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Herbie Hancock's 'RockIt' was a U.S. radio dud in the '80s

 
Published July 19, 2013

Now everyone who grew up watching MTV remembers Herbie Hancock's video for RockIt. Directed by Godley and Crème, the video was groundbreaking and won five MTV video awards including Best Concept Video. Despite its video success, the song has been forgotten on radio and perhaps never was a radio hit anyway.

The song only peaked at No. 71 on the pop charts; however it was a No. 1 hit on the dance charts and a Top 10 hit in nine countries (including Canada) and ended up reaching gold record status selling more than a million units. In addition to winning Hancock the 1983 Grammy for R&B Instrumental, RockIt is considered the first successful single to use scratching.

While the video is bizarre with all the strange robotic creations, many viewers still consider the video too creepy to enjoy. Hancock stills teaches and performs music in California.