from 1980s super groups Huey Lewis and the News (as well as a cameo appearance by Lewis) and pop metal pioneers Van Halen. The soundtrack also features1950s hit songs from vocal groups the Penguins and the Chordettes to the late-fifties rock music of Chuck Berry. Additionally, the film featured a glimpse of the future, thirty years forward to the year 2015. Back to the Future has found its place on rock history alongside films like Blackboard Jungle (1955), Shaft (1971), Saturday Night Fever (1977), and Beat Street (1984).

Electro Pop

For the first two years of its existence, MTV would air primarily electro-pop bands from the U.K., many who came out of the thriving discotheque scene in Europe in the 1970s. In 1983, the Eurythmics, an English synth duet featuring Annie Lennox on vocals and Dave Stewart on keyboard synthesizers recorded “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).” The video to their single received extensive airtime on MTV and helped the single reach number one on the pop charts, in both the U.S. and the U.K. The song was recorded on an eight-track recorder, with all music created by a digital synthesizer, characteristic of many pop bands of the era.

In the 1980s, several artists from previous eras experimented with new music technologies to reinvent their sound. In 1983, David Bowie, the pioneer of glam rock in the 1970s, reemerged with a new image and recorded “Let’s Dance.” The song earned him his next number one hit, a feat that had eluded him for some years. His music video included references to commercial businesses like American Express, an initial investor for MTV.

The King of Pop

Michael Jackson: Thriller

Michael Jackson (1958-2009) was born in Gary, Indiana as the eighth of ten children. He got his start in music at the age of five, when he joined his brothers to complete the Jackson 5. The members’ father Joseph Jackson managed the family group who secured a record deal with Motown in 1968. Between 1969 and 1970, The Jackson 5 earned four number one hits on both the pop and R&B charts with “I Want You Back,” “ABC,” “The Love You Save,” and “I’ll Be There.” This feat alone foreshadowed the crossover success that Michael achieved later in his career. Michael’s first solo album Off the Wall was released in 1979. Industry veteran Quincy Jones produced the album that featured elements of funk and disco and included four Top Ten singles. In 1982, Jackson again collaborated with Jones to produce Thriller. By 1985, Thriller sold over forty million units and became the best-selling album of all time, with over 100 million sold worldwide. Thriller was carefully crafted by Jackson to have mass appeal to a broad audience. Compared to Off the Wall, which many considered to be “black” music for black audiences, Thriller featured artists from other music worlds. On “Beat It,” Jackson teamed up with Eddie Van Halen to provide electric guitar work in a very pop metal style, essentially considered a music favored by a primarily white audience. On “The Girl Is Mine,” Jackson crossed generational boundaries and teamed up with Beatles legend Paul McCartney. Jackson also had seven of the nine tracks released as singles, one at a time. All seven reached the Top Ten, “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” topping the charts. Michael Jackson has found his place in music history as the “King of Pop,” and one of the most innovative, influential, and beloved performing artists of all time.

Madonna

Madonna: Like a Virgin

Born Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone in Bay City, Michigan in 1958, Madonna redefined the image of the female rock star in the 1980s. After studying dance on scholarship at the University of Michigan, Madonna moved to New York in 1977 and worked as a professional dancer and model. In 1979, Madonna joined the pop punk band Breakfast Club briefly, playing drums and guitar, but quickly began to focus on writing and recording electro dance music. While in New York, she frequented discotheques including the popular club Danceteria, where she first met DJ and producer Mark Kamins. Kamins, who played Madonna’s demo tapes regularly at the club, connected Madonna with New York-based Sire Records. She signed with the label that had already signed groups like the Ramones and Talking Heads. Sire released her debut singles “Everybody” in 1982 and “Holiday” in 1983, the second earning her first Top Twenty hit on the pop charts. In January 1983, Sire released Madonna’s debut self-titled album. Madonna included two Top Ten singles, “Lucky Star” and “Borderline.” Madonna also made music videos for both singles, and benefited from extensive airplay on MTV. The following year, her sophomore album Like A Virgin was released and became her first number one album. The title track also reached number one on the singles chart. Industry veteran Nile Rodgers produced the album that featured a strong presence of synthesizer-based instrumentation combined with an R&B-rooted dance style. Like A Virgin eventually sold over ten million units. Madonna continued her success through the 1980s with albums True Blue (1986) and Like a Prayer (1989). She has continued to maintain artistic relevance to the present day, selling over 300 million worldwide and earning a record eleven number one albums.

Prince

Purple Rain: Prince and the Revolution

Born Prince Rogers Nelson in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1958, Prince became an icon of the 1980s, and a lasting force in the music industry right up to his untimely death in 2016. From a young age, Prince was exposed to a wide range of music styles, from the music of James Brown and Carlos Santana to psychedelic rock and acoustic folk. Prince began producing records as a multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and studio recording wizard in the late 1970s. He began to focus more on his image as a multi-ethnic, androgynous sex symbol, inspired by glam rock pioneers like David Bowie, and wrote more sexually explicit lyrics. Prince was the first artist to have the parental advisory lyrics label added to his work. His breakthrough album Dirty Mind (1980) earned him his first Top Ten on the R&B charts. His first crossover Top Ten success came with 1999 (1982). Prince also created music videos to “1999” and “Little Red Corvette.” The videos first aired on MTV in 1983, giving Prince visual exposure to compliment his unique musical style. Prince was one of the first artists of African American descent to be featured on MTV. In 1984, Prince released the feature film and soundtrack Purple Rain, which earned him his first number one album. From the album, the single “When Doves Cry” is a prime example of Prince’s ingenuity in the studio and musical skill. He wrote all lyrics, arranged all music, played every instrument on the record, sang all vocal parts, and programmed all electronic drum sequences.
Throughout his career, Prince demonstrated his creativity and ingenuity as a businessman in the music industry. In 1993, Prince changed his professional name to a symbol and referred to himself as “The Artist Formally Known as Prince.” This was his way to get around the trademark that Warner Brothers placed on his name, making the company the owner of all his work. Under a new moniker, he could now produce new records and keep his own masters, or original recordings, and market them as he saw fit. In 2007, Prince released his album Planet Earth as a free download for consumers who purchased tickets to his live show. Practices like these have revolutionized marketing strategies in the current musical world of digital downloading and streaming.

Van Halen

Van Halen

Michael Jackson’s hit song “Beat It” featured the virtuosic electric guitar of Eddie Van Halen. This exposure to a larger audience helped propel Van Halen’s “Jump” from the album 1984 to the top of the pop charts. Van Halen formed in 1974 in Pasadena, California, beginning with brothers Eddie Van Halen on electric guitar and Alex Van Halen on drums. Bassist Michael Anthony and vocalist David Le Roth rounded out the band. Van Halen began to play the Hollywood club circuit on Sunset Strip in Southern California. Van Halen pioneered a new approach to rock in several ways, beginning with the electric guitar. Eddie studied classical music primarily, in contrast to many rock guitarists who studied the blues and earlier rock styles as their foundation. His classical background is evident on the track “Eruption” from Van Halen’s 1978 debut album, Van Halen. “Eruption” features Eddie playing an extended electric guitar solo. At roughly half a minute into the piece, Van Halen quotes a highly demanding passage by Rudolphe Kreutzer, a late-seventeenth century violinist and classical composer whose music is standard repertoire for classical violinists. Van Halen reached the Top Twenty, and the group continued to grow in popularity. By 1984, Van Halen’s music video to “Jump” was receiving extensive airplay on MTV. The video features highly athletic acrobatics from lead singer David Lee Roth, who took full advantage of the visual aesthetic. The group members also dressed in more colorful attire including spandex pants, in stark contrast to the black leather and darker tones of heavy metal. Lyrically, the band focused on escapist content that referenced fun, partying, and girls. “Jump” also featured the main riff on the synthesizer keyboard rather than electric guitar, and in many ways broadened the group’s fan base. Van Halen began to redefine rock with their brand of pop rock, influencing a new breed of bands including Def Leppard, Motley Crüe, Poison, and Bon Jovi, to name but a few. Throughout the 1980s, these groups were featured extensively on MTV, including Def Leppard’s “Photograph” (1983), Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ On a Prayer” (1986), and Motley Crüe’s “Dr. Feelgood” (1989). This brand of rock has received several labels including heavy metal, pop metal, glam rock, and hair band rock.

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