For those of us that grew up in the 80s and 90s, we had the pleasure of experiencing the rise of the music video. Musicians had to give the viewer a visual aid to accompany their music and hope for regular rotation on MTV, BET, VH1, and let's not forget about The Box. Some videos became classics while some videos faded away into obscurity. But our memories are forever linked to the music videos to the songs we grew up with during that time. When you think about it, how often have you revisited them?
Remember Whitney Houston's classic ballad "You Give Good Love"? What a track. It was Whitney at a time when she was on the rise and about to head into her domination of the early to mid 90s. If you remember the song you also probably started singing the song in your head at some point during this reading.....right? I mean it's classic so how could you not. But do you remember the music video? I surely do and it contains one of my favorite subplots of all time: The Shirtless Cooks.
As the video begins we meet the camera operator who is adjusting his lens and prepping for a shoot inside of this fancy looking restaurant.
He's focused and his work ethic seems on point......that is until he hears the sounds of Whitney Houston rehearsing her song in the lounge down the hall. Game over man, game over. He cannot resist the harmony of her voice and proceeds to film her rehearsal.
Props to Whitney for staying on course and not letting it phase her one bit.
We're 1:48 into this music video and Whitney looks towards the camera guy, gives him a look, and he responds with a sly smile.
From here she performs looking directly into the lens and giving this guy the performance he probably wished for. This video is now fully committed to the flirtation of these two and the song is playing out nicely. Meanwhile we get some background players embracing for a slow dance.
They kind of look like they're part of the catering team but you can never be too sure when it comes to 80s fashion. Let's keep an eye on those two.
Alright, we're 2:20 into the video and the couple is continuing their slow dance. But wait! Who is this guy appearing in the background to the left with an unbuttoned white blazer, white pants, no undershirt, and a chefs hat?
He surely can't be the chef right? I mean, when it comes to 80s fashion we can't be too sure right? Is he the chef? Is he just sporting a chef hat? Is he the head chef neglecting his kitchen staff? Is he beginning his break? But most importantly, where is his undershirt?
Ok, we're at 2:32 and we get a close up of this guy.
Yup, he's definitely the head chef. But seriously, where is the shirt dude? How many health code violations is this place about to break? Ok, here comes another kitchen employee. He surely must be in proper uniform......what the!
This guy is also shirtless! 2 shirtless cooks?! Great example set by the head chef. Did this other guy come in earlier to start his shift and was like, "Hey boss, I forgot my shirt. Is it ok if I just wear the chef coat, unbuttoned, and start prepping food? Yeah? Rad!" And is that a sweat towel draped over his shoulder? Maybe it's not even for him and one of his duties is to wipe the sweat off his boss's chest during the shift. Also, did this guy just begin his break too? Back to Whitney. She continues to own the vocals with perfection and immediately draws my attention back to greatness of the song. She begins to bring it home and close out the last verse and nothing can stop this moment.......
.........what the!
Is assistant cook whipping mashed potatoes now?! Is it cake batter? Why did he bring food outside the kitchen to prep? Where in the health inspector? Someone get them here right away.
Noooooo!!!!!!! He just dipped his finger in the batter! Cmon man! Whitney, say something to them! Head chef is also still massively sweating and who knows how much of that sweat had made its way into the mashed potatoes or cake batter. Ok, what's this now? The slow dancing couple had apparently stopped slow dancing at some point but have now started to rekindle their slow dance vibes.
I see an apron on the guy. I think we can assume that slow dancing couple are also part of this kitchen team. Hey, at least they are properly dressed for work. What's this now? A 5th cook? Also properly dressed (good for him!) but now we have some synchronized sway action taking place.
Is anyone left in the actual kitchen at this point? Also what time does this restaurant open at? Do any of the reviews mention shirtless cooks or sweaty flavored food? Alright, we're down to the last 30 seconds of the video and we get to see Mr Telephone Man....I mean Mr Camera Operator Man retreating from his close up, but still focused on Whitney's performance. Pans out, we switch views and here comes slow dancing couple still going at it.
What is their story by the way? I feel like that's another subplot waiting to be explored. Like maybe they also previously worked together at a Mervyn's and this job has reunited them? So many questions and thoughts. But let's not forget about the shirtless cooks. This cannot be overlooked. At some point they felt it was perfectly fine to prepare food in a commercial kitchen without the need for a shirt. How many restaurants allowed this to take place in the 80s? Was it so common that we completely buried it in the depths of our memories? Was this happening at Orange Julius?
All in all, Whitney's song is a classic. No matter the cheesiness of the video subplot, it doesn't take away from the greatness of the song. There are plenty other examples of music videos out there with things most have overlooked or simply don't remember. I encourage you to watch some past music videos and take a trip down nostalgia lane for some laughter. There is plenty to laugh about. And then think about the song itself and how it stands without the music video. The 80s may be associated with ridiculousness like this but let's not forget how good the music actually was and still is.
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