We had the final piece of the jigsaw. It was this video - the only copy made that day - that I took to record companies for them to watch, not the usual demo audio tape for them to sit and tap their feet to. We had to play it in the big room outside the A&R guy’s offices because they didn't have video machines themselves in those days which meant in that case the whole record company got to see it.
The office girls were of course appalled by the sickening scenes of guns, violence and rape depicted on that tape but they were sure as hell talking about it when it was over. We loved it of course.
It all became part of the magic and the myth. A record company could call us up and we would go in and play them the video, have an expensive lunch, and then leave, taking the only copy in existance with us. And they only heard that one song. I always figured that the idea and the sound would grow in their minds as they described it to others in the company.
And it worked like a dream. The myth grew. EMI only got their own copy of that video when they signed us and gave us the money and they were as pleased about that as we were.