Happy Birthday MTV!
August 1, 1981, the way we listened (now watched) music changed forever.
August 1, 1981 is a HUGE date in the history of music. Before MTV came along, you had the theater of the mind when it came to interpreting songs. You would listen to the lyrics, and make up your own mind as to what they meant.
After MTV, the videos made by the bands projected what the songs meant, no questions asked.
Unless it was a performance video, there was little room for interpretation once the band made the video.
Contrary to popular belief, MTV didn't kill radio, in fact it helped the music business tremendously, regarding radio and product sales.
Though MTV long ago stopped playing music videos, I have fond memories of when MTV was cool. For me, that meant when I had to go to someone's house that was hooked up with cable well before mine.