A music video I have loved for a long time has taken on new significance and meaning in these troubling times. (You can find the link to the music video below.)
The video is of the 1980 song, “Space Age Love Song” by A Flock of Seagulls. The video itself is from the 1991 movie “Career Opportunities”. I’ve never seen that movie, but I’d sure like to after watching this!
What is not to like about this video? I mean, it is set in Target, for Pete’s sake! How many music videos can say that?
It is especially poignant in this day and age when so many of us yearn to go anywhere at all. Even shopping at Target. And seeing Frank Whaley and Jennifer Connelly alone in a department store was an eerie harbinger of how we would all be shopping in modern times. Although, from what I can see, they are not practicing proper social distancing protocols.
Plus, I love Target. I love being in Target. I love the wide, bright aisles. I love the red color scheme. Everyone there is friendly and helpful. The stores are clean and full of things I actually want to buy.
So, watching this video is like watching a travelogue about somewhere I’d like to go. Kind of like watching “Rick Steves — Postcards from Target“.
And this video is like a time capsule of 1990. Just look at all the cool products!
- Music cassettes
- A cheeseburger for $1.89
- Timex watches
- L’eggs
- Fire safes
- World globes
- Musical instruments
- Aquariums and fish (do you remember when Target sold those?)
- Roller skates
- Jennifer Connelly shoplifting
Man! What I wouldn’t give to be able to go back and shop for an hour in a 1991 Target!
Anyway, enjoy the video. And enjoy wandering the aisles of Target in 1991.
(Note: When you go to watch this video you will see that it has been viewed about 16,800,000 times. I’m responsible for the 800,000.)
More below …
Special Biff Bonus! Two additional versions of the music video.
There’s no need to thank me. You’d do the same for me.
Besides, if you’re like me, once you go inside Target, you find it hard to leave.
Biff Sock Pow 
Biff! Love this post! Target is awesome but it must stay in the USA where it belongs. A few years ago, Target set up shop up here, replacing a fledging store called Zellers. Target never really got a foothold up here – our consumerism is differently minded, I guess, and they lost money and eventually pulled out.
When we go to Seattle or Portland, the stores we love are Fred Meyer, Nordstrom (now in Canada), Ross, JCP. Up here, the go-to’s are – Hudson’s Bay, WalMart, and Costco. The retail landscape will change, thx to the pandemic, with an emphasis on an online model, less bricks and mortar.
Through the 80s I gravitated towards post-punk and so-called alt music – Joy Division, New Order, Smiths, Cure, Husker Du, punk, et al. The great thing about the 80s was the variety, all powered by record sales, a model that is lost forever, sadly. I am a student of the music industry – the best resource for this, is a podcast called THE ONGOING HISTORY OF MUSIC, which has been around for decades, and Is Canadian.
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Hi Wilt! That’s all great and fascinating information. You should definitely to a blog post on that. I’ve always been fascinated by which stores survive and which ones don’t, and why. Equally fascinating is regional differences in shopping habits and stores. I recognized some of the names you mentioned, but many of them are completely unheard of down here in the Lone Star State or even throughout the southeastern US.
I am also fascinated at the evolution of stores. For instance, IGA was kind of the Walmart of its day a century ago, and now it is a shadow of a shadow of its former self. Sears & Roebucks was the Amazon of its day and, at one point, was a staggering 1% of US GDP. Now it doesn’t even exist.
Sadly, I think the era of mom & pop or regional department stores have come to a close. They simply cannot compete with the online presence of companies like Amazon. As you said, the 1980s were probably the zenith of such stores. Now they are but a memory.
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I hadn’t heard that one in years and had forgotten how sweet the video is. Thanks for sharing!
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I stumbled across it about 2 years ago and just really liked it. Now I go watch it when I need a smile and to get away from the real world for a few minutes.
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I need things like that right now.
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Hi Suzanne! I’m glad if it was able to give you a little smile. As you said, we all need that right now!
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