Entertainment For Lively Minds
The Word and the curse of Band Aid
I heard "Do They Know It's Christmas" on the radio today, nothing unusual about that, the radio stations appear to be aware of the proximity of the festive season. As the stars of 1984 began their trawl through those earth moving, epoch making lyrics it began to dawn on me that almost all of them are among the most reviled round here. Geldof is not exactly lauded round these parts, Paul Young is not considered the best soul singer from Luton never mind anywhere else, Boy George? Enough said. Then we really have a run George Michael, Simon le Bon, Tony Hadley, Sting and then there he is emoting for all he's worth The Words favourite whipping boy Bono and "Well tonight thank God it's them instead of you". You get my point, add in Phil Collins drumming (Jon Moss excitedly saying "Phil Collins is going to be here" sounds so sweet now doesn't it). it would appear by general Word consensus that appearing in Band Aid was a career finisher. Bloody good job MacCartney and Morrissey didn't involve themselves. Anyway for this 18 year old in 1984 it was quite an event, the news story breaking, the footage, finally the video, the song and in at number 1. The biggest selling single of all time and all that guff. Didn't change much though did it except making most of those involved (except Bananarama) an unpalatable footnote in the history of music on a music blog. I'm sure all those multi millionaires aren't that bothered and let's hope that in their world of plenty they are still spreading smile of joy.
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What about Band Aid 20
Featuring Word Faves Chris Martin, Dido, Robbie Williams, Travis, Snow Patrol and...er...Bonio
Marilyn
is of course the exception.
I still don't know who that woman is standing behind Francis Rossi - didn't know then and don't know now.
DC Lee?
Could be right
Seems she was involved
Jody Watley
of Shalamar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jody_Watley
Jody Watley
isn't it? from Shalamar?
Jody Watley
isn't it? from Shalamar?
I think it's Jody Watley
I'm pretty sure now
Powerful at
the time. Though I remember it even then being a bit of a joke on the quiet for people our age. Most of the stars were had-beens by then or one hit 'fab FM' wonders. Thanks God Thomson Twins weren't on it I say.
Feed The Word (blog). Let Them Know Its Christmas Tine
Paul Young
Pretty good singer, actually.
And Paul Weller participated too. I think the NME was not happy.
Agree dai,
Weller good (great)
Paul Young was pretty good, much maligned but there was a string of pretty good singles from No Parlez and the boy could sing
Both Georges are alright (both certainly give good interveiw now)
Not really about them being one hit wonders either. Most of the people there had a pretty good run of chart success throughout the eighties.
Not defending the song though as I think it's pretty awful with trite lyrics and midge and bob were definitely on the slide (in fact Geldof was always a bit of a fool in my opinion).
Not so much the curse of Band Aid as the curse of 1984
Look at similar love and affection for:
Nik Kershaw
Howard Jones
Thompson Twins
etc
etc.
Personally as a Smash Hit pop kid of that era, I have no problems with saying I liked 1984 and its music. Still do. Others may prefer a great year of their own childhood.
Standing on the platform of the Paris Metro
in 1985, aged 15. Across the tracks, on the facing platform is an American boy, of a similar age, with his mom. Our Yankee cousin starts singing: # We are the world, we are the children...#
'I'm not having this' I say to myself, it's a dreadful song, and start singing the infinitely more sophisticated # Feeeed the wuuur-llldddd, let them know it's Christmas time... #
America is indignant. It pulls itself up to its full five feet and counters, loudly, # We are the ones who make a brighter day, SO LET'S START GIVING #
Well, I'm not having that. I let out a roar: # SO TONIGHT THANK GOD IT'S THEM, INSTEAD OF YOUUUUUUUU!!!! #
Then our mums told us both to pack it in.
What's interesting is
the guys in the kitchen at work have Capital FM blasting out which is usually a non-stop diet of Autotuned Euro-Rave and the latest by Rap-bloke Feat R&B Diva.
However it being Xmas, it seems Capital occasionally divert from the loop of the same 12 records and sure enough on comes Band Aid.
Clearly, your average listener to that station won't have the faintest idea who Bananarama, Marilyn, Midge Ure or Paul Young are and yet there they are. The song has become part of the fabric of Xmas, and nobody questions the credentials of the people involved. They're all immortalised in song, along with Jona Lewie, Roy Wood and The Wombles.
What's also rather telling is that the two attempts to 'update' Band Aid have faded from view and haven't replaced the original. Band Aid 20, with it's rather earnest Nigel Godrich take on the original seems almost forgotten now.
And then there was Band Aid II. Say what you like about the original line up but Sting, Bono, Weller, Collins are still pretty big stars and a lot of the line-up are still packing theatres and enormodomes...Duran, Spands, The Quo, Boy George, Simple Minds and most of the acts still are still working.
Band Aid II featured the rather less than stellar line up of Bananarama (only band on both 1st and 2nd singles fact fans), Big Fun (who weren't), Bros, Cathy Dennis, D Mob, Jason Donovan, Kylie Minogue, The Pasadenas, Chris Rea, Cliff Richard, Jimmy Somerville, Sonia, Lisa Stansfield, Technotronic and Wet Wet Wet. Sir Cliff, Rea and Kylie notwithstanding...the 'where are they now file' is pretty thick on that one.
Shall we hear it?:
Cathy Dennis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_singles_written_by_Cathy_Dennis
She's done alright for herself over the years, a couple of bonafide pop classics in there too.
Boy George
has an absolutely gorgeous voice. Hilarious interviewee also.
One word
Victims
It's got legs
I still hear it repeatedly and by chance in shops in the run-up to Christmas each year. Yet I hardly ever hear the more polished and star-heavy "We are the World". Apparently, this is true in the USA also, where the original Band Aid song is now a bona fide, card carrying, Christmas Standard.
Agreed
It's certainly got something beyond being ubiquitous 27-years ago, and I'm sure the whole song being put together in just a few days helped - "We Are The World" is what you get when you think too much about it for 6 months...
We are the World is a horrible
tune, and the recording is basically a vocal fireworks display with everyone trying to show off their range. The vocals on Band Aid are quite understated, with only Bono doing a bit of showboating.
One reason you never hear it at Christmas
is that it has nothing to do with Christmas. Although it *does* have a Ghostbuster in the video
Ah.
That important point didn't occur to me. You still don't hear it much, though.
The whole problem with "We Are The World"
is that it's focussing on the wrong people. Instead of making you realise that there are other folk out there that need help, it's a self-congratulatory "aren't we wonderful for being so considerate" wankfest.
Inevitably
From the cast of Glee (whatever that is).
and the excellent 2002 Bad Cover Version by Pulp
Not seen that Pulp video before.
They did do a good video, didn't they. Still remember the video to Babies hooked me before the song did. Ah, Chart Show, where are you now...?
Band Aid II is worse
A surfeit of SAW acts there.
Look! There's Big Fun!
I like Band Aid 20
There I said it. Of course it's a perfect time capsule of all the annoying pop muppets of the time - exactly the same as the original. However it scores above the eighties version in two respects:
1. It has The Darkness on it - so it's automatically more fun (if only for the sight of Justin Hawkins, unable to resist humping his guitar in the video)
2. It doesn't sound quite so much like the middle bit of the Doctor Who theme
But We Digress. And So, BTTOP.
Nothing wrong with Band Aid 1. Still one of the best christmas records ever: cracking bass groove by one of the most under-rated bass players this country has, and a lovely harmony by Sting on the 'Bitter sting of tears' line (which isn't evident on the original mix, but is there if you listen out for it).
Down with bashing 1984! Down with those on a downer for 1984 because it isn't 1971!
I was in the Band Aid studio the other week
...Sarm West. (I wasn't recording.)
I spent nearly all of my time there trying to work out the camera angles of the various chorus shots, walking in and out pretending to be Paul Weller, etc. "Is this where Francis Rossi turned to the camera and pointed?", etc etc.
Being 11 in 1984, it was for me a classic moment in musical history; and given Wham and FGTH completed the Christmas Top 3, a high quality one.