DINOSAURS GET LIVELY ON VIDEO DIET

The video age was supposed to be a Garden of Eden for new acts. More often it’s been the stamping ground of a lot of old dinosaurs, though some of them have proved to be surprisingly fleet-footed--such as ZZ Top and John Fogerty, each represented by a lively new clip this month.

The best on-screen dinosaurs yet, though, are the real ones--well, real clay-model dinosaurs, anyway--in a video by newcomer Luis Cardenas for his remake of Del Shannon’s “Runaway.”

Ratings system: 80-100, don’t miss; 60-79, recommended; 40-59, watchable; 20-39, weak; 0-19, wretched.

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John Fogerty’s “Eye of the Zombie.” Director: Matt Mahurin. Fogerty’s videos always keep us guessing. His first one from last year’s “Centerfield” LP was surprisingly arty and mysterious. Then he followed it up with relatively straightforward clips, as if to say that the one strange video had been a fluke. But now, with his first video from the new album of the same name, he’s gone weird on us again--weirder than ever. “Eye of the Zombie” looks like one of those strange clips that might show up once on MTV’s weekly new-bands feature “120 Minutes” and never be seen again. It’s a dark, stark view into a vaguely ancient scene, strongly suggesting the primal fears described in the song, where a tribe huddles around a fire at night while one of the “undead” lurks in the shadows. Naked figures run around with torches, silhouettes chase silhouettes, and Fogerty’s face--made up as an old man--appears briefly. Some of the shots are a bit awkward, but overall the images have the surreal, evocative look of a Maya Deren film. 85

Luis Cardenas’ “Runaway.” Director: Tony Christopher. If it weren’t for this video, there’d be little reason to pay much attention to this OK version of the old Del Shannon hit. The video, too, could have just been as silly as its premise--drummer/singer Cardenas playing in a junkyard inhabited by dinosaurs! But the execution lifts it into the realm of the magical. The delightful clay-model creatures, which suddenly get punked-up, grab instruments and indulge in some reptilian rock moves, are gosh-darn cute. Dig that guitarist! Now if real bands were only this much fun to watch. 80

The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian.” Director: Gary Weiss. Critics may have made a bit too much of the charming but relatively lightweight band, but this unassuming video gets across the L.A.-based, all-female group’s sense of fun so well that even some holdouts may be won over. One of the groovy things about the Bangles is that their image is still hard to pin down, a factor that the clip takes advantage of. It starts off with some stage shots, with the band looking smooth and sexy, and then switches to the four trying out some new Cheops while goofily demonstrating the “walk.” Best of all, though, are the street scenes of ordinary people trying out the pharaoh-like poses. 70

R.E.M.’s “Fall on Me.” Director: Michael Stipe. Fans of lead singer Stipe’s vague but poetic imagery get an audio/visual double dose of it here. There’s not much to it on the surface: The words of the song are superimposed large and one by one over upside-down wasteland scenes and the like. Doesn’t sound like much, but it fits the mood of the superb song very well. 70

ZZ Top’s “Velcro Fly.” Director: Daniel Kleinman. Amazingly close in tone to the Bangles’ new video, this is also a how-to-do-a-silly-dance visual instruction manual. It’s a lot more high-tech than the Bangles’ less ambitious clip (Kleinman uses some of the same razzle-dazzle effects he employed for Pat Benatar on “Sex as a Weapon”) but suffers a bit in comparison. Though not up to the level set by previous ZZ Top directors Steve Barron and Tim Newman, this is yet another example of how this Texas trio, even though it’s been around in the same form longer than any other rock group, refuses to become fossilized. 60

Lionel Richie’s “Dancing on the Ceiling.” Director: Stanley Donen. The noted director of “Funny Face” and “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” gives this big-budget, special-effects extravaganza a nice sense of celebration. We follow Richie and some of his musicians as they walk into a party where everyone is literally dancing on the ceiling. You get all the trick shots you might expect, expertly done. Still, the whole thing--for all its rousing energy, upside-down shots and cameos (Rodney Dangerfield, Cheech Marin)--looks too much like a soda-pop commercial--probably because the song sounds like it was written with jingle possibilities in mind. 45

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The Smiths’ “There is a Light.” Director: Derek Jarman. The Smiths don’t want to make videos, so instead the English group’s record company hired this arty British director to shoot something to go along with this wimpy-sounding song. Practically all it consists of is a shot of some androgynous figure that’s superimposed and slowly turned around over some wave-like images. But unlike the R.E.M. video, the vague minimalism quickly wears out its sense of intrigue and becomes a big bore. Be thankful for it, though: If the Smiths’ self-indulgent singer-writer-leader Morrissey ever decides to break his ban on appearing in these things then we’ll have to watch the most boring person in pop music today as well as hear him. 25

Iron Maiden’s “Wasted Years.” Director: Jim Yukich. Wasted time is more like it. This is yet another group that still thinks home-movie-like footage of its on-tour antics is interesting enough to patch together for a video. The song, too, is not up to what this above-par metal band is capable of delivering. It’s almost enough to give dinosaur rock a bad name. 15