History of Music Videos

In 1926 people saw the introduction of the 'talkies' which were musical short films which featured many bands and vocalists. The series was called 'Spooney Melodies' and was the first true music video series. With film of the performer they also included animations and a range of backgrounds. in the early 1930's popular musicians would perform their hit songs live during cartoons. One famous carton was 'Fantasia' by Walt Disney and this featured several minutes of music to cartoon action. Live action performers included artists such as Cab Calloway which were distributed to theatres. Songs such as St Louis Blues were shown in theatres as dramatic performances of the song. This became a very popular way of showing music videos which then led to other artists appearing. In the 1940's 'promotional clips' were introduced and became another way of showing music videos. These consisted of a band playing on a set. Well known music videos have imitated the style of the Hollywood musical this including Madonna's 'Material Girl' (1985). Michael Jackson was another artist who imitated the style and the influence of the dance sequences in the classic hollywood musicals. This is famously seen in the video for 'Thriller' and 'Bad'. The rise in popularity was tied with the rise in televsions as this enabled stars to be more exposed to the viewers.

In 1964 The Beatles starred in their own film 'A Hard Days Night'. This was shot in black and white. It included dance and musical sequences that have influenced many modern artists and the format of their own music videos. A year later they began making promotional clips for broadcast and distribution in other countries such as the USA. This was so they could promote their new album without having to make appearances in person. Many clips were shown on popular shows in America and the UK including Top of the Pops. Videos such as 'Strawberry Fields Forever' made in 1967 took the music video format to another level. Techniques such as slow motion, dramatic lighting and unusual camera angles were used from films.

Animation, live action, documentaries and abstracts filming are the styles in which music videos have now been created and filmed. The very popular TV show 'Top of the Pops' started to show music videos in the late 70's. This increased music sales as viewers wanted to see the video again.

The American channel MTV was launched in 1981 and it aired 24-our-a-day music on TV.

1983 saw the most influential and successful music video being made. This was of course Michael Jackson's "Thriller". It cost $500,000 to make and it lasts 14 minutes.

In 1992 MTV started to credit directors for the videos and this was when music videos became an auteur's medium.

In the present day music videos are still incredibly popular for audiences and are at a very high standard. Artists such as 'Eminem' put a lot of time and effort into making dramatic videos and making sure they reflect the song and the lyrics. MTV now hosts awards shows such as 'The Video Music Awards' to reflect on how MTV started the chain of music channels and the launch of music videos on TV.