In 1965, as leader of the NY Band: The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed became Rock's first leather-clad social outcast. At the age of 20, Reed took violence, drugs, sadomasochism, and sang about them in a rock context creating music as painful as it was compelling. He set the stage for the punk revolution. Night Flight tells the story of Reed with music videos, live footage and amazingly candid interviews discussing his love for performance, writing and his unique approach to recording.

"Take Off To Animation" takes a colorful look at the use of animation in music video over the previous few years in styles ranging from experimental camera technique to 'Saturday morning cartoon'. Many of the videos compiled for this episode first became well-known due to their repeat exposure on Night Flight. Bona fide Night Flight classics here include Tom Tom Club's "Pleasure of Love", Randy Andy's "The People (Livin' in the USA)", Machinations: "Pressure Sway" & Will Powers: "Adventures In Success". Night Flight's innovative "Take Off" series dispensed with playlists, bland VJ set-ups and the usual tired video countdown format and instead cleverly programmed music videos and performance clips by theme. The series regularly featured hits from Eighties pop icons juxtaposed against obscurities from not-ready-for-MTV cult favorites. Original Air Date: 2-17-84

"In the past 3 years, Night Flight has kept pace with Music Video revolution in its own unique style." - Pat Prescott. Night Flight's 1984 Anniversary Special is a fine collection of all that the original series had to offer. "Take Off" to Video Art? Check. Dog Police? Double Check. Epic episode-long Ghostbusters giveaway with the grand prize winner getting 1984 Isuzu P'up Truck? TRIPE CHECK!!

How did I get here? Night Flight takes on Talking Heads in this brilliant profile, originally aired September 20th, 1986 and now streaming on Night Flight Plus. "In the 1970s, a group called Talking Heads became staples on the Bowery music scene..." explains Pat Prescott. The Heads’ fused artistic concepts with rock, relying on the tight structure and quirky lyrics which have become a heads trademark.

The segment is guided by a candid Radio 1990 interview with Robert Smith about the inspiration for the "Close To Me" video, fame and more. In true Night Flight fashion, the British band's "ever-evolving visual image" is explored through director Tim Pope's videos throughout the piece.

Tonight’s Night Flight Original Episode is from our “Video Artist” series, focusing on the animation and film art of Herbert Wentscher. The German video artist sources a variety of media for his projects: Super 8 footage, painting, and ancient iconography. “Eventually, everything gets blended into the video medium” he says to Night Flight interviewer and writer, Stuart Samuels.The episode includes his piece “SuperFaust” which features the german cultural icon Ampelmann, the country's universal green walk symbol (above), interpreted through Goethe’s Faust. 

Night Flight's take off to Rock and Cult films. This is A special preview of some of the films Night Flight showed in 1985 including Rude Boy (starring the Clash), Breaking Glass, Smithereens, Debbie Harry in Union City, Warhol's Frankenstein and more...

“Their music was devil’s music: high decibel, tortured, frenzied songs about Death, Destruction and Black Magic.” Welcome to Night Flight’s 1984 Take Off to Heavy Metal History with a look at metal forgers Black Sabbath. We go back to the 1970s for classic Sabbath, trace the development of Ozzy Osbourne and Ronny James Dio from their days as Black Sabbath’s lead singers to their solo careers in the mid 80s as “Rock’s Top MadMen.” We’ve heard from many of you that your first exposure to BS was late at night on Night Flight, so consider this your return trip home to some 35 years ago. If you are a Black Sabbath original line-up purist and Dio isn't your thing, may we suggest the Black Sabbath Video Profile for another excellent episode?

Night Flight salutes the Women of Rock in this original episode from June, 1988. "Today," Pat Prescott tells us, "women's voices are more powerful than ever in new music, neo-folk and down & dirty Rock n Roll." Featuring Sinéad O'Connor with MC Lyte, Joan Jett, Lita Ford, and Annie Lennox.

Welcome back to Night Flight. Tonight we celebrate the incredible life and career of Aretha Franklin with our 1987 Video Profile of the legendary artist. "She was the daughter of a preacher and by the late 60's the undisputed Queen of Soul" - Pat Prescott. With over a dozen million-selling albums, Aretha forever fused the passion of Gospel, the sensuality of R&B, and the precision of Pop. Tonight's episode is an incredible survey of Aretha's 1980s output, in true Night Flight Style. Featuring all of Aretha's 1980s cuts including: Rock A Lot, Freeway Of Love, Another Night, and George Michael collaboration Knew You Were Waiting.

Night Flight looks at the roots of Irish rock 'n' roll tonight in this original “Take Off” special from the mid-1980s. With Bodhrán, Fiddles, Uilleann pipes and Irish Harps in hand, we kick off with the Chieftans' "Irish Anthem" before looking at the Ireland’s strong music tradition. Dating back to Celtic culture, when poets were elevated to the status of aristocrats, we take a closer look at the island that produced '80s era acts like the Pogues, Van Morrison, Cactus World News, Bob Geldof, Zerra 1 and more. Stick around afterwards for some very rare animated cartoons & short films, including Ellen Foley in "Headshot."

Tonight’s Video Profile looks at Minneapolis writers, performers, and legendary super producers: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Bassist Terry Lewis met Keyboard player Jimmy Harris when they were handpicked by Prince for one of Minneapolis's great spinoff bands: The Time. "C...O...O...L"! Night Flight takes us through a tour of classics the pair wrote and produced from Janet Jackson, Human League, Herb Albert, Force MD's "Tender Love," (Above) and Robert Palmer's cover of the duo's Cherrelle classic "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On."

"One of the sturdiest trends in rock videos," Pat Prescott says, "is the use of 'high art' to elevate down and dirty Rock 'n' Roll." Tonight's original episode of Night Flight from the archives is a "Take off" to Art in Music Videos! The episode highlights art and music collaborations like New Order and William Wegman (and the dog supermodel Fay Ray), Grace Jones's cadre of counter-culture luminaries in "I'm Not Perfect," Warhol's video for The Car's "Hello Again," and Roberto Longo's for The Golden Palominos (feat. Michael Stipe).

"Stay tuned for the latest music... on Night Flight's New Sounds!" Tonight, we head back to June 1988, Floodland-era Sisters of Mercy, Kid n' Play premiere the "Kickstep" Do This My Way, Electronic Body Music from Boston's Manufacture, and quiet storm grooves from Soul artist Terence Trent D'arby's single "Sign Your Name."

This two-hour 1990 broadcast features Julee Cruise’s performance for David Lynch's “Industrial Symphony No. 1,” a Night Flight original Twin Peaks parody called "Twin Geeks" and an interview with music video director Tim Pope, whose work includes videos from Talk Talk, Siouxsie and the Banshees, David Bowie and much more.

The twin flames of '80s music video: Leather & Lace. “Leather suggests being wild, animalistic, masculine" Pat Prescott says, "while lace says soft, feminine, and sensual… and both conjure up sexual images.” Tonight, Night Flight looks to the 1983 and finds ample examples of both in videos from Billy Idol, The Romantics, Franky Goes to Hollywood, Roxy Music, Waysted and the Jersey Shore’s Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.

“In 1985,” Visions host Al Bandiero says, “British rockers have held the #1 slot on the American charts for more than 8 months." With a mix of music videos, interview, and artist bios, this episode of Visions features 80s British musicians like Annie Lennox, Sade, New Order, and The Cure.

"Boy isn't heavy metal a lot of fun!" says Mr. Bill at the start of Night FLight's special "Take Off" to Heavy Metal Comedy, (before an untimely death by anvil.) And Mr. Bill is right: Heavy Metal is a reliably comedic genre, intentional or not. This episode kicks off with Alcatrazz's "God Blessed," a satire of MTV that doomed its chances of airplay on that channel, (but of course got play on Night Flight), Keel's "Right to Rock", Accept's kaleidoscopic video for "Midnight Mover," Japanese rockers Loudness and Ireland's Mama's Boys.

Ryuichi Sakamoto's passing in 2023 has left an enormous void in the world of music, film, and beyond. Here at NF HQ, we were comforted by bittersweet arrival of a tape from the archives that includes Sakamoto's Man Ray inspired video for “Risky,” which features the inimitable croon of Iggy Pop. This "New Sounds" episode also highlights songs from ex-Go-Go's band House of Schock, The Smithereens, Pop Will Eat Itself, and more. Stick around for a New Filmmakers Showcase featuring a musical saga about a small-time hustler called Honky Tonk Bud (Scott Laster, 1986) the urban folk legend.

"You can have my husband, but please don't mess with my man!" In tonight's Night Flight original episode from 1983, we treated to a vivid (and mostly unseen) performance from Chicago Blues legend Koko Taylor. Raucous and raw, the Memphis-born Taylor and her band take the audience through a medley of blue standards and hits, including the 1964 energizing anthem: "Wang Dang Doodle". Pure Night Flight! Stick around for the episode's B-Side, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard's version of Townes Van Zandt's "Pancho and Lefty," where Townes himself makes an appearance in the music video.

This Night Flight original episode from our 1983 season is rife with deep cuts and nostalgic video gems from a lost era. The highlight is of course, Nameneko Punk Rock Kittens which features cats in punk outfits on cat-sized diorama sets (known as Perlorian cats in the US) created by photographer and artist Satoru Tsuda. These feline punkers join the ranks of other zoological video oddities like Dog Police and Fish Heads that were seared into the dazed minds of teenagers up way past their bedtime in the '80s.

"TV 2000's a different kind of video show: We've got everything!" The 1985 music series and Night Flight sister show hosted by John Kassir (voice of the Cryptkeeper) and Joe Gallo includes a top ten countdown, home movies, artist conversations with Night Flight & Radio 1990 resident interviewer Lisa Robinson, and some fantastic sweepstakes (sorry, entry is now closed!). Tonight's show, dubbed Episode 1 in the library, features videos from Duran Duran, Til Tuesday, Lisa Robinson on location with model Jerry Hall and a sizzling video Hot Pick of the Week. Commercials included!

TV 2000 is Night Flight's spin on the top ten countdown format from 1985, hosted by comedian John Kassir & Joie Gallo. In Episode 2 of TV 2000, Bryan Adams takes us to heaven, the Eurythmics ask: "Would I lie to you?" and Lisa Robinson goes on location with Boy George and Marilyn at the "hottest new club in New York," Palladium! Commercials are included.

This '90s syndication episode of Night Flight is dedicated exclusively to duets featuring a match made in art-pop heaven: Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush, KLF and Tammy Wynette's idiosyncratic country/dance-pop hybrid of pedal steel guitar & drum machines "Justified & Ancient," UB40 & Chrissie Hynde, and finally, Cher hits on Butthead in "I Got You Babe," the mega-crossover event of music television history we all needed. It's a bonafide hit-parade and a perfect specimen of our unique "Take Off" format, indeed.

It’s an “International Bazaar” on Night Flight tonight! This new arrival from the archives, taken from our 1985 Anniversary Special, finds Cabaret Voltaire sharing the Peter Care-directed classic video “Sensoria,” (inspired by the film 1979 black-comedy Wise Blood), Scotland's loyal song Jesse Rae and German experimentalists Einstürzende Neubauten contrasting perfectly against the Italian pop of Righeria in “No Tengo Dinero.”

Welcome back to Night Flight, where we take you on a half hour tour of Hollywood, America's most famous, glamorous, and heartbreaking town.

In this essential Night Flight interview, John Waters reflects on the transgressive ethos that defines his filmmaking. He recounts his humble beginnings touring prints from the trunk of his car, the neighborhood Baltimore crew of collaborators including Divine (“I don't trust anybody that hasn't been arrested at least once”), and a career built on offending multiple generations. A timeless snapshot of a Night Flight icon, and the perfect way to celebrate ten years of the streaming channel!

One of the most memorable episodes of Night Flight canon and the purest example of the original series' commitment to avant-garde music and experimental video. Stream the official Video Profile of musical groundbreaker trio, Art Of Noise: The low profile, high tech wiz’s of British music. A production trio with whose unique sonic approach defined the advent of sampling and whose background sounds enhanced the megahits of Yes, Pet Shop Boys and Kate Bush. Featuring an incredible lost interview with Art of Noise founders J. J. Jeczalik and Anne Dudley and a suite of the groups iconic music videos including those by Zbigniew Rybczyński, Anton Corbijn and more. (Yes, we’ve got both versions of “Close (To The Edit)”).

“I don't need the Daytime, all I want is Nighttime.” Take off to the creation of Heaven 17’s music video for “Let Me Go” in this Night Flight special that goes on set (a closed-off train station in the middle of the night) and behind the scenes with the band. This early Night Flight Video Profile (1983) shows off an impressive suite of big budget music videos from ex-Human League synth rockers including “Penthouse and Pavement” and the German Expressionism-themed video for “Temptation.”

Night Flight's take off special feels uniquely 80s in its exposure of videos from Madonna, The Talking Heads and more relating to the culture of wealth and excess that defined the time.

A lo-fi gore epic directed by actor and cinematographer Bill Hinzman, star zombie in the classic Night of the Living Dead, FleshEater is a fitting tribute to Romero’s masterpiece that updates the setting to the late 1980s while piling on the gut munching, throat ripping, and limb tearing action! While assisting on a dig, a construction worker accidentally destroys the final resting place of a demonic zombie, rousting him from his unholy slumber, and reigniting his taste for human flesh.

Tonight, we present esteemed animator Bill Kopp’s original short “Mr. Gloom,” from an episode of "Toone Theatre." The psychedelic animation is hand-drawn theatre of the absurd. Kopp’s credits myriad credits include voice over work for none other than Night Flight animated “freak-out” classic, Jac Mac and Rad Boy Go! Also in this episode, the experimental animation “Machine Song,” a video collage from Chel White, who back in 2015, described the film to us as "as a minimalist vision of the post-industrial human condition, depicted in xerox cutout animation."