Stylus magazine has a list of their top 100 favorite videos, complete with embedded YouTube clips of the videos themselves for your instant gratification. Ok, now let's fight about what was excluded and how wrong that is... (via paul)
There are 24 reader comments
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:14PM
"Buddy Holly" is there, at #29, so I can't freak out. Still I think it should have been higher up. I thought "Take On Me" rolled in way high at #4. Nothing particularly novel about the song or the heavy stylistic element in the video ((even back then) -- but then I realized they work amazingly well together. "...the neo-classical sentiments enshrined in 'Take on Me' remain as a virtual bible of the video age." And now we know where art history majors end up working.
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:38PM
I think the Chemical Brothers "Let Forever Be" should have been a whole lot closer to number one. As with Björk's "It's Oh So Quiet."
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:44PM
Little Drummer boy?? Its just Bowie and Bing singing at a piano. Nice duet, lame video.
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:48PM
How does a list of the top 100 videos not include anything by Joseph Kahn? I guess the list came out before Knights of Cydonia was released.
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:48PM
Anyone want to fire off a guess about who will secure the upcoming volumes in Palm Pictures' Director's Label Series? Jonathan Dayton/Valerie Faris? Hammer & Tongs? Perhaps, in a few years, the good folks at Motion Theory?
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:49PM
I was all ready to get renaissance on their ass but it's a good list. All Is Full of Love in the top 10 shows they know what they're doing. UNCLE at #1 is probably about right.
• Sep 21 2006 • 4:51PM
1) a-ha kicks ass.
2) they are norwegian, not swedish.
• Sep 21 2006 • 5:22PM
bad research. junior senior are definitely not dutch. they're danish. i know for sure since i have been at a concert of theirs yesterday – featuring six bands from Danmark only.
crazy.
• Sep 21 2006 • 5:30PM
My guess is that half of these will be pulled within the next few days. :(
• Sep 21 2006 • 5:42PM
paul: Why? This list is at least two months old already.
• Sep 21 2006 • 5:44PM
My guess is that half of these will be pulled within the next few days.
Blame Steve Jobs for convincing record companies that a music video is a product that can be sold.
• Sep 21 2006 • 6:25PM
• Sep 21 2006 • 6:29PM
lucas with the lid off
• Sep 21 2006 • 7:25PM
My understanding was that technically YouTube doesn't own the rights for any of these. I believe they were in discussion with various music companies, (Warner and EMI, at least: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4798133.stm), but did anything ever come of those talks?
• Sep 21 2006 • 7:27PM
Herbie Hancock's Rockit. Best video of the 1980's.
Yes, the scratching (and the stuttery video-scratching) seem dated now, but remember that this is 1983, and that this is the first use of scratching on a pop single, ever.
A nice blogpost about it here.
• Sep 21 2006 • 7:31PM
Oh wikipedia, what don't you know:
"In September Warner Music and YouTube signed a deal, in which YouTube will be allowed to host every music video Warner produced while sharing a portion of the advertisement income."
• Sep 21 2006 • 8:47PM
The top 20 is actually spot on - until they get to #1, which is a basically indefensible choice. They gave a good effort for #100-#2, and then #1 was just "my favorite weird video." Clearly, Losing My Religion should have been #1.
• Sep 21 2006 • 10:55PM
Who am I to disagree with someone else's top 100? Having said that, I wish that Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun" was somewhere on the list. What a bizarre video. I wonder if it was because there was more than version (the link is to the first, and IMO better, version).
• Sep 22 2006 • 12:34AM
they missed Oasis - Stand by me....
The storyline is amazing...I suggest everyone look it up on youtube or such and watch the original vid...
• Sep 22 2006 • 2:46AM
oh, and: these are antville's nominees for best video ever (polled feb '06).
• Sep 22 2006 • 11:52AM
Is it just me or is this feature and the site in general feel like a pitchfork ripoff?
• Sep 22 2006 • 12:06PM
Beloved - Sweet Harmony. 30 Beautiful Models Naked lip syncing the song.
George Michael - Freedom 90. - Great video with models as well. Completely different from above.
• Sep 22 2006 • 2:42PM
I loved seeing Fatlip's "What's Up Fatlip?" video in the upper realm, but I thought that both "You Got Me" and "What They Do" from The Roots (both completely different styles and attitudes) should have been there.
This thread is closed to new comments. Thanks to everyone who responded.
Rex • Sep 21 2006 • 4:13PM
(Pitchfork did this a while back too.)