Jane Siberry — Ingrid and the Footman

JUL 01 1988 · 12:00

Jane Siberry — Ingrid and the Footman (1988) Era: Late-80s Canadian Art-Pop (1988) - Progressive art-pop era marked by long-form single edits, MuchMusic video culture, and Reprise Records international push for Canadian alternative artists High curatorial value as a Juno Award-nominated artifact from the apex of Siberry's 1980s art-pop period and the MuchMusic video era. The video is a rare document of Canadian progressive-pop video aesthetics at a moment when the country's independent music infrastructure — MuchMusic, CFNY, Duke Street Records — was reaching institutional maturity. Its warm filmic palette, theatrical staging, and non-commercial running length (257s) make it a strong counterexample to the glossy synth-pop video mainstream of the period. Context: Released in 1988 as a single edit from Jane Siberry's fourth album The Walking (Reprise Records), 'Ingrid and the Footman' represents a pivotal moment in Canadian art-pop where Siberry pivoted away from new wave pop toward Laurie Anderson-style progressive performance art narratives. The video was produced within the MuchMusic ecosystem, which had been a key champion of Siberry since her 1984 breakthrough. Its Juno nomination for Best Video of 1989 places it in competition with Blue Rodeo (that year's winner) and reflects the vitality of the Canadian independent music video industry at the close of the 1980s. The album was simultaneously released on Reprise Records internationally, marking Siberry's most ambitious attempt at a North American mainstream crossover, which ultimately did not materialize commercially. Director notes: The video was produced to accompany the radio-edit single of 'Ingrid and the Footman' from the album The Walking (1988, Reprise Records / Duke Street Records). It received a Juno Award nomination for Best Video at the Juno Awards of 1989, held March 12, 1989 in Toronto. The Juno Best Video award is given to the Canadian director of the video. Album sessions took place in 1987 at Manta Sound, Toronto. The song features a large ensemble of backing vocalists. No production house or crew credits for this specific video have been located in publicly available sources.