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Daft Punk "Da Funk" (Spike Jonze, dir.) - 1997

Hard to imagine but the 1997 introduction to Daft Punk didn't feature Daft Punk and their distinctive helmet heads at all.

Instead they let director Spike Jonze deliver a typical, yet certainly odd New York story about a man named Charles. Correction: Charles is a man with a dog's head, played by Tony Maxwell of the band That Dog (which is possibly a coincincedence, but certainly awesome). And he looks like he might Get Lucky, despite the busted leg.

Lionel Richie "All Night Long" (Bob Rafelson, dir.)

On the resume of renegade producer/director and Monkees' co-creator Bob Rafelson, you'll find some of the more edgy films of the 1970s "Young Hollywood" era: Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, Stay Hungry, The King of Marvin Gardens, and more. He also helmed the Monkees' career-threatening acid-freakout film Head, which Rafelson has described as the godfather of the modern music video.

Barnes & Barnes "Fish Heads" (Bill Paxton, dir.)

Fish Heads, Fish Heads, Roly Poly Fish Heads.

30+ years later and "Fish Heads" is no less weird. And yes, this video got played on MTV. All the time. If you've never seen it, keep in mind the song doesn't even start until about 2:30 into the video.

But, my absolute favorite thing about this oddity from comedy duo Barnes And Barnes is that it was directed by and stars Bill Paxton. Yes, the dude from Big Love.

Eat them up, yum.

Killing Joke "Eighties" (Anthony Van Den Ende, dir.)

Every week Videostatic looks back at a classic clip from the Golden Age... This week Golden Age Of Music Video expert Stephen Pitalo revisits "Eighties" with clip director Anthony Van Den Ende. Read On for everything you need to know about this literally face-melting video —  from dog weddings, to newsclips, punk rockers, Lebanese girls, Nazis and way more...

Hall & Oates "Maneater" (Mick Haggerty & C.D. Taylor, dir) 1982

This week's classic clip is the 1982 Daryl Hall & John Oates smash "Maneater," directed by Haggerty & Taylor, who were responsible for nearly all of the Hall & Oates videos of the period, in addition to the Go-Gos biggest hits...  Stephen Pitalo of The Golden Age Of Music Video chatted with Haggerty, getting this great anecdote on one of music video's less typical complications...

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers "A Woman In Love" (Jim Lenahan, Dir.)

Stephen Pitalo of The Golden Age Of Music Video has been covering some of the great '80s videos for Videostatic. This week's subject is a flim noir video by Jim Lenahan for Tom Petty. 

Jim Lenahan has known Tom Petty since the early seventies in Florida, when the two were young musicians; Lenahan even did a stint as singer in Petty's pre-Heartbreakers band Mudcrutch. 

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Director Jon Small on Run-DMC/Aerosmith "Walk This Way" [1986]

Interview and text by Stephen Pitalo, The Golden Age of Music Video - 

Over twenty five years ago, hip hop godfathers Run-DMC and rock legends Aerosmith took a chance on crossover success by remaking the latter's 1970s riff-tastic hit "Walk This Way" as a hip hop record. Run-DMC's DJ, Jam Master Jay, had used the song’s guitar and drums as a beat for rapping over, but when their 1986 album Raising Hell was going to feature a remake, producer Rick Rubin brought in the Toxic Twins themselves to re-record their parts. The subsequent video had its own set of challenges, according to director (and longtime Billy Joel video collaborator) Jon Small.

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Rich Murray on Kris Kross's "Jump" & "Warm It Up" 1992

With word out that hip hop’s littlest hitmakers of the 90s Kris Kross were getting back together for label So So Def Entertainment’s 20th Anniversary concert in February, the blogosphere lit up, some embracing a reunion of the pants-backward duo of Chris "Mac Daddy" Kelly and Chris "Daddy Mac" Smith, some calling it the final nail in the coffin of '90s nostalgia.