Paul Kelly — Before Too Long

JUL 01 1986 · 12:00

Paul Kelly — Before Too Long (1986) Director: John Whitteron Era: Australian Pub Rock / New Wave Breakthrough (1986) - Mid-80s Australian independent rock scene; roots-rock storytelling meeting MTV-era clip culture on Mushroom Records High curatorial value as a confirmed 1986 artefact representing the intersection of Australian pub rock, independent label infrastructure, and narrative music video form. The clip's realist cab-driver scenario, low-budget aesthetic, and tight editing are exemplary of the mid-80s Australian clip idiom and directly contributed to the song's commercial success. Its Countdown Award nominations make it a documented landmark in Australian music video history. Context: Released in June 1986 on White Label Records (a Mushroom Records subsidiary), 'Before Too Long' was a breakthrough hit for Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls at a moment when Australian independent roots-rock was establishing a distinct national voice. The Gossip album, co-produced by Kelly and Alan Thorne, helped define a working-class, storytelling-driven strand of Australian rock. The band operated under the name 'Paul Kelly and the Messengers' for international markets due to the racist connotations of the original name. The cab-driver video aesthetic aligned perfectly with Kelly's literary, character-study songwriting style, making the clip an unusually narrative-driven artefact in the mid-80s Australian clip landscape. Director notes: The video depicts Kelly as a cab driver navigating a night shift populated by eccentric passengers — a comedic narrative structure that proved highly effective in promoting the single. Wikipedia notes that 'the success of the single can partly be attributed to the accompanying video.' The clip was nominated at the 1986 Countdown Australian Music Awards for Best Male Performance in a Video. IMDB lists two related entries: one crediting the band as 'Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls' and one as 'Paul Kelly and the Messengers,' reflecting the dual naming used for domestic versus international releases. Runtime is documented at approximately 3–4 minutes across sources, consistent with the 213-second file duration provided.