I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution
I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution
Named One of the Best Books of 2011 by NPR – Spin – USA Today – CNBC – Pitchfork – The Onion – The Atlantic – The Huffington Post – VEVO – The Boston Globe – The San Francisco Chronicle
Remember the first time you saw Michael Jackson dance with zombies in “Thriller”? Diamond Dave karate kick with Van Halen in “Jump”? Tawny Kitaen turning cartwheels on a Jaguar to Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again”? The Beastie Boys spray beer in “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party)”? Axl Rose step off the bus in “Welcome to the Jungle”?
Remember When All You Wanted Was Your MTV?
It was a pretty radical idea-a channel for teenagers, showing nothing but music videos. It was such a radical idea that almost no one though
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Oh, You Want Your MTV Book…And You’ll Long For Your MTV, Too,
If you grew up in the era when MTV was must-see TV, this book is a breezy page-turner that will not disappoint. Not only are there hilarious behind the scenes details (little people getting down with transvestites on Van Halen’s set; constipation on Samantha Fox’s), but you’ll see (and hear) the machinations of a plucky start-up changing – for better AND worse – the dynamics of a complacent, and arguably regressive, music industry. If only it could happen again today. The oral history gambit provides an excellent springboard, allowing for multiple voices and “Rashomon”-style conflicts regarding elusive truths, and this book ranks with similar tomes like the SNL backstager, “Live From New York” and Legs McNeil’s “Please Kill Me.” My only wish would be to prune some of the ‘middleman’ repetition, as we get one, two, three (twelve?) too many MTV staffers who tell us, again and again, that there were no rules; they broke all the rules; things were really f’in’ crazy…rather than telling us why or how. Would have preferred further quips from quotable video stars such as Al Yankovic, Devo’s Jerry Casale, and various Beastie Boys who were actually in the midst of madness making the clips they programmed. But the nitty-gritty, as well as the broader cultural scope, are all here and all delectable.
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|Weirdly Addictive!,
I was initially wary of the book’s length (572 pages not including the index!), but it turns out it’s been perfect for picking up, putting down, and skipping around depending on what stories seem most entertaining that day. Each chapter is broken up into short oral histories on a particular topic, so you can spend one afternoon reading about Madonna’s early days as a skateboarding punk living in the LES, and another day on how MTV execs convinced Mick Jagger to say “I want my MTV” for $1. This book is totally about the details. Did you know that one of the hot chicks in ZZ Top’s “Gimme All Your Lovin’” is now on the Real Housewives of Orange County?? Or that the car on the cover of the album Eliminator cost $250,000, so they put it in all their videos to get the tax deduction as a business expense? Pure gold, and totally addictive reading!! Would definitely recommend as a gift to anyone 30 and older who remembers those MTV days.
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|memory lane just got more twisted and a whole lot funnier,
I am old enough to recall the day MTV first aired. We huddled by the screen to witness the moment when television decided it cared about what we teens cared about: rock music and cool outfits. This amazing book let me get behind the scenes — finally! — for a view of the hysteria — fame-hungry and drug- induced — that went along with the videos. What a weird, fascinating world was hatched for us. No wonder we still want our MTV, the remarkable one we can no longer have. I loved this book. I want “I Want My MTV” for many, many more reads.
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