My top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in music history include two songs about rain. Two of my top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in music history were directed by Daniel Pearl. These top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in music history are listed in order of their wins. Do you agree with my picks or are there other productions that have won this award that are more to your liking?
Top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in Music History Selection Number 1: Every Breath You Take, by The Police (Won in 1984 – Director of Photography: Daniel Pearl)
This powerfully-crooned song by Sting (that’s arguably about obsession and even stalking if you ponder the lyrics) has a very simplistic but effective visual concept: black and white photography with basically musicians playing their instruments. Is that so the listener can picture in his or her mind that lost love more clearly? The only thing that alludes to possible obsession in this straight forward video is that a window washer is seen in the background peering through the window. For cathartic value after a break up, this is one of my top ten songs to listen to or watch, which you can read more about at this Associated Content article.
Top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in Music History Selection Number 2: November Rain, by Guns N’ Roses (Won in 1992 – Directors of Photography: Mike Southon and Daniel Pearl)
This is one of the most haunting videos in music history I’ve ever seen, and easily one of the most deserved MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography. The most memorable images are of the wedding ceremony and festivities, but why would such a happy occasion be used as a setting for such a haunting and sad song? Slash’s lonely guitar solo outside the quaint country church and rain interrupting the wedding reception would prelude the ultimate conclusion to this video, which isn’t happy at all, as the bride apparently dies pretty soon after the wedding. Even her funeral is ultimately marred by rain, too. There is a dark visual undertone to the video that matches the mood of the song, but nonetheless, it’s irresistible to watch!
Top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in Music History Selection Number 3: Rain, by Madonna (Won in 1993 – Director of Photography: Harris Savides)
The cinematography matches the flowy sensuality of this song which uses darker shades of my favorite color blue to highlight a video, where Madonna’s hair is actually short and black. For a video using such dark tones, it’s not depressing at all to watch, but comforting, given the song’s use of rain as a metaphor for romantic love. The close ups of Madonna’s facial area, given that she looks attractive as a non-blonde, make the music video even more alluring. There’s not a lot of literal rainfall in this visual and musical creation, though the cinematography makes me think of it anyway, and so it’s deservedly one of my top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in music history!
To see if both November Rain and Rain made my top 10 classic rock and pop songs about rain, read this Associated Content article.
Sources for this article about my top 3 MTV Video Music Award Winners for Best Cinematography in music history:
MTV Video Music Award for Best Cinematography: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_Video_Music_Award_for_Best_Cinematography, Wikipedia
Roy Barnes, Top 10 Sad Love Songs to Listen to After a Breakup: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/616995/top_10_sad_love_songs_to_listen_to.html?cat=33, Associated Content
Roy Barnes, Top Ten Classic Rock and Pop Songs About Rain: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/792025/top_ten_classic_rock_and_pop_songs.html?cat=33, Associated Content
