MTV: Dr. Hook’s fast track to the corn dog circuit

MTV was a boon for many artists when it appeared and proceeded to completely dominate the music of the early to mid-’80s.  What a wonderful new medium!  Check out all of this exposure for all of these great artists!

But its power was enough to destroy completely some ’70s hangers-on.  Plenty of artists who had known some significant degree of success only a few years earlier tried to do the MTV thing and immediately faced Waterloo.

Exhibit A:  “Baby Makes Her Blue Jeans Talk,” Dr. Hook.

Now there is a lot that is correct about this song and video.  It’s undeniably catchy, with a great, um, hook (sorry).  And a pretty posterior in form-fitting denim is always in fashion.  But there were some key assumptions that did it—and Dr. Hook—right in:

Bad assumption #1:  The artist must appear in the video.  (Yipes, guys.  Come on.)

Bad assumption #2:  The artist, upon appearing in the video, must move in time with the music.  (This is the greatest sustained chuckle for me.  I particularly like the tortured efforts to keep it up while they’re walking backwards and singing to her.)

Bad assumption #3:  Aforementioned classic visual of a great butt in tight jeans is enough to overcome #1 and #2.

Enjoy—and cringe:

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