Some Great Videos
| Some Great Videos | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Video by | ||||
| Released | 14 October 1985[1] | |||
| Recorded |
| |||
| Genre | Synth-pop | |||
| Length | 46:00 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Depeche Mode chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
Some Great Videos is the first music video compilation by Depeche Mode, featuring ten music videos directed by Clive Richardson and Peter Care, released on 14 October 1985. Its release coincided with The Singles 81→85 and Catching Up with Depeche Mode compilations released in the UK and US.
Background
In 1985, Depeche Mode elected not to record a new album, and instead release singles collections in the US and UK titled Catching Up with Depeche Mode and The Singles 81→85, respectively.[3]
Depeche Mode had many early videos directed by Julien Temple that the band did not like, with the band's opinions of their early videos ranging from "embarrassing" to being "a complete disaster".[4] The video for "Get the Balance Right!" , directed by Kevin Hewitt, was also not included. Videos directed by Clive Richardson, which the band did like, were included on Some Great Videos, as well as videos for their two latest singles, "It's Called a Heart" and "Shake the Disease", both of which were directed by Peter Care.[5]
Alan Wilder said of the early videos, "You can pretty much lump all the Julian Temple videos ("See You", "The Meaning of Love", "Leave in Silence") into one collective disaster. In those days, we were very naive and it wasn’t until Anton Anton Corbijn got involved in 1986, that we realised we could take more control over the cohesive image of the group."[6]
Release
Some Great Videos was released on 14 October 1985.[1] It was released by Virgin Records on VHS in the UK (catalogue number VVD103), VHS and LaserDisc in the US and Japan (SM048-3062), and Betamax in Mexico.[5] In the US and Mexico regions, the video for their later single, "A Question of Lust", was also included.[5]
The cover image was taken by photographer by Eric Watson.[7]
Releases
UK 1985 release
VHS / Betamax: Virgin Video / VVD103
- "Just Can't Get Enough"
- "Everything Counts"
- "Love, in Itself"
- "People Are People" (12" version)
- "Master and Servant"
- "Blasphemous Rumours"
- "Somebody"
- "Shake the Disease"
- "It's Called a Heart"
- "Photographic" (live version)
US 1986 releases
VHS: Sire / 38124-3
LD (CLV): Sire / 38124-6
UK 1998 release
VHS: Mute Film / MF034
- Re-issued as Some Great Videos 81>85 to coincide with the release of The Videos 86>98. Contains the same track listing as the 1985 release.
Notes
- All songs were written by Martin Gore, except "Just Can't Get Enough" and "Photographic", written by Vince Clarke.
- "Photographic" is taken from the video The World We Live In and Live in Hamburg, released in the same year.
References
- ^ a b "DM Archives | Discography / Home Videos: Some Great Videos". depechemode.com. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
- ^ McDonald, Steven. "Depeche Mode: Some Great Videos [Video]". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
- ^ Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 115.
- ^ Burmeister & Lange 2017, pp. 52, 57, 66.
- ^ a b c Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 129.
- ^ Wilder, Alan. "Shunt: Q+A Vault: Depeche Mode: Videos". Retrieved 18 August 2025.
- ^ Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 126.
- Burmeister, Dennis; Lange, Sascha (2017). Depeche Mode: Monument. New York: Akashic Books. ISBN 978-1-61775-593-4.