It's a Mistake
"It's a Mistake" is a song by the Australian band Men at Work. The song was written by the lead singer and guitarist Colin Hay and the recording was produced by Peter McIan. It was released in June 1983, as the third single from their album "Cargo" and peaked at #34 in Australia. In the US, it entered the charts at #42 on July 2, 1983, and peaked at #6 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 in August 1983 becoming the band's fourth and final top 10 hit. It was performed live on "Saturday Night  Live" on 22 October 1983. Content. The song's lyrics deal with the mindset of military men across the world in the 1980s, wondering if and when the democratic countries of NATO and the communist states of the Warsaw Pact will end the Cold War standoff with conventional battle or a nuclear exchange. Hay sings in the persona of a mid-level officer wishing to learn from his superiors if his men are going to war or not. Music video. The video, which had moderate rotation on MTV (as opposed to the band's singles from their "Business as Usual  album), told a satirical story of the outbreak of a war between the Eastern and Western blocs. The beginning of the video shows the five band members dressed as children playing soldiers" and being invited into an officer's tent by an American officer, inside of which are many allied officers of various services drinking and partying. The video then shows four adult men who are working each as a businessman, a road worker, an anti war protester and a doctor. The video then shows each of them fading into a military uniform vaguely corresponding to each of their peacetime  professions with a surprised look on their faces, as to imply they were drafted. We then see them walking through a burnt out forest and come across some elderly women, who beat the soldiers with umbrellas. One of the soldiers takes aim but upon realizing what is happening lowers his weapon. The latter half of the video is mostly set in an underground bunker or "War Room" similar to the NORAD facility of Cheyenne Mountain, and the band seemed to engage in a semi-retelling of the 1964 black comedy film "Dr. Strangelove". At the end of the video, the  officer is nervously tapping his fingers and inadvertently knocks open the protective cover from the nuclear button, which is right next to his ashtray. Then, when he goes to stub out his cigar in the ashtray, he accidentally hits the button instead.