The brothers Russell and Ron Mael, the musical core of the band Sparks, managed to stay interesting in the late '70s after ditching their bratty keyboard proto-punk (and the rest of their band) and hooking up with Italian electro-disco impresario Giorgio Moroder (a prescient move considering this was long before Moroder's name became cultural currency; most of Sparks' fellow rockists were calling for disco's head on a plate). "Beat the Clock" was the biggest single (at least in the U.K., where it reached #10 on the pop charts) off the unlikely collaboration's first effort, 1979's Number 1 In Heaven. The album, like seemingly all of Moroder's work, is now regarded as highly influential in presaging the new romantic/techno/electronica/etc. styles. I'm not sure if this video was produced immediately after the album's release or after MTV's launch in '81. But, though I really wish Moroder himself could've made an appearance, it's otherwise a pretty humorous/ retro stab at the literal translations songs that many bands filmed in MTV's wake. Giant clocks somehow just scream '80s to me, and don't we all wish we could pull off Brother Russel's neon stripe shirt/ khaki blazer combo? Brother Ron's hilarious Hitler-mustache deadpan could sell any video. Hey, just watch those girls go!
***Note: Vintage Video is a regular post in which we explore the wasteland of old music videos available on YouTube for insight, oddity, hilarity, current relevancy or just plain awesomeness.
That's awesome. So conceptually immature.
Anthony
I can't believe that song charted so high.
Tine