While many people think that music videos only came out in the late 1970's and early 1980's, this is not true at all. This is only the time when they were made popular by the famous MTV channel of the time. In fact, the history of music videos reaches as far back as the late 1960's and the "acid rock" era and even to the 19th century.
The very first music video was created in 1894 when music was played with pictures of still images and was used to promote the song "The Little Lost Child." Of course, this was a very basic use of the music video and it did not become a popular forum until many years later. In the 1950's in France, a visual jukebox was created, but still the music video lacked in popularity.
Many performers in the 1960's set their music up with light shows in the background that they would also use when they played live. These videos were used to then market the band to record companies or to television shows. The shows would play these videos instead of having the band or group on for a live rendition of the song.
In the 1970's, music videos began to take a life of their own as bands tinkered with different lighting and visual graphics. The late 1970's saw a huge surge in videos and when MTV hit the scene in the early 1980's, the popularity of musical creations started to soar. There were very few people who did not tune in to see their favorite bands or artists perform.
Today, there are few acts that do not put out a video to promote their albums and singles. When looked at side-by-side with the very first video from 1894, it is painfully obvious how far the technology has come. The 1980's were the high point for music videos and MTV played a significant role in creating what has become the norm today for groups and artists.