I’m gonna jump from one song to another, mostly at random. The theme is black and white. Maybe you can follow my logic. Maybe not.
I don’t know why I recently thought of this song, but it’s one of my favorites by the Beatles. This is from their movie “A Hard Day’s Night” (filmed in black and white) and I’m pretty sure they’re lip-syncing, but that doesn’t really matter. I love the melody, the chords, the vocal harmonies, and the general vibe. They’re all smiling at each other. They look like they’re having fun.
The Beatles, “If I Fell, “ (from “A Hard Day's Night”), 1964
Next, I was thinking about other black-and-white music videos and I remembered this one by Leonard Cohen. The cinematography is amazing. It reminds me an Ingmar Bergman movie. And the words! “First we take Manhattan; then we take Berlin.” Who is planning to take Manhattan? The leader of a country? A terrorist? A multinational fashion clothing company? I don’t entirely understand the words (“the monkey and the plywood violin”), but that’s OK. The words create an eerie feeling.
Cohen died about two years ago, 7 Nov 2016. He will be missed. He will be remembered.
Leonard Cohen: “First We Take Manhattan,” 1986/1988
The next black and white video is Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues.” The song was recorded in 1965. This was before MTV. You don’t see him singing. He’s just turning cards with words on them. That’s the whole video. But I think it’s brilliant. Don’t forget that he recently won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Bob Dylan: “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” 1965
While I was thinking of black and white, I remembered The Specials, a ska/reggae band who recorded on 2 Tone records. The label often used a black/white checkerboard theme. And their bands were integrated, with both black and white musicians. Not a b/w video, but most of the colors are black and white.
The Specials: “A Message To You Rudy,” 1979
Three members of the Specials later formed a band called Fun Boy Three. Terry Hall (singer for the Specials and Fun Boy Three) co-wrote a song with Jane Wiedlin of the Go-Go’s. The Go-Go’s released it in 1981 and “Our Lips Are Sealed” was their first hit. Fun Boy Three recorded their own version in 1983 and it was a top-ten hit in the UK. I think I like this version better than the other one by the Go-Go’s.
Fun Boy Three, “Our Lips Are Sealed,” 1983