Favorite Videos that aren't "Thriller" #9 - "Sledgehammer"

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#9 in my Favorite Videos that aren't "Thriller" series belongs to an artist making his first appearance in one of my music countdowns: Peter Gabriel with his smash hit, "Sledgehammer." The heavily animated video for "Sledgehammer" helped propel the song to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as well as #1 in Canada, and Top 10 status in 15 other countries. The video has Gabriel playing himself (while being animated as well,) as animation happens all around him. It won a record nine MTV Music Awards, as well as a Brit Award. In fact, "Sledgehammer" is the most-played video in the history of MTV. The video was directed by Steven R. Johnson, and uses claymation, pixilation, and stop and go animations, courtesy of Ardman Animations and the Brothers Quay. Gabriel had to lay for 16 hours under a panel of glass while the video was shot, frame by frame. The original vocalist for then-prog rock band Genesis, Peter Gabriel is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, both as a member of Genesis, and as a solo artist. He has won six Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards, and 13 MTV Video Awards (and that's just a dent in his list of accolades.) (Fun Fact: Former Colorado Rockies slugger Dante Bichette used to use "Sledgehammer" as his walkup music.) And why not? It's a high energy 80's pop tune with a very fun video. (Info verified by Wikipedia)