Re: Video History

[Len Bullard <cbullard@HiWAAY.net>]

From: Richard Bensam <rabensam@earthlink.net>

>Not to impugn the word of Dave Clark -- I have nothing against the man,
>honest! -- but musical shorts were a regular part of a night out at the
>cinema back in the 1930s, alongside cartoons and newsreels.  These short
>films were usually what we might consider performance clips, except that
>they were not films of actual performances, but bands "acting" like they
>were performing, miming over a prerecorded track just like the videos of
>today.

True.  If it weren't for these, there are some very good early black 
jazz groups that would have been swallowed up without a trace in 
history.  Part of the preservation effort for old film going on is 
recovering some of these.  So Dave, you weren't the first.  Now, 
narrowing it down to rock videos, maybe he has a case.  I dunno.

I sat in front of the TV the day MTV first broadcast with my 
then picking buddy, Ricky V.  We looked at the acts then looked 
at each other and decided to get daytime jobs.  It was obvious 
what was coming and that musical skill had just taken a back seat
to looks and outrage, but since the rock genre was burned out some 
years earlier, it wasn't really a big surprise.  MTV did get
the music industry out of the economic dregs of the time. MTV has
produced 
some good changes, but by and large, it hurt music.  Compare a 
band today (most - not all) and compare one to 1973-78 when 
you really had to play well, and skill wise, there isn't much 
to compare.  Of course, compare the Beatles to Cole Porter 
and one gets the same results.  It comes and goes...

One item we debate these days in my business is what to do with 
some of the neat technical toys we have.  VRML 2.0 is not only 
cheap animation, but a good way to build an interface into albums.
One approach is to retrofit it to existing CD-ROM legacy.  When 
the CD came along, the 12 inch vinyl disappeared and that got rid 
of the album cover as art form.  The size of the CD just doesn't
lend itself to what could be done before. Now we will be delivering 
payforplay and downloadAlbumBefore neighbor direct distribution and 
we can really raise the ante on the presentation.  We are also 
seriously raising the ante on skill level required.  That was 
exactly what Kate Bush did to her contemporaries.  When one 
looked at what she could do in terms of dance, mime, composition, 
singing, etc, it was really intimidating at the time.  She wasn't
the first, of course, but she was the best.

So, we can build VR worlds for the legacy out there (e.g, you can 
run up that Hill with Vkate), and we can tightly integrate with 
new works, which will be quite a bit more fun.

Some folks like Todd Rundgren have experimented with it.
Tossing rocks at Rush Limbaugh for points is fun. 

For the newer bands for whom computers are second nature, a new 
art form is emerging.  So, we will see rock live again as part of 
virtual theatre and interactive fr-iction.  This is an area where 
kate could do stellar work because a good camera eye, sense of 
proportion, and a wild imagination go a long way for cheap in this 
medium.  And in this world, one is forever young.  Or, given 
her many characters, this is a place to make them all live 
and play together. Je suis frontiere...

The artists of the next century are not discovered yet.

len