The Rolling Stones — Emotional Rescue - OFFICIAL PROMO

JUL 01 1980 · 12:00

The Rolling Stones — Emotional Rescue - OFFICIAL PROMO (1980) Director: David Mallet Era: Post-Disco New Wave Transition (1980) - The Rolling Stones pivoting into the new decade with a disco-funk inflected single, bridging late-70s groove aesthetics and early-80s music video culture at the dawn of the MTV era. High-tier archival value as the official, broadcast-intended performance promo for one of the Rolling Stones' most commercially successful singles from their transitional early-80s period. Directed by David Mallet at the height of his influence, this clip documents both the band's stylistic evolution and the professionalisation of rock music video production. Paired with the thermographic Version 1, it forms a uniquely instructive dual-artifact case study in competing promotional aesthetics within a single release campaign. Context: Released in June 1980, 'Emotional Rescue' arrived at a pivotal cultural inflection point: disco was commercially collapsing following the 1979 backlash, yet funk and groove-based production were being absorbed into mainstream rock. The Rolling Stones — the self-styled 'World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band' — had already courted disco controversy with 'Miss You' (1978); this track doubled down with Jagger's prominent falsetto and a slick electric-piano-driven groove. The album topped charts in the US, UK, and Canada, giving the Stones their first UK No. 1 album since 1973. The promo video, directed by David Mallet just as music video was becoming a legitimate promotional medium (MTV launched August 1981), represents an early example of a major legacy rock act investing in high-production-value clips as a serious marketing tool. Director notes: Two separate music videos were produced for 'Emotional Rescue.' The first (Version 1, directed by Adam Friedman) used thermographic imagery matching the album cover's heat-camera aesthetic. The second — this OFFICIAL PROMO (Version 2) — was directed by David Mallet and produced by Paul Flattery and Simon Fields, presenting a conventional band performance on a colourful set. It was shot concurrently with the Mallet-directed promo for the follow-up single 'She's So Cold.' The Mallet version was considered significantly more broadcast-friendly than the thermographic version, which reviewers found nearly unwatchable beyond thirty seconds. The single was released 20 June 1980 and reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart.