Janet Jackson - Design of a Decade (1995)

The arc of Janet Jackson's career from the late 1980s to the late '90s was a story of determined growth by an artist and woman. The extent to which Jackson served as a role model for many an adolescent girl during that decade (a phenomenon illuminated on another DVD, The Rhythm Nation Compilation) speaks to the formidable yet feminine image she presented via her music and music videos. Design of a Decade includes 16 of her videos from 1986 to 1996, taking us through Jackson's early, "don't trifle with me" attitude in the "What Have You Done for Me Lately" era, to her more rapturous, sensual makeover in "Love Will Never Do (Without You)." Of course, this video is also a record of some of the most ambitious music videos ever produced, including Julien Temple's elaborate "When I Think of You," Peter Smillie's "Escapade," and Marcus Nispel's ecstatic, fantastic "Runaway." --Tom Keogh Amazon.com

Wow, this takes me back....

The earlier videos were so dated but I enjoyed from Pleasure Principle on....The sound is a little low but maybe it is because the videos are old. Fun to see people who were in her videos... July 31, 2008

Early Janet, the BEST

WOW, I had forgotten how sexy some of these earlier videos were. Anytime, Anyplace is really hot. The dancing and music are fantastic. If you like Janet, you will love this collection of videos. June 13, 2008

Love will never do without you

This is a fun DVD which captures Janet through 1986 where she broke out with her successful "Control" album through to 1996 with the successful song "Runaway". It's quite amusing to see the clips from the 80's with the strong focus on group dance movements. Also interesting to see Janet battle with weight issues through the years. In some clips her face is so chubby! The songs from "Control" are very dated now, sounding very synethised and lacking what I would call a nice melody ... but they are still fun to listen to now and again. Janet's solo career really started to mature with "Rythmn Nation" where great songs like "Love will never do without you" and "Alright" were released. After that album, we got even more mature sounds with "That's the way love goes" and "Runaway".

I can't think of any videos that are missing except for perhaps "The Best Things in Life are Free" but I assume no video was available for it.

Overall, this is a DVD worth owning as it has some great clips. You'll probably laugh at the early videos from 1986 but trust me, back then those videos were considered pretty hot stuff. November 11, 2007

Janet truly designed a decade

Janet Jackson is universally regarded as an innovator. Her music and the videos that accompany them showed the world that she was a budding talent with a beautiful (although faint) voice and astonishing dancing skills that many would come to assimilate. A plethora of her younger contemporaries have said that she inspired them because her career as a whole has been nothing short of groundbreaking. A great illustration of her creative works as an artist are her videos. "Design of a Decade" includes some of her dexterous videos to date.

In 1986, Janet released her "Control" LP. Each single released from the album had a video. "What Have You Done for Me Lately" was the first. Janet is known for her coy, reserved disposition, but in this video, Janet exhibits another side: a Janet with attitude. This video includes choreography by Paula Abdul, and dances that would later become popular, like the Snake. Janet's big hair and colorful clothes make this video memorable. "Nasty", arguably Janet's signature song, is also featured on this DVD. "Nasty" is shot in and around a movie theatre, and again features Janet providing lots of attitude. Janet is a bit robust in "Nasty" (and most of the videos from this era), but she still dances with such vigor and energy. In this video, Janet proclaims her distaste for nasty men by rolling her eyes and sashaying past them. "Control" is Janet's first live performance, and she stunned. She was a triple threat in this video: a dancer, singer and a superb performer! Definitely worth mentioning is the incredible "The Pleasure Principle." Janet lost a substantial amount of weight, flattened her hair, and grew a bit more mature when this video was filmed. She danced almost the entire video, alone. Although this video is pretty simple, it had just as much impact as some of her more costly, gaudy videos.

By 1989, we are introduced to a socially conscious Janet with "Rhythm Nation 1814." Most of the videos from this era are in black and white. The reason for this? Because it helped Janet to convey the point that there should be no "color lines." The videos for "Rhythm Nation" and "Miss You Much" both had incredible dance sequences. "Escapade" and "Alright" illustrated a very happy, playful, whimsical Janet (and also included dance sequences.) "Come Back to Me" has very sad lyrics, and Janet's facial expressions throughout the video are ones of a disheartened person. This video was shot in Paris and features her then boyfriend, Rene Elizondo. "Love Will Never Do (Without You) is the first video where Janet bared much skin and displayed a more provocative side. In the video, she is intimately close to men and is just much more sexy than before. She continued her "sexy phase" with the "That's the Way Love Goes" video (from her 1993 "janet." LP. In this video, Janet comes off as playful and light-hearted. "Whoops Now" (from "janet") and "Runaway" (from "Design of a Decade" are also light-hearted, colorful videos.

My criticisms for this compilation are: A lot of these videos are longer than what they give us on this DVD. For some unknown reason, some of these videos are truncated. Also, the only two videos from the "janet." album are "That's the Way Love Goes" and Whoops Now". This DVD is omitted some of Janet's most important videos like "If" and "Again". Aside from that, this is a must-have for those who love the art of music video and, more importantly, the innovation that Janet Jackson has given the music video industry.
September 4, 2007

A must have for any music fan

Design of a decade is really what the title describes. It shows the rise of a true music Icon, someone who has helped pave the way for pop/R&B/Dance music. If it werent for Janet and these hits beyonce, ciara, mya, rihanna, and any other up and coming pop diva out there wouldnt exsist. If you are a music fan of funky and fun hits this is a must have DVD. It showcases janet at some of her most edgy and classic musical experiments. Definatly worth the 5 stars i rated it. June 27, 2007

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