I liked that video. I didn't quite get it, but I liked it.

this clip is part of a larger video /movie short ( that was fashionable at the time )

bowie plays the rockstar and.. a loser type trying to impress a date thats obviously too much for him

What the Pope said.

I remember the "world premiere" of this video on MTV was supposed to coincide with a larger, world-wide unveiling of the movie, which never quite happened. Ultimately, this song got lost in all the hype.

Like the Pope said, it's kind of like Mick Jagger's "Just Another Night" which was supposed to be a full movie starring him and Rae Dawn Chong. Now it's just weird. And there were others I can't think of.

"Blue Jean" is good Bowie. Not great. And I'm not even sure how "surreal" it is. Just kind of self-consciously arty.

Saw this video all the time on MuchMusic when John Major was a mulleted host.

I would say "I'm Old" but I'm younger than Bowie was in this video.

Blue Jeans (new window)

funmonger: Blue Jeans (new window)

Ladytron!! WIN!!!

Have seen it.
Don't think it's surreal.
Get off my lawn.

pope183: this clip is part of a larger video /movie short ( that was fashionable at the time )


Thank you... I did some more research. From the Wiki:

Jazzin' for Blue Jean was a 21-minute short film featuring David Bowie and directed by Julien Temple. It was created to promote Bowie's single "Blue Jean" in 1984.

The film depicts the adventures of the socially incompetent Vic (played by Bowie) as he tries to win the affections of a beautiful girl by claiming to personally know her favorite rock star, Screaming Lord Byron (also played by Bowie). Rightfully disbelieving him, she challenges Vic to introduce her to him. They make a date for a Screaming Lord Byron show, where Vic attempts to sneak backstage to convince Mr. Screaming to come say hello to him and the girl after the show.

Bowie takes the opportunity at several points in this film to poke fun at himself and his career - particularly his history of drug abuse, his relationships with groupies, and the commercialization of his music ("You conniving, randy, bogus, Oriental old queen! Your record sleeves are better than your songs!"). Kinder self-references are also present, such as the song "Warszawa" from his album Low being played backstage to soothe Mr. Screaming while he's applying his makeup.

The film appears as an easter egg hidden on the Best of Bowie DVDs. It is slightly modified: in the club where the girl is watching a Screaming Lord Byron video, the screen originally showed footage of the very same concert she and Vic would later attend. On the DVD version, a different promotional video for the song is overlayed on the screen - this is also the trigger for another easter egg, which is itself that alternate video.

I remember it well.

Lawn. You know the drill.

Clever clever.

First album I ever bought. Bowie is a genius.

what's cool is how they used make up to make shadows on Bowie's face.

WhyteRaven74: what's cool is how they used make up to make shadows on Bowie's face.

Yup. One day (yeah right) I'll have someone do that to me when I go to a costume party.

I remember when the extended video debuted on MTV. Still can't understand the whole snapping fingers thing at the end.

Okay, now look at "loser Bowie" and then look at Ricky Gervais....

"She's got uh EVERYthang ..."

Sadly, that was added to my mental soundtrack the instant I heard it when Jazzin' for Blue Jean premiered. :(

"Loving The Alien" was a song from that same album that was a minor hit. I spun my LP a couple months back and noticed the lyrics ring eerily true with the stuff going on today:

Here be the lyrics

Of course, those lyrics would've been relevant then too, but...

Yup, was going to tell you young whippersnappers that this only made sence in the context of the longer version--and to get off my lawn. Good job shadowself and pope. ABC also did a long version of Poison Arrow. Ah, cocaine excess.

I loved this video back in the day, even though I couldn't admit it because I was a metal guy and my friends would have beat me mercilessly...