Chicken Ranch Central
Friday, June 14, 2013
Friday Night Videos
Okay, Night Ranger is one of the infamous '80s hair bands that played a big role in the soundtrack of my teenage years. Their songwriting was wildly uneven, but when Jack Blades & Co. hit a groove, they produced really solid music. "7 Wishes" is arguably their strongest album--it certainly produced the most hits, with "Sentimental Street" (which I consider their best song by far), and "Goodbye" (which I consider their most sentimental, by far) but I've always had a soft spot for "Four in the Morning." Something about this rocker clicks, and conveys more angst and emotion than similar tunes of the era. But the real reason I'm featuring it today is the gonzo nuts video that goes with it. Seriously--some marketing genius decided it'd be brilliant to combine the World War II era bomber crew of the cover art (the plane's name is "7 Wishes" as I recall) with a literal representation of wishes in the form of a magic Aladdin lamp. Then things get really weird with the introduction of futuristic alien space genie babes and and a science fiction rock concert of the future in which all the excess of '80s fashion train wrecks are turned up to 11. And just because they had some budget left over at the end, they threw in a camel. Why? I don't know. Maybe the lamp belongs to him.
It goes without saying they don't make 'em like this anymore.
Chicken Ranch Central
Chicken Ranch Central
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If I remember correctly, there was a whole multi-video saga with this concept of Night Ranger being a bomber crew lost at sea. I'm pretty sure one of the other videos from the "7 Wishes" album -- maybe "Sentimental Street" -- started with a fake newscast about the plane going missing with the band aboard...
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, this is one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands. Good choice!