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10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before MTV Existed

The best music videos that came before the great “radio star” slaying, trend-inducing, TRL-ing behemoth came along in 1981. In chronological order!

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10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before MTV Ex...
Michael Schmidt

1. 1.

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1961 - Ricky Nelson - “Travelin’ Man”

2. 2.

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1963 - Jan and Dean - “Surf City”

3. 3.

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1964 - The Animals - “House Of The Rising Sun”

4. 4.

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1967 - The Doors - “Break On Through (To The Other Side)”

5. 5.

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1969 - David Bowie - “Space Oddity”

6. 6.

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1970 - Mungo Jerry - “In The Summertime”

7. 7.

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1972 - Stealers Wheel - “Stuck In The Middle With You”

8. 8.

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1979 - Frank Zappa - “City Of Tiny Lights”

9. 9.

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1979 - Devo - “The Day My Baby Gave Me A Surprise”

10. 10.

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1980 - Paul McCartney & Wings - “Coming Up”

11. 11.

11.

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    • lukeb3 thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • marissag3 thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • Arctic_Boosh a year ago

      Holy crap, I didn’t expect to see DEVO. Check out all of their music videos though, they’re goddamn brilliant!

    • Holly Gofightly a year ago

      I hated this song until I saw this video, especially the end.

    • luisenriquel a year ago

      List fails without Bohemian Rhapsody.

    • 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is starting to get hot on Facebook Share It  about a year ago
    • mushabon   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... and thinks it’s Win & F@#$ Yeah!  about a year ago
    • nyt.fi readers just made 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... hotter  about a year ago
    • rangles thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • blaineb a year ago

      Elvis did it first.

    • khristine butler thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is LOL  about a year ago
    • Aaron Appler   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... and thinks it’s WTF, F@#$ Yeah! & LOL  about a year ago
    • Isiaht thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • fanaca thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is F@#$ Yeah! & Win  about a year ago
    • Douglas B. thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is starting to get hot on StumbleUpon Stumble It  about a year ago
    • neffie a year ago

      Here’s Nesmith in 1977

    • neffie a year ago

      Just one of the many Monkees videos that were made before MTV (which btw was invented by Michael Nesmith of the Monkees)

    • leeser   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before...  about a year ago
    • aimeew2 a year ago

      Fuck yeah! We’re all Devo!

    • cara   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... and thinks it’s Win  about a year ago
    • meggiemoes thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • mage13414   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before...  about a year ago
    • tonym12 a year ago

      Where the hell is “Subterranean Homesick Blues”?

    • Whitney Jefferson thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Win  about a year ago
    • AmericanColleen thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is F@#$ Yeah!  about a year ago
    • jasons51 a year ago

      Love The Doors

    • jasons51 thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is OMG  about a year ago
    • ashleya9 a year ago

      People see to forget The Monkees. Their show had usually 2 music videos along with the show. That was in the 60s.

    • cattaca thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is LOL, Win & F@#$ Yeah!  about a year ago
    • a short haired girl a year ago

      i love pre-mtv music videos. they tend to be different with the right amount of awkwardness.

    • a short haired girl   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... and thinks it’s F@#$ Yeah!  about a year ago
    • dak1038 a year ago

      Another Bowie one (this could be renamed awesome Bowie videos before MTV existed). This one gave me nightmares when I was young.

    • GoNookuler a year ago

      Gotta disagree on the Bowie choice. Boys Keep Swinging is far superior. Bowie as besuited hipster with Bowie as his own drag-queen backup singers and best Belew guitar solo ever.

    • therblig a year ago

      when ms. blig and i were first dating (1979), a group used to show music videos in a local pittsburgh church basement. i remember seeing a couple by devo and elvis costello/attractions mixed in with some experimental short films.

    • katherinerh   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... and thinks it’s LOL & Win  about a year ago
    • heidie4 thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is F@#$ Yeah!  about a year ago
    • astridf a year ago

      Basically every episode of “The Monkees” was an extended music video.

    • astridf thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is F@#$ Yeah! & Win  about a year ago
    • Dorsey Shaw   10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... and thinks it’s Win  about a year ago
    • Dorsey Shaw a year ago

      i wish i could song like eric burdon

    • IHYP thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is Fail  about a year ago
    • billm12 thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is F@#$ Yeah!, Old & Win  about a year ago
    • Leenakee thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is F@#$ Yeah!  about a year ago
    • kristenf3 thinks 10 Awesome Music Videos Made Before... is LOL  about a year ago
    • JohanPar a year ago

      F**K YEAH, MUNGO JERRY.

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