I.R.S. Records Presents The Cutting Edge

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I.R.S. Records Presents The Cutting Edge
Also known asThe Cutting Edge
Genremusic variety show
Directed byJonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
Starring
Country of originUnited States
Production
Producers
  • Jay Boberg
  • Carl Grasso
Running time60 minutes
Original release
NetworkMTV
ReleaseMarch 1983 (1983-03) –
September 1987 (1987-09)

I.R.S. Records Presents: The Cutting Edge, also known as The Cutting Edge or IRS's The Cutting Edge, is a music program that aired on MTV (US) from March 1983 to September 1987, on the last Sunday of every month. The show was retitled The Cutting Edge Happy Hour in 1987.

Background

The show was intended to feature performers who might otherwise not be seen on MTV, and featured the earliest appearances on MTV for acts like

Madonna, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and R.E.M.[1] The co-founders of I.R.S., Miles Copeland III and Jay Boberg, also saw the program as an effective promotional tool for I.R.S. recording artists at a time when much of the music industry had not yet perceived the marketing value of music videos.[2] Copeland later described himself as "the only record company executive ever to have had his own show on MTV".[3]

Broadcast history

Produced by Jay Boberg and Carl Grasso of I.R.S. Records for MTV, and directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris,[4] the first year of the show featured a variety of hosts including

user-generated source
] Interviews with musicians and performances were videotaped in clubs, recording studios and private homes.

As it evolved, the program began to produce programs that focused on regional

New Sincerity" music scene.[7][8]

Los Angeles Times critic Terry Atkinson, writing in July 1986, called The Cutting Edge "simply the best program about pop music that we have", with "the most interesting and adventurous new acts".[9]

After a six-month hiatus, the program returned in June 1987 as The Cutting Edge Happy Hour directed by C.D.Taylor.

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]

References