Now we love us some people that work at EW (hey guys), but this feature on Michel Gondry’s Top 25 Videos is clearly just an excuse to click through photo galleries. So let’s make it easier on everybody for presentation’s sake (sorry, we don’t want to click 25 times, so we’ll do you the public service announcement favor so you don’t have to; plus we hate that kind shit).
One interesting music movie news tidbit, Gondry says the singer of his old band Oui Oui, Etienne Charry is “doing the music for my films now.” YouTube links on all the videos. Oh you’ll note that he gives props to almost every director in the Director’s Label Series, a DVD series he co-founded, including three from his buddy Spike Jonze. Smart!
Michael Jackson, ”Billie Jean” (1983)
Peter Gabriel, ”Sledgehammer” (1986)
Red Hot Chili Peppers, ”Give It Away” (1991)
When Gondry saw the clip he “was devastated. It was too good. The contrast was so sharp, it looked like a new medium.”
Beastie Boys, ”Sabotage” (1994)
Björk – ‘It’s Oh So Quiet” (1995)
Herbie Hancock, ”Rockit” (1983)
”It’s funny — like a bunch of people sat down and said, ‘Okay, how will the future sound? We’re gonna do something that’s like the future,” Gondry said. This video freaked the fuck out of us as a kid.
Jean-Luc Ponty, ”Individual Choice” (1983)
Talking Heads, ”Burning Down the House” (1983)
Téléphone, ”Un Autre Monde” (1984)
The Cure, ”Close to Me” (1985)
New Order, ”Perfect Kiss” (1985) directed by Jonathan Demme
Beastie Boys, ”Fight for Your Right to Party” (1986)
Run DMC featuring Aerosmith, ”Walk this Way” (1986)
Paul Simon, ”You Can Call Me Al” (1986)
”Paul Simon and Chevy Chase — it was pretty funny. Simon is one of the best musicians around, but he has such a good sense of humor. It’s sort of self-derogatory.”
Michael Jackson, ”Leave Me Alone” (1987)
Madonna, ”Like a Prayer” (1989)
Tone Loc, ”Wild Thing” (1989)
Young MC, ”Bust a Move” (1989)
Massive Attack, ”Unfinished Sympathy” (1991)
Lenny Kravitz, ”Are You Gonna Go My Way?” (1993)
Jamiroquai, ”Virtual Insanity” (1996)
The Pharcyde, ”Drop” (1996)
Aphex Twin, ”Come to Daddy” (1997)
‘It’s the scariest video ever. The kids are old people, they yell. It’s really creepy.”
Devendra Banhart, ”A Ribbon” (2004)
R. Kelly, ”Trapped in the Closet” (2005)
Gondry’s releasing part 2 of his music videos collection on DVD via his new website. Presumably this time he’ll include music videos that were AWOL on his Director’s Label DVD, like clips lensed after its release like Kanye West’s “Heard ‘Em Say” which featured a cameo by Jon Brion, Beck’s “Cellphone’s Dead,” The White Stripes’ “Denial Twist,” more obscure fair like Swedish Bjork-like pixie, Stina Nordenstam’s “Little Star” and videos he wanted to include on the original collection, but wasn’t allowed because the band hated the clip (Radiohead’s “Knives Out,” no joke).
“I generally find a good way of communicating to prevent clash, but I had one terrible experience with Radiohead,” Gondry said of 2001’s ‘Knives Out.’ Going through a breakup at the time, he transferred his despair to a character played by lead singer Thom Yorke, grieving anxiously in a crowded hospital room. “I showed him a storyboard and every single detail: he was completely excited and happy for it – and then, it turned out, they all criticize me for being selfish and putting my own views on it and my own introspection,” a still peeved Gondry said. (Yorke and Radiohead declined to comment for this story.) “And they didn’t let me use my video for my DVD!” he adds, his voice rising. “And I’m really mad at them for having done that to me, that they abuse their power! It did not go smooth, but if it went smooth, it would be mediocre.”
Btw, last we heard the Director’s Label series was dead in the water. This is our requisite plea to start it up again, we loved that series. We wrote a lenghty feature on it back in the day.
Watch: Radiohead “Knives Out”
