The Making of Glenn Frey’s “Smuggler’s Blues” Music Video
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Go behind the scenes of the making of Glenn Frey’s “Smuggler’s Blues” music video with never-before-seen footage and interviews with the people who were there.
The song and its meaning
“Smuggler’s Blues” is a song by American rock band Eagles, from their 1984 album, Miami Vice. The song was written by Glenn Frey and Jack Tempchin. It peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1985.
The song is about the drug trade between Cuba and Miami in the 1980s. Frey said that he got the idea for the song after watching an episode of Miami Vice, which featured drug smugglers operating between Cuba and Miami.
The video’s concept
The video’s concept came from Frey himself. He had been wanting to make a movie for some time and came up with the idea of a band making a music video in the desert. The script was written by Frey and director Robert Zemeckis, who also directed the video.
The video was shot in various locations in southern California, including El Mirage Dry Lake, Edwards Air Force Base, and downtown Los Angeles. It cost $250,000 to make, which was a lot of money for a music video at that time.
The video features cameos from several famous faces, including Don Henley, Timothy Hutton, Eileen Brennan, and Willem Dafoe. The most impressive cameo, however, is from Blues Brothers star Dan Aykroyd who appears as a shady character trying to sell drugs to the band.
The video was an instant success when it was released in 1984 and helped to make Frey a household name. It won several awards, including an MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video.
The video shoot
The video for “Smuggler’s Blues” was one of the first big-budget productions for rock music, with a cost of $250,000. The video was directed by Tony Scott, who would go on to helm some of Hollywood’s most iconic films, including Top Gun and True Romance.
The video was shot in Miami over the course of five days in October 1984. Frey himself was only on set for two of those days, as most of his scenes were shot separately from the rest of the cast. The majority of the video features footage of Frey driving around Miami in a convertible, intercut with shots of him performing in a nightclub.
The nightclub scenes were shot at the now-defunct Mutiny Hotel, which was located in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighborhood. The hotel was frequented by celebrities and had a reputation for excess and debauchery. Frey reportedly stayed at the hotel while shooting the video, and he can be seen wearing a Mutiny Hotel T-shirt in one scene.
The shoot also featured cameos from several well-known faces, including Miami Vice star Don Johnson and future Oscar winner Cuba Gooding Jr.
The video’s release
The making of the “Smuggler’s Blues” music video was a long and complicated process. It took almost a year to complete, and the final product was a far cry from the original concept.
The video was released in 1984, and it instantly became a hit. It changed the way music videos were made, and it revolutionized the industry.
The video’s reception
The video’s reception was mixed. Some found it to be tedious, while others thought it was a clever homage to film noir. The Los Angeles Times called it “a masterpiece of tedium”, while Time praised its “wry sense of humor”.
