Back when I was 11, I had a bit of a crush on Jim Diamond, lead singer of the Mtv rising stars, Ph. D. What? So he’s a little weird looking? I like weird looking.
Totes hot, am I right? Please say yes.
The problem with having a crush on Jim Diamond of PH. D. was that by the time I was 11 and a half, Mtv stopped playing their video, and never played them again. What’s that you say? Teen Beat?! Ha! Teen Beat would never publish a picture of Jim Diamond. They were too busy finding new un-airbrushed* photos of Ralph Macchio. No. For a 12 year old girl in America in 1982, Ph. D. were as unattainable as wine coolers and earth-tones.
Then, quite few years later, came YouTube. The first Ph. D. gem I dug up was Little Suzi’s on the Up. The video combines a sweet-as-candy story of a couple getting ready for a night of competitive ballroom dancing, with the competing and creepy stories of a stalker dance judge and a sassy saxophone player/ hairdresser obsessed with something that only looks like pickled eggs.
Despite the meat, motorcycles, and whatever the hell was in that jar, I only had vague memories of that video. The video that I vividly remember was for I won’t Let You Down. It also featured a bit of stalking, but it was by a cartoonish assassin who follows our intrepid hero as he begs forgiveness from his too-tall girlfriend.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYYGBbUsoFs
Um…what the hell was that? It’s like what would happen if Roman Polanski’s inner psyche was caught on film. No. Wrong. Let me try that again.
HOLY CRAP! What am I looking at and why the hell am I looking at it? Why are they in a theater, and how many minutes do I have to look at it? Let’s try again.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UHXEQSXaZ4
Ah! That’s better. And see? The cartoonish assassin didn’t really want to blow up Jim Diamond with a plant; he only wanted the girl–the cold, mean, dog-obsessed girl. But still…cute, right?
But it makes me wonder. What is the meaning of those other videos? Were they submitted to Mtv, only to be turned down? In the early ’80s? When Mtv was playing Steve Miller’s Abracadabra on heavy rotation? It makes no sense. But it does explain why Mtv stopped playing Ph. D. Maybe Diamond and company were so sick and tired of being turned down, they started acting really snippy. Here’s how I imagine it started:
Mark Goodman: Here in the studio, a band that is soaring up the charts never, I’m sure, to fall back to earth, Ph. D. Jim, how does it feel to be the latest Mtv darling?
Jim Diamond: Fuck you, Mark. Your head looks like pubes.
And then he dissed Martha Quinn, and that was the beginning of the end.
I’m just guessing, of course. Jim Diamond is still around, still making music, still kind of cute in a weird way, and icing on cake, makes music for disadvantaged children.
I suppose I could just ask him, but I’m scared.
*Old Teen Beat photos are like a Comstock Lode of Proactive “before” pictures.
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Reblogged this on slumber party movies and commented:
This post never got one comment or one like. I get that. I always assumed that I was the only early 80s PhD fan. Then, this morning,
Eric sent me this message. Comment: Who is the girl in the video?
I don’t know Eric, but I feel for his plight. There is just not enough information about PhD videos. My first instinct was to suggest that Eric ask Jim Diamond himself, but then I remembered. Jim Diamond died recently. I looked it up, to be sure, and yes. He died. ONE YEAR AGO TODAY! One of two things is happening, one…he is trending on some social media site somewhere….or two, my junior high crush is haunting me through my blog. Believe what you want, Lerlines.
They have just shown the video on old re-run of top of the pops , I wanted to know the name of the girl as well, she made a big impression on a 12 year old me.
I read somewhere, but i’m not quite sure if that was the name of the girl in this clip, or Little Suzy’s on the up’s clip, that either of these women was played by Nina Carter, who i couldn’t further find. I could find a Nina Carter active in the 80s but i’m not quite sure if that’s her.
I remember this number very well and remember singing it because I found it so catchy. As for the girl she is probably a professional model but my curiuosty led me to this site where I learnt of Jim’s Diamonds death.
Yes! He was so hot! Yes! Pity i’m late.
Such a pity! He was hot, indeed!
I’m old and tired but remember Phd and this song well. I drove everybody I worked with totally nuts singing it. I think the girl was a professional model and if I have the time I’ll do a trawl.
It was a great song! Your coworkers were nuts to begin with if they didn’t LOVE it!
great song, brings me back to my childhood. Also wondering who the lovely lady in the video is.
What’s the name of the girl in the video?
God I thought I was the only one who had a crush on Jim! hahaha I would like to know who is the girl indeed.
Ha! The few, the proud…
If I find anything about this girl I will post here XD
I think the girl is Nina Carter.
Glad to see that other people are trying to find out what the lady’s name is
Oh my god.. I enjoyed reading this so much, yes, exactly, over 10 years late and definitely not as old as the people discussing this.
Let me explain, i’m 18 years old, i listen to 70s-90s pop a lot, not much else beyond that… I was aware I Wont Let You Down existed, but that was it. Until i heard it again, and realized i couldn’t get it out of my head. Simply too good, and i had somehow ignored it for years. I tried to look further into it; Who the hell were Ph.D. really? But on modern platforms, there wasn’t really much to find. A while later found a single on a vinyl market during the summer, There’s No Answer To It… There was hardly 24 hours between buying it and replaying it, over and over again. Then i finally happened to find some more songs of their first self titled album on YouTube. Hadn’t heard them all, still, then came across the whole album on vinyl in a store, felt like i won a lottery, but the man next to me started minding the business, telling me i shouldn’t buy it, because it would disappoint, as it disappointed him. Bought it either way. I’ve never loved an album more. I still think of this dude a lot and laugh about how wrong he was. It’s been a while and i’m still as obsessed with Ph.D, if not more.
But back to Jim Diamond… Wouldn’t say i’ve crushed on him ever, but he definitely looked interesting. And you had me in tears over those pickled eggs, i know exactly what you mean and i’m as concerned about the constant appearance of em in that music video.
I find it so unfortunate they never had much of it, just Little Suzi’s On The Up, the beloved clip you were on about, and a few other versions of the same song. It’s a bit awkward to be a teenage Ph.D. fan in the present as no one still really knows who Jim Diamond and Tony Hymas are, but i can cope. I’ve got the first album on a vinyl, a single with one of the included songs (which i secretly prefer, as the song seems to be a different recorded version than on the full album) An additional Jim Diamond single and their second album is currently still shipping. Truly excited for my package…
oh wow! This is amazing. It must be harder to be a teenage PH.D fan now than a preteen fan back then. I’m so jealous you’re just starting the journey. I’m curious. Do you have a theory about why they made so many videos of the same song? Maybe they were just perfectionists?
Didn’t expect a reply so soon! Kinda crazy these comments are still going through the years. I mean, i also just happened to come across this by accident.
But if i had to guess, i fear they decided to put their focus on I Wont Let You Down and clips for it more because it blew up so much, something that many artists nowadays still do. They tend to milk the things they gained the most popularity from for… don’t know what reason.
A few weeks ago i found 2 videos of Jim talking about his music career in which he said how he thought he had already made it when he caught Alexis Korner’s attention, so i can imagine blowing up with I Wont Let You Down and being recognized for it has made him cling onto it. The rest of the album might’ve never gotten as much attraction in the first place, but i think a few more clips for the rest of the songs could’ve made the entire Album stick out more.
What a refreshing comment! It reignites my faith in humanity to see someone so young being a fan of Jim. The great Jim Diamond was a good friend of mine and was terribly underrated, unfortunately. He wasn’t just a highly talented singer, songwriter and musician, he was also a very kind and genuine human being who died far too early.
God, really?! That’s really cool