So what does the Olds 442 and the band Chicago have in common? One wicked music video! Ah the 80's. Music videos of the time may have been much simpler compared to the high production videos of today. But a lot of them have something modern music videos often lack, vintage muscle cars! This early 80's video from Chicago is no exception! In the video a guy trying to convince this girl to stay the night. She finds him disrespectful and runs off in the 442 (we're not clear if it's his or hers). Grab'n gears and burning rubber, she manages to jump a car hauler twice while being chased by the dude on the back of a Ford F100. Apparently he still doesn't get the message and jumps onto the hood. She tries to throw him off by doing donuts.
Amazing car, amazing video. Not to mention awesome stunt work. From what we've gathered the gal in the video is stunt driver Debbie Evans. She's known for her work in the Fast and the Furious, Matrix and other popular films and tv shows. Watch the video closely. You will notice that two 442s may have been used. Some note the differences in the dash shots. Some note that there was a 4-Speed car and an automatic car. We're still looking. Comment and tell us what you saw! Till next time keep those wheels safely rolling!
Just this last week, Gorillaz released a new music video featuring some cool muscle cars. Not to mention a surprising special guest. The new video is to help promote their upcoming album, Plastic Beach. For those who are not familiar with Gorillaz, let me give you a short introduction. Gorillaz are a virtual band created after comic book series Tank Girl. It's members are Russel, 2D, Murdoc and Noddle. The actual musical performers vary from song to song. It's a very interesting concept to say the least. But enough about the band. Let's talk about the video.
Each Gorillaz video tells a part in a never ending story. I'm not currently up to date with what's going on in the story, other than the fact their escaping to an island. But this video starts out with the gang racing through the desert in a 1969 Camaro SS. They're being chased down by a cop in hot pursuit. Noodle-bot manages to shoot at the cop till the cop runs off the road and crashes through a billboard (very Dukes of Hazzard like). Things are fine for the moment, till they pass Bruce Wills in a 1968 El Camino. Bruce Willis starts chasing down the group and tries to gun them down. He successfully shoots out the back window and driver side mirror. The chase goes on as Bruce's El Camino pushes Murdoc harder. Some nitrous effects are used and they escape only for Bruce Willis to catch up again later. The chase ends with the crew running off a cliff into the water, where the car turns into a shark. Let's talk about the cars!
The Cars
The Camaro is badged on the tail panel as an 1969 Camaro SS, painted black with a white vinyl top. The front emblem was replaced with a "Stylo" emblem. There's a star on the door with the bullet holes and rub marks, very rough looking. It's got the factory rally wheels with center caps. If it's a true Camaro SS, it should have either 396 V8 or a 350 V8 engine under the hood. It's debatable if the blower scoop is functional or if it's just there for looks. The scoop is sitting on top of a cowl induction hood. It looks kinda out of place. One last note, the Camaro front-fender scripts appear and disappear throughout the video. Do you think two cars were used?
The El Camino is a 1968 model (non-SS). The paint color resembles candy apple red. The wheels look like American Racing 200S, classic style. I found something a little confusing with the shifter. In one part of the clip, Bruce reaches down to grab floor shifter knob. If you look up at the steering wheel, you can see a column shifter as well. Is the floor shifter a fake or was the column shifter just left for nostalgia? If you look closely, the column shifter appears to be in the park position. Just a interesting note. Engine size? The car is badged as a 327 small block chevy (note the close up near the end of the video).
Final Thoughts
Two words. Mind Blowing. There is a lot of stuff going on here. I thought it was a great video. The video has a Mad Max kind of theme going on. The new album will be released soon, you can pre-order through our store! The cars are awesome. It's not that often that you see classic muscle cars in music videos anymore. Not exactly sure what the song is talking about. I've read different explanations on the web. Some say love, some say death and some say it's about the car. I think we're all left to interpret the meaning for ourselves. Question, is it just me, or do you guys think the video producers like classic Chevrolet cars? Would a Mako Corvette be a closer match for imagery of the car turning into a shark? Comment your thoughts as we work on our next post. On Screen Car will keep ya posted on On Screen Car happenings. See ya next time!
I can't think of a better song or video to describe growing up in the '70s and '80s. Mark Willis talks about a number of things throughout the song. Everything from peeling stickers off his Rubrix Cube to his parent's first microwave. I was a child of the '80s and '90s, but I'm well aware of the references! But let's not get too side tracked, what about the cars in the song and video?
The first part of the video shows Mark driving a clone of the General Lee, a 1969 Dodge Charger from Dukes of Hazzard. The song references the show, by saying Daisy Duke was his first love. Later the song talks about another classic auto from Smokey and the Bandit, 1977 Pontiac Trans Am. The lyrics from the song hint "...black trans ams..." In the video there are a few kids hanging out some where, sitting on a parked Bandit Edition Trans Am. The car is later seen in the video along side the General Lee.
That's all for now. Enjoy the video. Don't forget to checkout our store for some great stuff from Dukes of Hazzard and Smokey and the Bandit. You might even find a Mark Wills album too! For those who would like to read the lyrics, see our reference information below!
Barenaked Ladies produced the video above, back in 1998 to help promote their album "Stunt." The song has a lot of references to pop culture happenings of the time and before. But why is it being featured on On Screen Cars? Well it has some on screen cars in the video. Matter of fact, two of the most popular on screen cars of all time were featured, 1969 Dodge Charger from Dukes of Hazzard and the 1976 Ford Gran Torino from Starsky and Hutch. However these cars are not perfect replicas of the originals. But the producers of the video may have not had the full rights to use these cars in the video. You'll notice some differences, like the decals on the General Lee for example. Enjoy the video and check out the album in the Gift Shop! If you're not sure about the lyrics (they're a little fast) you can read them here.
