Split Enz - I Got You (1980)

What this video is

Released 21 January 1980 on Mushroom Records, 'I Got You' marked Split Enz's decisive pivot from theatrical art-rock to polished power-pop, coinciding with a broader Australasian music industry maturation. Written by Neil Finn — then 21 years old — the track became the biggest-selling single in Australian history by July 1980, spending eight weeks at No. 1 in Australia and three weeks at No. 1 in New Zealand. Its…

Why it matters

A foundational artifact of Antipodean new wave, 'I Got You' demonstrated that power-pop with art-rock DNA could achieve mainstream commercial dominance without sacrificing conceptual ambition. The video's surrealist picture-frame device is among the earliest examples of self-reflexive,…

The director

Noel Crombie joined Split Enz in 1974 as percussionist and the band's visual director. He served as the group's in-house creative director throughout their career, designing costumes, album artwork, and directing the majority of their music videos. His work…