by Patrick Sills

Created on: August 18, 2010

Did video kill the radio star? The answer to this question is a resounding yes. Well, at least for a while, that is. By the time MTV, an acronym for Music Television, made its debut in 1981, a mass influx of videos had already begun the slow but certain transformation of the way popular bands would promote their work to the consuming public.

Videos themselves were nothing new. As far back as 1966, those moptops from Liverpool known collectively as the Beatles made a very gutsy and bold decision to stop touring. In lieu of live concerts, they would continue to record albums, but also produce videos of particular songs. These short motion pictures were designed to accompany a song, and were known simply then as “films.” Since the Beatles would no longer be performing live anywhere, Ed Sullivan even got into the act by showing these films to TV audiences. One of the first such “videos” that would be created in the format of those that would appear on MTV a decade and a half later was “Strawberry Fields.”

Other bands also made videos before and afterwards, but they were limited to just a few songs and really had no bearing one way or the other in regard to record sales. Such promotional “films” served as a sort of added bonus to hearing the record. And moreover, that was only if the band’s loyal fans happened to catch it on a TV show. However, this all changed as the decade of the 1970s gave way to the 1980s. As a former rock musician myself, I have quite strong opinions in regard to MTV and music videos as a whole. For starters, nobody has ever claimed that making a name for yourself in the music business is easy. The competition is fierce, and oftentimes, it comes down to who you know as opposed to what you know. As a result, some very talented musicians will never realize their dreams while those less competent will; simply because they were in the right place at the right time. However, the onset of videos as a promotional tool effectively made things much tougher than before.

In the days before video would become mainstream, things were less difficult. Bands would make demo tapes and submit them to record companies. If a cigar-chomping executive liked what he heard, the next step involved seeing the band perform live. In turn, if that went well, a contract was signed and the album would either sell or fall flat. Enter videos, which by 1980 or so became a prerequisite for any band to make

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