The Buggles And The Video That Birthed And Killed MTV—The Daily Earworm

At 12:01 a.m. on August 1, 1981, Music Television (MTV) was launched with the words, “Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll.” That was followed by the fledgling network’s very first music video—The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star.”

Earlier this month, MTV, now a multi-channel conglomerate, pulled the plug on the last of its music channels. While it is somehow still rocking the ‘M’ at the front of its name, the ‘M’ is gone, and so is the magic that it brought. Today’s Daily Earworm will take a look back at the band that started it all at MTV, and what has happened to them since that fateful day in history.

The Beginning of the Video Era

When MTV kicked off its programming, music was the focus. Over the years, the network very much got away from that, and now most would argue the moniker RTV, or Reality Television, fits better. Back then, though, a television channel focused just on music was a genius idea. (Some would argue, it still is.) When MTV’s last remaining music channels signed off for good on January 1st, it was the end of an era.

MTV was a Fame Factory

MTV turned nobodies into stars and stars into superstars. The network took lesser-known bands like A-ha and put them on the map. They took bands like Dire Straits, who had already had some success, and turned them into household names. Who from that era doesn’t remember the video for “Money for Nothing,” a song built for MTV that was largely about MTV? That was the power of MTV. Would Madonna have been the pop icon that she is today if you never saw her videos and only heard her songs on the radio? We may never know.

The Buggles’ Journey to MTV and Beyond

The Buggles are an English new wave band that formed in London in 1977. They released their first album, The Age of Plastic, in January of 1980, but the album’s lead single, “Video Killed the Radio Star,” debuted the prior September. The band’s debut single was a smash, topping 16 international charts, though it only reached #40 in the United States.

Oddly enough, by the time MTV played the song as their first-ever music video, the Buggles were pretty much done as a band. The Buggles consisted of singer and bassist Trevor Horn and keyboard player Geoff Downes. After the band’s first album debuted in January, the duo almost immediately set about recording a follow-up album. As luck would have it, they landed in the studio right next to the progressive rock band Yes, who had just lost their singer and keyboard player. The duo was quickly recruited to fill those roles, and their run as the Buggles was set aside.

As part of Yes, Horn and Downes helped the band record the 1980 album Drama. They toured with Yes, but the album and tour were both largely unsuccessful, and the band disbanded at the end of the tour. In early 1981, Horn and Downes returned to the studio to pick up where they left off with recording their second album. However, on the first day of recording, Downes left to join Yes guitarist Steve Howe in forming the band Asia.

Horn went on to finish the album with studio musicians. The aptly named Adventures in Modern Recording failed to chart in the UK, as did all five of the album’s singles. Horn, who had started helping produce albums for other bands, soon realized that being a producer was a better path for him. He went on to produce songs and albums for the likes of ABC, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Grace Jones, the Pet Shop Boys, and a re-formed Yes.

The Buggles have reunited a few times and even toured for the first time, but they never released another studio album. In a full-circle moment, the band that kicked off MTV was also the last band to play before its main music channel’s final sign-off. MTV Classic’s last music video before signing off was “Video Killed the Radio Star.”

The Daily Earworm is a daily column that tells the stories, from the historic to the lesser-known, of some of the music industry’s greatest songs, albums, and artists. Here are some other music tales that you may find interesting:

Tom Morello: Legendary Renegade of Rock Guitar

The Rod Stewart B-Side That Became His Signature Hit

The Lengths That Lady Gaga Will Go To In Promoting An Album