The song's music video, directed by Storm Thorgerson, received a great deal of airplay on MTV, introducing the revamped Yes lineup and sound to a new generation of fans largely unfamiliar with the band's very different earlier work, which had helped to define the genre of progressive rock.
The video begins with the band playing on a sound stage rehearsing. Then the band stops and each member turns into a different animal. Then a bird flying over different areas and then cuts to an archetypal Everyman (played by Danny Webb) as he tries to make it through a day whilst being shocked by pseudo-psychotic flashes of being menaced by the various animals.
He is brought to court by government-looking toughs, summarily thrown out of court and into a boiler room where he fights a bruiser, then runs onto the roof of the building. There, he is confronted by the various band members, shifting back and forth between human and animal guises, which drives him to leap from the building. The video then ends with the same man in the same crowd as at the beginning of the video, but instead he turns back, presumably to go home and avoid the day.
By far one of my personal favorite music videos from that decade.
Sade's video for "Smooth Operator", directed by Julien Temple, was nominated for two MTV Video Music Awards in 1985, Best Female Video and Best New Artist.
The full-length version runs around eight and a half minutes, and shows the entire story of the song (The video features a then-unknown pre-Max Headroom Amanda Pays portraying a hostess/moll.)
The Jacksons' accompanying video to "Can You Feel It", directed by Bruce Gowers and Robert Abel, was noted for its remarkable special effects created by Robert Abel and Associates. Michael created the video's concept and Tito's sons Taj and Taryll appeared as extras. In 2001, it was voted one of the 100 best videos of all time, in a poll to mark the 20th anniversary of MTV.
The music video for Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing" featured early computer animation illustrating the lyrics. The video was one of the first uses of computer-animated human characters and was considered ground-breaking at the time of its release. It was the second computer-generated music video shown on MTV.
The video was awarded "Video of the Year" (among many other nominations) at the third annual MTV Video Music Awards in 1986.
Blondie - Rapture (1981)
Debuting in 1981, the music video was the first rap video ever broadcast on MTV. Set in the East Village section of Manhattan, the "Man from Mars" or "voodoo god" (dancer William Barnes in the white suit and top hat) is the introductory and central figure. Barnes also choreographed the piece.
The final shot is a one-take scene of Debbie Harry dancing along the street, passing by graffiti artists, Uncle Sam, a Native American and a goat. Fab Five Freddy and graffiti artists Lee Quinones and Jean-Michel Basquiat make cameo appearances. Basquiat was hired when Grandmaster Flash did not show for the filming.
The video for "Leave in Silence" was directed by Julien Temple, and features the band breaking things and talking to each other while wearing face paint. The band disliked the video and did not include it on the Some Great Videos VHS compilation album
Wham! - Club Tropicana (1983)
A memorable video directed by Duncan Gibbins was made at Pikes Hotel in Ibiza, with scenes of George and Andrew on the beach, making eyes at bikini-clad girls played by their backing singers Dee C. Lee and Shirlie Holliman. They were also seen relaxing by a pool and sipping cocktails to promote the new Tropicana Tropicals range, along with the famous scene of trumpet-playing taking place in the pool itself. A twist in the sexual tension between the two men and two women was revealed at the end, when it turned out that George and Andrew were airline pilots and Dee and Shirlie were stewardesses.