Lee Ritenour — Mr Briefcase (Video from MTV2)

JUL 01 1981 · 12:00

Lee Ritenour — Mr Briefcase (Video from MTV2) (1981) Era: Early MTV Era (1981) - One of the first 20 music videos ever broadcast on MTV during its inaugural day on August 1, 1981; represents the nascent fusion of jazz-pop and the promotional video format. Exceptionally high archival value as one of MTV's earliest-ever broadcast videos, documenting both the infancy of the music video format and the cultural moment when jazz-fusion briefly occupied mainstream pop space. The video's slow, warm-lit aesthetic stands in stark contrast to the kinetic, high-concept videos that would define MTV by the mid-1980s, making it a crucial before/after reference point for the medium's rapid evolution. Its unresolved director attribution adds to its historical opacity, common among early 1981 promotional clips produced before formal video production infrastructure existed. Context: Released on August 1, 1981, 'Mr. Briefcase' was among the first ~20 music videos ever aired on MTV, placing it at the absolute ground floor of music video culture as a medium. The song critiques corporate conformity and music industry commercialism — a pointed irony given its placement on one of pop music's most commercially transformative new platforms. It emerges from the LA West Coast Fusion scene, featuring an all-star session cast including Jeff Porcaro and David Hungate (Toto), David Foster, and vocalist Eric Tagg, embodying the sophisticated jazz-pop synthesis that briefly bridged fusion credibility with mainstream chart ambition in the early 1980s before the genre splintered into smooth jazz and AOR. Director notes: The video was released in 1981 to promote the single 'Mr. Briefcase' from the album 'Rit' (Elektra/Asylum Records), produced by Harvey Mason and David Foster. The track features lead vocals by Eric Tagg, guitars by Lee Ritenour, keyboards by David Foster, drums by Jeff Porcaro, and bass by David Hungate. Thematically, the briefcase and suited figures are interpreted as representing record label executives pressuring the artist to commercialize. It holds the distinction of being among the 20th music video aired on MTV, broadcast on the channel's inaugural day, August 1, 1981. A live performance version also exists from a 1984 RIT/Special broadcast.