Frequent commenter Judd and I have been having an e-mail exchange, in which we were discussing the “greatest video EVAR” (his intentional spelling). His nominee:
To which I responded, it isn’t that, it’s this:
Though the more I think about it, I think it might be this:
We also went through some honorable mentions. Mine here and here; his here.
But I figured it would be fun, and a nice reprieve from serious discussion, if we opened the floor for debate. I’m sure we’re both forgetting about some great videos.
If you’re interested, you can see what a bunch of pretentious bastards have to say on the matter. 
UPDATE: I like this list better, but warning!, you’d better have a hell of a pop-up blocker. Lots of great videos on that list that I had forgotten: No Rain, You Might Think, Rockit, Money for Nothing, Just A Gigolo / I Ain’t Got Nobody, Criminal, and Don’t Come Around Here No More.
A couple others I missed: Round and Round, if only for the unlikely appearance by Milton Berle. Also Soundgarden’s Black Hole Sun, both because it’s delightfully creepy, and because I can’t watch it without hearing Butt-Head’s opening comment.
leanleft
Kevin
tgirsch
Kevin T. Keith
Judd
I would also like to stipulate I selected November Rain because it was the strongest song/video combination I came up with off the top of my head. If we were going for best video only and could ignore the song I would have probably instead gone with Aerosmith’s early 90′s trifecta of “Cryin’”, “Amazing” and “Crazy”.
If we were going for the video doing a great job of expressing the mood/story of the song, I’d probably go with something like this or this. What I think it interesting here is the contrast of my choices against yours. Where November Rain is epic in scale, these videos are both minimalist. But that seems to work for the songs, as far as I’m concerned.
For that matter, there’s another good Christina Aguilera video that fits the song really well. I’m in a weird place with CA: I either love or hate her songs on a case-by-case basis, and I don’t much like her. Another guilty sometimes-pleasure, I guess.
I’m honestly not too sure if any of the three Aerosmith videos I mentioned really express anything at all to do with the respective songs. Find any of the three (“Crazy” would work best, IIRC) and watch with the sound off.
Well, I was contrasting against November Rain, not the Aerosmith trifecta.
With all due respect to Judd (none?), of those first two videos, only one is ever gonna be easy listening, and it already is.
But I do have to admit to not much caring about the video that goes with music. (Hell, I haven’t even seen videos for most of this stuff.)
How’s this as my contender? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cL97xLA1jg (Actually, if that’s considered germane, and we should take video into account, this is WAY cooler: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8Ca_edg6RE)
As for fitting video added to pre-existing music: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBo5K0ZQIEY (extra points for including Moloch!)
Even without video, I think there’s also something to be said for music that makes you want to go hang yourself to get it over with: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSuZcur366I
This, on the other hand, is a juxtaposition, you just need to experience: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HH49M86Nb98
Which is pretty much to say that I think you’re both crazy, but TG less so.
(Actually, I’m also really impressed with Aguilera , as long as I can avoid actually thinking about the content of her songs. She’s a lot like Beyonce that way.)
[bad link fixed by tgirsch]
Billy Idol: Dancing with Myself
Cradle of Love was a good video, too.
Dan M:
You double-linked Industrial Love; not sure what the music that made you want to hang yourself was supposed to be.
And the “Oops!” link is brilliant. Stealing and distributing.
Drat. This is what I meant: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSuZcur366I
Dan M:
I went ahead and fixed your original comment to include that godawful link where you originally intended to put it.
Thanks. I know I’m only marginally on-topic since I don’t much care about video.
By the way, is it bad that I think Billy Idol looks like James Marsters (rather than the other way around)?
Ah, common ground! Cradle of Love (which was I think the second music video I ever saw) was indeed a fun one to watch.
And that’s my bipartisanship quota for the decade!
As to Sabotage, it needs a qualifier. The song and video are good but Beavis and Butt-head (my guilty pleasure) watching that video and providing commentary is hysterical.
Points for Don’t Come Around Here No More, Just a Gigalo and No Rain as well.
Hip hop edition – btw, I think you’ll actually enjoy this video if you generally dislike hip hop culture.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xqa9w_the-roots-what-they-do_music
Thanks, Digg. I was wondering when you’d show up. I’d like to point out that that video used up my Beavis quota for a month when I lol’d at “severe butt cramp”.
Well, I saw PG perform “Sledgehammer” live on tour, many years ago.
Cool show – he had this stage set with lights way up on vertical booms. During that song, the light booms began tilting up and down (like those automatic drinking birds) over the stage, coming down right on top of him as he bent backwards, then popped up as the light lifted away, then bent backwards as the next light swooped down on him . . . (I think each light was supposed to be a “sledgehammer” hitting him from above). Interesting.
That reminds me of a lovely story told to me by one of the less wholesome gentlemen I’ve met. The gentleman in question was exceptionally strong and worked construction, but was — um — having some social friction on the job due to a young braggart there.
The gentleman demonstrated an unusual feat of strength: Take a sledgehammer in one hand, hold it out at full extension of the arm, and swing it inward to gently touch one’s own nose with the hammer. The braggart felt a need to repeat the trick. The gentleman informed me that it’s a unique experience to watch another man apply a sledgehammer to his own face.