We had the sheer white and black backgrounds which were guaranteed to send early VCRs into sheer colour bleed frenzy before causing the TV to emit smoke. We had the latest split frame technology (presumably borrowed from a guy who worked at Top Of The Pops) which was pushed to the max. And we even had an animated Chelsea Girl. We were spoilt.

A nervous Simple Minds, lead by a basin bowled Jim, clinically strode through the track either playing their instuments or stood in formation belting out the choruses. Split screen was used to underpin the fact that different instruments were played at different times, which was obviously quite important. Some shots even featured six frames of activity, causing information overload in the pre-computer-game generation.

The split frames and sullen shots of the band looking suitably moody were separated with an animated Chelsea Girl, happily dancing and eating herself to exhaustion. (More Hanna Barbera than the sixties chic of the sleeve design). It's obvious that Arista spent a fortune on it.

According to the VT Clock, the final edit was assembled on the 16th July 1979.

The post-production house Molinare are still going strong in London. I suspect they created the animation sequences in the video - and probably edited the final result. Rock Biz Pix were a short lived production company, filming live concerts and producing video promos in the late 1970s.

The director still remains elusive however!

Note that the 'correct' date for the final edit is given: 16th July 1979. (See below)

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