Meanwhile, with 1982's Peter Gabriel (Security) being the most recent album of any new material, it had seemed that PG had fell of the face of the earth. Then it happened...
"Sledgehammer" the song, was released and it caught people's attention. "Sledgehammer" the video came along and Gabriel was catapulted into superstardom.
It all starts with a microscopic view from inside the human body...white dots on a black background. From then on, viewers are treated to the funniest, finest 3-D animation of that time. The scenes evenly flow from circling trains to singing bumpers cars and to singing fruit, until the very last scene...white dots on a black background. Cool, huh? The liveliness of animating the inanimate was considered to be pretty good, but the fact that Gabriel was in the middle of all of this made this video special.
It's well known that Gabriel had to suffer for this one. You try sitting still for sixteen hours at a time and you'll see what we mean. Gabriel also had to lie down for several hours with a plate of glass inches from his face, giving new meaning to the expression "whatever you do, don't sneeze." In the spirit of great acting, Gabriel gave viewers the impression he was having the time of his life.
MTV couldn't get enough of it. Suddenly, people who had never heard of Peter Gabriel were seeing a close-up of his mug 3,000 times a day. And viewers still demanded to see more of "Sledgehammer". Peter Gabriel made music videos a legitimate art form while still keeping it fun.
In terms of awards, "Sledgehammer" paid off. Gabriel won nine MTV awards...add those to the ones he won at other award ceremonies and he almost had enough to play a very large game of chess. He was given the MTV's valued Video Vanguard award, which he accepted via satellite in Stockholm (Wise move. Who would want to be in a roomful of pissed-off MTV award nominees who didn't even have a chance?)
Not only did "Sledgehammer" raise the stakes in terms of video making, but made a lasting impression on viewers. It's sort of a Rorschach test for couch potatoes...ask people what they remember the most about the video and you're sure to get some wild answers.
Little details also come up in those who are able to look closely. In one part, one of the dots in the wallpaper background forms into a little person and walks away.
"Sledgehammer" set the standard on what a music video should be. The only bad thing is that's the standard all too few performers can ever hope to reach.
Trivia question: Director Steven Johnston used the same animation technique for a few moments in another music video prior to "Sledgehammer." Name the artist or group and the video.