Paul Kelly - Before Too Long

What this video is

Released in June 1986 on White Label Records (a Mushroom Records subsidiary), 'Before Too Long' was a breakthrough hit for Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls at a moment when Australian independent roots-rock was establishing a distinct national voice. The Gossip album, co-produced by Kelly and Alan Thorne, helped define a working-class, storytelling-driven strand of Australian rock. The band operated under the name…

Why it matters

A foundational artefact of Australian roots-rock and the Mushroom Records independent ecosystem. The video's narrative-first approach — foregrounding a working-class protagonist vignette rather than performance spectacle — was atypical for 1986 clip culture and anticipates the storytelling music…

The director

John Whitteron is an Australian music video and film director active in the 1980s Australian independent music scene. He is credited on IMDB and IMVDb as the director of the 'Before Too Long' video for Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls (1986). No additional…