Live Aid (1985)

The broadcast of the biggest benefit concert in history, organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief.

Directors:

Vincent Scarza, Kenneth Shapiro

Writer:

Bob Geldof (idea)

Stars:

Bob Geldof, Bryan Adams, Stuart Adamson

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Bob Geldof	...	Self
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bryan Adams	...	Self (at JFK Stadium)
Stuart Adamson	...	Self (as Big Country)
Mo Amin	...	Self - Photographer
Adam Ant	...	Self
Nick Ashford	...	Self
Joan Baez	...	Self
Tom Bailey	...	Self (as Thompson Twins)
Garry Beers	...	Self
Big Country	...	Themselves
Black Sabbath	...	Themselves
Bono	...	Self (as U2)
The Boomtown Rats	...	Themselves
David Bowie	...	Self
Andrew Bown	...	Self (as Status Quo)

Storyline

This show features Live Aid, the biggest benefit concert in history. Taking place simultaneously in two seperate stadiums in the USA and the UK, many of the top contemporary rock music acts play many of their most popular songs to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. In addition, short films illustrating the crisis in Africa are run with the appeal for aid.

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Plot Keywords:

ethiopia | famine | live aid | rock music | london england | 

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Taglines:

Feed The World

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Bruce Springsteen, who had just finished his European tour for "Born in the USA", was approached to appear at the Wembley concert but declined. He later admitted that he could have done a brief acoustic set and later regretted not performing on the day.

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Quotes

Tina Turner: It was the most electrifying feeling, being there - no other reason than the cause. I wish I could do even more.

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Alternate Versions

In its original form, the concert ran 16 hours. There were two versions of the U.S. telecast - one incarnation aired complete on MTV, another produced by ABC was in two parts, part one (the first eleven hours) airing in syndication, part two (the final three hours) airing on ABC. In any case, the DVD version is edited to ten hours, leaving out many key performances, such as Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Power Station, The Hooters, The Four Tops, Rick Springfield, Bernard Watson, Santana, and Led Zeppelin. The DVD version also contains an aurally altered version of Paul McCartney's performance of "Let It Be" (due to a microphone problem in the first half of the song, McCartney had to re-record his vocals twenty years after the fact so that it could be included on the DVD).

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Connections

Featured in Harry Chapin: When in Doubt, Do Something (2020)

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Soundtracks

Radio Ga Ga
Written by Roger Taylor
Performed by Queen

User Reviews

The Global Jukebox - Relive a Musical & Cultural Touchstone

This is a cultural, musical and historical treasure trove of some of the greatest and most influential rock/pop musicians ever. Stand out performances for me were Queen, The Who and U2, I have watched them over and over. It is hours and hours of footage, and even after you have gorged yourself on it, there is still more! And then not even all the acts and songs were captured, as Geldof had originally requested that the event not be recorded!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3604680.stm

Live Aid was not only a great and memorable musical event, but a major technical achievement of its time. Remember this is in an era before the internet, mobile phones, when even sending and receiving an international fax was hit and miss. According to Wikipedia, an estimated 1.5 billion viewers, across 100 countries, watched the live broadcast.

It is also arguably the single biggest charity and cultural change event ever in terms of not only it scale, but its impact.

Bob Geldof always said, as acknowledged in the very name 'Band Aid', that the record and the ensuing concerts were a stop-gap - emergency relief. The point of the event was to raise money, yes, but also to put the issue of extreme poverty on the political agenda.

Bearing in mind that these kinds of immense social changes can take decades, it can be safely said that Live Aid did do just that by sowing some seeds of change.

The story of Live Aid and what it is about in its broadest sense has stayed with many people. It is bigger than its critics.

Fans of LIVE AID can also join a group on Facebook http://groups.to/liveaid

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Twitter

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 July 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Live Aid

Filming Locations:

John F. Kennedy Stadium - 3601 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

GBP150,000,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

American Broadcasting Company (ABC), British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Music Television (MTV)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

960 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo Dolby Digital (5.1) DTS (5.1)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1