Let’s work backward from “So Many Men,” starting with Diana Ross’s “Muscles,” a Michael Jackson-penned hit from 1982. It’s a real curio–famously written about Jackson’s boa constrictor of the same name, the song strikes me now (as opposed to me when I was seven) as almost too deliberately camp, even though I have absolutely no question as to either Jackson’s or Ross’s sincerity in this particular endeavor. (Or any other.) Nevertheless, the video is ridiculous, especially when you factor in those odd quick cuts of vintage Buster Keaton footage.

“Muscles” reads, historically speaking, like a sequel–a slow, melodramatic sequel–to Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical,” No. 1 for months in 1981, and one of the most subversive of the early pop videos. (Sadly, it’s not embeddable, but it is on YouTube.) The video–which is approximately 800 times better than the song itself–is one of the most vivid mainstream icons of the period, but watching it now makes me wonder how it ever got on TV in that less permissive age. It’s not just the obviously sexy stuff (this came out at a time when Three’s Company had been on the air for several seasons), but the gay not-even-subtext, particularly at the end, when the muscle men walk out hand in hand. The video’s genius is that is plays everything as light comedy, which was ONJ’s real knack anyway, and which made everything here seem just ducky to Grandma and Grandpa America.

Of course, it’s impossible to discuss any of this without mention of the Village People’s “Macho Man,” from 1979. The song certainly is some kind of template, but what’s most unexpected if you’re unfamiliar with the video is how little actual muscle-flexing it has. Instead, the director seems to have put the camera down and gone out for lunch. Or maybe to hit the gym.

Indeed, the resemblance is pretty obvious. Yet the thing no one mentions is how much Fosse’s original looks like something Motown choreographer Cholly Atkins came up with while feeling especially frisky one day. And, of course, paying homage to Fosse in music videos is nothing new; the David Fincher-directed clip for Paula Abdul’s “Cold Hearted,”, for example, paid sweaty tribute to All That Jazz 19 years ago, and Christina Aguilera returned the favor in 1999.

Still, in the interest of science we found this very handy list of music videos that paid tribute to musical numbers, movie sequences, etc. The most obvious mentions are Madonna’s various homages–to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in “Material Girl,” to Metropolis in “Express Yourself,” et. al.–but we have one of our own we’d like to offer. Surely these modern-day disco heroes:

have heard of these golden-age disco heroes:

Earlier: Bionic Beyonce Tries To Jump-Start A New Dance Craze

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LCD Soundsystem – Big Ideas [dailymotion]

The Village People are the latest artists to team up with the Web Sheriff, the exceedingly polite antipiracy company that roams the plains of the Internet, looking for people who are violating copyrights. And it’s not for reasons related to sheriff-themed costumes! Instead, the suited-up disco group is planning on joining Prince’s lawsuit against the overly self-impressed Swedish BitTerrorist haven The Pirate Bay.

The artists are planning lawsuits both in the U.S. and in Sweden, said Lars Sandberg, a lawyer assigned to work on the Swedish side of the case.

“Work has been initiated to claim damages from those who are behind The Pirate Bay,” Sandberg told The Associated Press. He confirmed reports in Swedish media that the artists would seek damages of millions of dollars.

While Prince is looking for damages from downloads of his entire catalog, the Village People have but one target: Unpaid-for downloads of “YMCA,” the group’s dancefloor-filling megahit. You’d think that they’d at least want people to pony up for “Sex Over The Phone,” too, what with it being such a viral hit and all, but I guess it’s all about the baby (dance) steps.

Prince and Village People to sue file-sharing site Pirate Bay: lawyer [AP via IHT; HT TorrentFreak, whose nauseating pro-TPB attitude isn't safe for lunch and whose super-homophobic comments are even less safe for your view of humanity]

Village People Cop: Y.M.C.A. Lyrics Were Meant Literally [Towleroad]