It was the 1980s, and no era has aged as distinctly as the 1980s. We love the 80s! It was a time when things were first-and-foremost fun. And if you’re a child of the 80’s, music videos were a cultural Brobdingnagian. If there’s one thing the dawn of the video era taught us was that some musicians were born to be heard and not necessarily seen. Too many of the decades true talents looked absolute foolish. Some (Billy Squire) had their careers ruined by listening to bad advice during the then-new media. To hear an interesting story on how the video for “Rock Me Tonight” brought down a huge star visit- https://ultimateclassicrock.com/billy-squier-rock-me-tonite-video/‍

Anyway, a 10 minute visit to the MTV Classic channel begs the question- “What the hell were they thinking?” There were plenty of videos that have stood the test of time. “Take on Me”, all of ZZ Top’s videos from Eliminator, and most of Michael Jackson’s stuff. But there was no shortage of great artists looking like clowns. Here’s our countdown of the 10 most embarrassing videos from the 80s.

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10. Separate Ways

Journey

In 1983 the media was still new and most artists were trying to figure out how to take their songs to video. Enter Journey’s ‘Separate Ways’. The #1 take away- don’t have exceptionally talented musicians playing air instruments. It’s a bad look. The worst being the keyboardist's clawing at his would-be keyboard at the :54 mark. And where was that woman going?

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9. Down Under

Men at Work

A video that acts out the lyrics. Ok, we can deal with that. (Keeping in mind this band won’t be doing Macbeth anytime soon.) But sitting in a tree playing flute to stuffed kuala bear? And that digging and dancing in the sand scenes are indescribably silly.

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8. Look of Love

ABC

Let’s start with the wardrobe. Then let’s discuss the cane dancing. Add in some chattering teeth. (No idea why) Add in a guy disgustingly eating pasta (No idea why). It’s impossible to figure out how this video ever got past the storyboard phase.

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7. You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)

Dead or Alive

This synth-pop mega-hit is as 80’s as gets. Peter Burns’s finger waging, and members of the band waving flags throughout the video is about as cheesy as it gets. Dead Alive seemed to ride the wave that Boy George and Culture Club popularized in the early 80’s. Take an androgynous frontman, give them a super catchy milk-toast tune. Make a cheesy video. Sell millions.

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6. Doing It All For Baby

Huey Lewis

You could never say Huey Lewis & the News took themselves too seriously. Which is a good thing. But after seeing this video, they may have attempted to take themselves a bit more seriously. Trying to try turn musicians into actors is unadvisable. This video is why. Frankenstein? Really?

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5. We Built This City on Rock and Roll

Starship

Sometimes great songs have bad videos. Sometimes bad songs have bad videos. This is the latter. Maybe it’s just the song was so cheesy, that the video had no choice but to be cheesy? Regardless, Starship’s We Built This City on Rock and Roll lives in 80’s infamy.

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4. Safety Dance

Men Without Hats

Ok, guys here’s the concept. Let’s set the video in England in the middle-ages. Then let’s cast some Morris Dancers, a dwarf, have a goobie front man, and add a female lead who looks like she’s on some hardcore narcotic. Oh yeah, let’s also throw in a puppet show. What could go wrong?

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3. Lick It Up

Kiss

Yeah, the name is “Lick It Up”, so a true artistic expression was probably not going to happen here. In no other decade could men wear these outfits and be considered tough. I guess the overly exposed hairy chest and velvet leopard print boots were attractive to women in the 1980s? This was the post make-up Kiss phase. Luckily they went back to the make-up phase.

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2. Dancing in the Streets

David Bowie & Mick Jagger

What in the world provoked two legendary musicians to make such an awful video? My first question to them would have been- “Aren’t you embarrassed?” I know the all white leather Reeboks were big in the 80s, but that’s just a bad look for the front man of The Stones. David Bowie’s slow motion jump into the song is another cheese-ball move. This video radiates- let’s do whatever as long as there’s a big fat pay check behind it. It also does nothing but encourage those rumors you may have heard about Bowie and Jagger.

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1. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go

Wham

Even without a video, this song screams cheese. (Parodied masterfully in Zoolander.) Short shorts are coming back, but you might be able to kill that trend by taking a glimpse of this video.