Rock-Shot's Guide To Cool Summer Videos!

Rock-Shot's Guide To Cool Summer Videos!

So you've already been to camp, seen all the good summer movies, gone to the mall about a hundred times and gotten a pretty good tan started. Sometimes all you want to do is just lounge around the house and stay cool.

One good way to beat the sweltering summer sun is to watch a video. Lots of major artists have video cassettes available in stores now, and the following is a sampling of some of the coolest vids currently available. It's a neat way to beat the summer heat!

JANET JACKSON

Control: The Videos—Part / Control: The Videos—Part II (A&M)

If Miss Jackson ever had doubts about establishing her own identity— that is, other than "Michael's little sister"—they surely must have disappeared after her sizzling videos started showing up all over the place on MTV. These tapes contain all six videos to come from Janet's Control album, the perfect antidote for those who are dying for Janet's second LP, which is due later this year.

SQUEEZE

Squeeze Play: The Videos 1978-1987 (A&M)

Nine years of classic Squeeze are featured on this tape of sometimes silly (as in when keyboardist Jools Holland pushes a piano through the streets of London in "Another Nail For My Heart"), sometimes serious (an elderly man remembering an old girlfriend in "Last Time Forever") videos, enhanced by Squeeze's brilliant songwriting.

TERENCE TRENT D'ARBY

Introducing The Hardline Live (CMV)

If you thought Terence's album was hot, wait 'til you get a glimpse of his incendiary live show. This vid, culled from one riveting show in Munich, features most of the songs on Terence's debut album as well as a couple of surprises, including a blistering version of the Rolling Stones classic "Linder My Thumb."

DEBBIE GIBSON

Live In Concert—

The "Out Of The Blue" Tour (Atlantic)

Debbie's as bubbly as ever in this live video, filmed last September during her "Out Of The Blue" tour. Not only does she perform early hits like "Only In My Dreams" and "Shake Your Love," but also three songs from Electric Youth ("Lost In Your Eyes," "Should've Been the One" and "We Could Be Together") and a great version of Elton John's "Crocodile Rock."

PINK FLOYD

Pink Floyd In Concert—Delicate Sound Of Thunder (CMV)

So what if Roger Waters isn't in Pink Floyd anymore—the way Dave Gilmour and Co. play on Delicate Sound Of Thunder it almost doesn't matter. Mixing old ("Time"), really old ("One Of These Days") and new songs ("Learning To Fly," "The Dogs Of War"), this videotape also includes songs the Floyd played on tour that aren't on Delicate Sound's vinyl counterpart. Long live arena rock!

STING

The Videos—Part /

Nothing Like The Sun. . . The Videos (A&M)

Sting has always been an innovative artist, and both of these video compilations serve as further proof. Showing both his lighter side (in the child-like imagery of "Love Is The Seventh Wave") and his deeper one (the thought-provoking "Russians" or the sobering "They Dance Alone"), he entertains us, but at the same time often makes us think.

THE CALIFORNIA RAISINS

Meet The Raisins

(Atlantic)

At last, the whole story behind those silly raisins in the commercials, from their humble beginnings to their first big break to their rise to superstardom. Whether they're playing "Cool Jerk" for a walrus in the Arctic Circle or "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" on Ed Sullivan, this hilarious video shows that the Raisins are always— ahem—an entertaining bunch.

DEF LEPPARD

Historia (PM V)

One look at curly-locked Joe Elliott's Robert Plant posturings in Def Leppard's first video, "Hello America," and you'll know why this tape is called Historia. This video history of the band is jam-packed full of great stuff, with almost 20 different clips and a special surprise at the end.

JOE JACKSON

Live in Tokyo (A&M)

Tokyo is the perfect city for Joe Jackson's recent detour into ethnicflavored pop, and what better place to film a video for Joe's appropriately-titled "Big World" tour? Joe is in top form here as he glides through most of his Big World album as well as some of his older material on this tape, which also comes with a bonus 3" compact disc!

MICHAEL JACKSON

The Legend Continues (Vestron)

While not quite the spectacle of the recent Moonwalker release, this video has some classic footage, from an extremely young Michael crooning "I'll Be There" to Michael the showman lighting up the stage with "Billie Jean," following the superstar through the various stages of his incredible career.

PSYCHEDELIC FURS

All Of This And Nothing (CM V)

Paleface singer Richard Butler guides the Furs through eight songs' worth of the band's harsh yet hypnotizing European pop, from their first video ("Sister Europe" in 1980) to last year's "All That Money Wants." Naturally, there's lots of moody black-and-white shots thrown in for good measure.

ROBERT PLANT

Mumbo Jumbo (Atlantic)

The strongest moments on Robert Plant's first home video come during "Heaven Knows" and "Tall Cool One," the two clips from Bob's latest album Now And Zen that open and close this five-song compilation. But sandwiched in between are older videos from Plant's first two records that don't hold up as well. Mumbo Jumbo is for serious fans only.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

Bruce Springsteen Anthology: 1978-1988 (CMV)

A whopping 18 tracks give Bruce's Anthology a clear edge in the Best Buy For Your Buck category. Starting out with a scintillating 1978 performance of "Rosalita" and ending with an acoustic version of "Born To Run" filmed last year, this is Bruce at his best—and plenty of it!