Saturday, July 13, 1985, will forevermore be often called one of many largest days in music historical past. Bob Geldof, the scruffy, scrappy frontman of The Boomtown Rats, strongarmed artists, venues, satellite tv for pc firms, and even heads of state into taking part in an enormous live performance occasion to boost cash to fight a catastrophic famine in Ethiopia.
Over a 16-hour broadcast, Live Aid, cut up between Wembley Stadium in London and JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, introduced in over US$125 million in humanitarian help from a world TV viewers estimated at 1.9 billion — practically 40 per cent of the world’s inhabitants — in 150 nations, together with the Soviet Union. Queen’s 20-minute set is broadly thought to be one of many biggest of all time. Bono’s dancing with a lady from the viewers is now thought-about iconic. And Phil Collins jetting through Concorde to seem on each levels? Crazy.
There has by no means been, nor could there ever be once more, a extra highly effective demonstration of how music generally is a highly effective agent for social and political change. Almost 40 years later, individuals nonetheless discuss Live Aid. And the speak has been rekindled, because of a brand new musical primarily based on the occasion known as Just For One Day (sure, the title is from the Bowie track, Heroes.) It follows a number of characters who keep in mind that day and intertwines real-life occasions with over 30 songs carried out at Live Aid.
After a run on the Old Vic in London’s West End (the evaluations have been sensible), the manufacturing’s subsequent cease is the Mirvish Theatre in Toronto from Jan. 26 to March 25, 2025. Geldof was in Toronto to speak in regards to the manufacturing. I sat down with Bob for about half an hour. And Bob being Bob, I obtained in precisely two questions throughout that point. Here’s a gently summarized model of our chat.
Alan Cross: You by no means struck me as a fan of musical theatre.
Bob Geldof: Well, in case you’re a Catholic, you could have your affirmation at 11. My dad took me on my affirmation deal with to see South Pacific and it blew me away. I obtained it. I actually like Oklahoma. I’m a phrases man. I tune into phrases first and the phrases are so good [Bob quotes back a bunch of lyrics from Oklahoma]. And then West Side Story was simply phenomenally good. Why wouldn’t I be into [musical theatre]? What I’m not into is stuff like Cats. That type of nonsense doesn’t do it for me.
AC: When it involves Live Aid — the precise occasion — lots of people immediately don’t notice how huge of an occasion that was. We in ’85 not often obtained to see our heroes, particularly if we have been within the hinterlands. Live Aid was transformative as a result of expertise allowed us to see our individuals.
BG: That’s completely key. Rock ‘n’ roll is a perform of expertise. Elvis and Little Richard wouldn’t have communicated if not for the brand new whiz-bang transistor radios. Six years later, in comes these 4 younger [men] who don’t perceive why they need to be deferential. So you abruptly obtained by means of your TV in a really black-and-white, still-bankrupt, postwar Britain … color! Optimism and pleasure.
The Rolling Stones! There’s no WAY they might have damaged by means of with that racket [without television]! Pure punk! Utter contemptuous insolence simply staring out at you from the display! Looking bizarre, you already know? But all of us obtained it concurrently. That’s basically the story for Band Aid and Live Aid.
As I watched that information clip on the 6 o’clock BBC information [reporter Michael Buerk’s story on the Ethiopian famine], I believed this calls for one thing of the self.
The Boomtown Rats have been off the boil. There’s Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Boy George, Eurythmics. I’m not assured a success, so why don’t I get these guys — who I knew, as a result of my missus [Paula Yates] was the host of the rock present of the hour, The Tube. So I known as her and requested, “Who’s there?” Luckily, there was Midge [Ure, the future co-writer of the Band-Aid song Do They Know It’s Christmas]. And that’s how that started. A perform of expertise.
[After a trip to Africa after the Band-Aid project, Geldof was shocked to find that none of the grain purchased with the funds raised could get to the people who needed it because a cartel was holding up the trucks.]
I went again to the Band Aid belief and reported on the journey. “I think we should do a concert” [to raise money for the trust to buy its own trucks]. I started to enter Bob Mode. Suddenly, the world may take heed to these items. A perform of expertise. “If we do it globally,” I stated, “then we can do this.”
I learn that the LA Olympics was the one Olympics that made cash, so let’s get the man who did the LA Olympics. I obtained ahold of him and I stated, “This is what I want to do. Are there enough satellites?” They stated, “Well, there are but many of them belong to the military and there are a lot of secret ones up there.” And then I stated, “Can we get them?”
I went to dinner with the president of France [François Mitterrand] at Elysée Palace, such as you do, and I stated, “Mr. President, France has a satellite over central Africa that I want to be in on this. I really want Africa to be involved in this, to understand that they’re not alone.” He goes, “Well, I don’t know if we’ve got satellites.” So this basic was known as in who stated “Non, non, non! Cette impossible!” Then Mitterand stated, “General, I’m your president. The question is, ‘Do we have satellites that operate over central Africa?” The man stated, “Yes, Mr. President, we do.” “Bob would like to use them for 24 hours.”
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So always remember what that is. In our world, it’s about this nice second of music when the best acts ever did their biggest songs ever and carried out manner over their norm. And it’s reverberated down by means of the years.
We — nicely, he — spoke for a while after this, ultimately transferring to Live Eight, one other world live performance occasion that befell in 2006. He additionally hinted at extra fortieth anniversary Live Aid occasions coming in 2025 plus a celebration of The Boomtown Rats’ fiftieth anniversary.
Tickets for Just for One Day go on sale Monday, Oct. 7, at 10 a.m. ET.
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Alan Cross is a broadcaster with Q107 and 102.1 the Edge and a commentator for Global News.
Subscribe to Alan’s Ongoing History of New Music Podcast now on Apple Podcast or Google Play
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