5. Johnny Cash - Hurt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aF9AJm0RFc Considering his own life of ups and downs it's almost surprising to remember that the late great Johnny Cash didn't even write Hurt. Even Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor was blown away by how much different life was breathed into his lyrics when the Man In Black covered it in 2002. But nothing would show how personal the song could really be until Mark Romanek - himself a frequent NIN collaborator - would direct this video in 2003. With a stark unflinching look on its subject, it manages to evoke emotions that not even the best Nine Inch Nails videos could possibly achieve. Blending archival footage with 2003 images of an older and more weathered Johnny Cash, this was a 71-year-old man reflecting on his life, loves, and regrets. We're invited to do so with him. The images of records in cracked frames and a "Closed To The Public" sign hanging over the House Of Cash museum are just examples of several simple images with such immediate weight and meaning, giving us insight into the life of such a complex human being. What results is a truly haunting video that is all the more moving when one realises that Cash passed away less than a year after its release.