Live Aid (1985 TV Special) User Reviews (21)

It Was Twenty Years Ago Today ...

[Theo Robertson · 9/10 · 12 July 2005]

... Give or take a few hours of course but I still have vivid memories of this ultimate concert . As soon as it was announced I wished I could have attended it but as you can imagine tickets for the Wembly gig were somewhat difficult to get your hands on . I did hear via a friend of mine Rab Kincaid that his sister Vicki got a ticket and would be going to London on the 13th of July , I did feel some self sorrow because the previous Summer my sister acting as courier wanted to know if I wanted to go out with Vicki but I turned her down . She was a very nice girl with a highly developed body for a teenager but from the neck upwards she looked disturbingly like Celtic footballer star Maurice Johnstone with a mullet hairstyle . i wasn't and never will be the sort of guy who'd ever go out with a girl for ulterior motives but it did flash through my mind in the early Summer of 1985 that if I'd been going out with Vicki I might have been able to get a Live Aid concert ticket

Still not to worry it was going to be broadcast live on television and I was really looking forward to seeing my musical heroes U2 perform . I kept rubbing my hands wondering what their set list was going to be while I played their live LP Under A Blood Red Sky to death , I was really hoping they were going to perform I Will Follow . So on the day of the concert I was wishing the dross supporting acts like Status Quo , Howard Jones , Paul Young and Adam Ant ( Who played the title track of his new album ! ) would just go away and let Bono and the boys show the audience how it's done . At 5 O'clock the transmission alternatively switched from Wembley to JFK Staduim Philidelphia where we saw the Bryan Adams set . Jack Nicholson said we're going back to London to hear a band who aren'1t afraid to speak their mind and U2 came on to perform the appropriate Sunday Bloody Sunday . Unfortunately their second track was Bad a song I've never taken to and Bono spent so much time jumping into the audience to get a girl to dance with him that they had to scrap their third track Pride . In fact I thought their whole set was a major disappointment that I couldn't believe the positive feed back they got in the press later and there was no one more surprised than the band themselves !

Major disappointment aside I still stayed in to watch the rest of the concert most of which I watched on my sister's portable black and white TV and it wasn't until a few days later that I started digesting what a monumental event it was where Queen stole the show with their medley , where Bob Geldof swore live on air ( In those days bad language on television was still very rare ) , the dominance of British music that saw every act at Wembly hail from the British Isles and where a third of the acts at the American concert were also British , and the strange fact within a couple of years many of the acts at Wembly had disappeared from the charts altogether . But without doubt the abiding memory for me was the entire lack of cynicism . Artists went out of their way to give a concert while people went out of their way to put their hands in their pockets . Even if you want to be cynical then you can't deny that money was raised and it went to humanitarian Non Governmental Organisations ( NGOs ) that saved countless human lives . That was the difference between Live Aid in 1985 and Live 8 in 2005

a great taste of where music was at in the mid-80's...

[AlsExGal · 9/10 · 11 September 2018]

...as New Wave peaked, rap was starting to emerge slightly, and hard rock was ascending to dominate the airwaves the next few years, along with dance pop. This review basically turns into a review of the DVD set, since that is the only way I know you can see the event in its entirety.

The mammoth charity rock concert was held on two continents simultaneously. Organized by Boomtown Rats singer Bob Geldof after seeing a BBC news story about famine in Ethiopia, this was preceded by two smash hit charity singles: "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in the UK, and "We Are the World" in the US. The videos for each precede the concerts on the DVD's as well. The concert started early morning in London's Wembley Stadium, and as the morning broke in the US, the American half started in Philadelphia's JFK Stadium. They would alternate back and forth, with each country's performances being shown in the other's stadium on Jumbotron-type screens. The event is spread across 4 DVD's.

The first disc features artists such as The Staus Quo, The Style Council, The Boomtown Rats, Adam Ant, Ultravox, Spandau Ballet, Elvis Costello, Nik Kershaw, Sade, Sting, Phil Collins, Howard Jones, Bryan Ferry, Paul Young, Alyson Moyet, and Bryan Adams. The closers for disc 1 are by far the best: U2, on the precipice of becoming one of the biggest bands of the decade, blow the preceeding artists off the stage.

The second disc includes The Beach Boys, Dire Straits, George Thorogood, Simple Minds, Joan Baez, Pretenders, The Who, Kenny Loggins, Elton John, and George Michael. The best of this disc are David Bowie, who does a great 4 song set, and Queen, showcasing Freddie Mercury's command of the stage to great effect.

The third disc has Madonna, Paul McCartney, a group performance of the "Do They Know..." song as the British half of the concert ends, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Black Sabbath (with Ozzy), REO Speedwagon, Crosby Stills & Nash, Judas Priest, The Cars, Neil Young, Thompson Twins, Duran Duran, Patti LaBelle, and Phil Collins, who flew on the Concorde from the British concert to perform in Philly as well. The best of the disc was Eric Clapton, who does fine versions of Cream's "White Room" and Derek & the Dominoes "Layla".

The fourth and final disc wraps up the concert with Hall & Oates performing with members of The Temptations, Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, Bob Dylan with Keith Richards and Ron Wood, and finally everyone on stage to close out the show with "We Are the World". Also included on the fourth disc are extra performances that were shown via remotes such as INXS in Australia, B.B. King at a Dutch jazz & blues festival, Teddy Pendergrass, Run-DMC, and Cliff Richard.

All told, it ran about 9+ hours. I saw bits when it was on back in 1985, since it was broadcast on a few stations. This DVD set allowed me to see the whole thing (as far as I know).

Wish I'd seen it live

[deancapetanelis · 8/10 · 21 April 2005]

I was just a young pup with barely enough allowance to cover a movie. I never could have bought the pay per view. Now that I'm an adult I'm paying a fortune for bootlegs and authorized versions.

That's the thing about nostalgia, what seemed unimportant as a child becomes the stuff that dreams are made of sitting in a cubicle all day. Still, the official release is worth picking up.

I'm disappointed some acts chose not to participate in the re-release. I guess Led Zepplin doesn't need any new publicity but if I was the Hooters I'd be begging for a chance to get back into daylight, never mind the spotlight.

The best concert I ever saw

[waia2000 · 19 June 2001]

I happened to be in England at the time of this concert and was able to buy a ticket. I got there early and took a place on the field. The crowd was different than at an American concert -- mellower and nicer overall. Once U2 came onstage, though, things changed. The crowd started to move toward the stage in massive wave-like surges. It was a little anxiety-provoking, but nobody got hurt that I could see.

The line-up was nothing short of spectacular and I was particularly happy to see The Who, David Bowie, Sting, Queen and Paul McCartney. This was in Paul's anxious phase, after John was killed; Paul only did one song and seemed to be hiding behind the piano. The surprise stand-out act of the day for me was Queen. Freddy Mercury really knew how to work the crowd and he had 50,000 people (or whatever) in the palm of his hand.

The best day of my life and I was only eleven.

[the_Poppuns · 10/10 · 26 December 2004]

I got this DVD for Christmas and I spent the whole day going through it. Awesome. Just awesome. It's sitting there with all my other DVDs but I already know it will get the most use. All of my favorite bands were there for this historic concert and I'm sure a lot of people can say that. This DVD brings me back to a moment in time where people seemed to be doing the right thing. Banding together to help others. It's re-inspiring me to be a person who does great things. The DVD itself is missing a lot of stuff but apparently everything they had is in there. According to the insert, Mtv dismantled their footage from Philadelphia because Geldof wanted to avoid future legal problems. *shrug* I don't know what that was about, but I wouldn't have listened to him. But even still, this concert is fantastic. All the mullets a girl could ask for and some incredible live performances, especially U2 and Queen. Freddie continues to kick everyone's can to this day. And Bono inciting chicks to squeeze themselves out of the crowd for a hug. Priceless. Seeing my faves like Paul Young, Howard Jones, Adam Ant, Wham! and Duran Duran, in that perfect moment in time. *swoon* Oh, what I wouldn't do to go back there, especially since some there that day are gone now. If you were a fan of music in, oh, let's say the last 40 years, there should be something in there for you, and you should definitely give it a watch, if not a buy.

There are some extras that include INXS from Australia, and other Live Aid performances from around the world, and the original "Feed the World" and "We Are the World" videos. The only thing that I wish they'd have done was an up-to-date documentary with some of the acts talking about the event and what it means almost twenty years later. But that would just be gravy. I could go on forever about this, it's become my most prized possession in just 24 hours.

Gem of humanity

[SpookyDuke · 10/10 · 29 November 2004]

Finally, we got the DVD! I bought it 2 days ago and watched it almost the whole Sunday. I was turning 19 that year and the event meant nothing but the brightest gem on the gleamy crown of the 80's optimism, happiness, joy, global spirit and most of all - search for ultimate humanity. There's no need to emphasize that LIVE AID (and everything else connected to it) is the singular event of the rock'n'roll history, greater then anything seen before or after. Not only for the plead of the spectacular names that joined the effort, but mainly for the cause and the relevance of it. It's probably the only time in our history when people joined hands globally to help people in need. Thank Sir Bob for the good you brought us and unforgettable moments of our lives.

I was there at Wembley.

[Cinema_Fan · 10/10 · 8 October 2005]

I was there at the Wembley Live Aid show.

Being that I was one of the last few to buy my ticket at the company that takes you on their coaches to concerts. The last four or six I think, you could only come to their office and buy them in person.

As I was and still very much so a big fan of The Who, I wasn't a Mod, and knowing that they had "retired" this would be or could be the only chance to get to see them. I had a friend who was watching it at home recording their section on VHS for me. Then it happened, the satellite feed broke just as they started My Generation, I sometimes wonder if it was because the rest of the World were using to much power at that time that the system couldn't handle it all at once. Shame, and yes I did Pete Townshend fall over.

The weather was stunning, just as Elton John came on it started to drizzle lightly, but not for long, it was needed, the drizzle not Elton. Queen was amazing; three friends & I saw their very last show as a group a year later at Knebworth House, 120,000 people were also there too!

RIP Freddie, what a Showman.

When we were leaving through our side of the Wembley tunnels the atmosphere was electric, we were singing "Feed the World". During the coach ride home we could make out sets from Sabbath and others on the radio.

Its a shame that in twenty years nothing much has changed for the African people, such as Politics and war.

I have three used T Shirts, a little small for me now, that came in sealed bags and two mint Programmes and a mint Live Aid: The Concert book that came out very shortly after the gig. The Wembley Live Aid concert ticket stub is still in good condition in the photo album.

What a fantastic piece of History, 1 out of 72000 people seeing the real deal out of 1.5 to 2 billion watching on their telly's. When people talk about it and you mention that you were there they tend to look at you like you are lying, at first they just don't believe it, you really do, sometime's, have to prove it. It does fill me with pride to know that I was at a very Historical Musical event.

Queen - The Greatest Live Performance in the History of Rock

[SirNevilleCawasCyrusBardoliwalla · 10/10 · 5 November 2018]

Queen's twenty one minute performance, which began at 6:41 PM, has been voted - by more than 60 artists, journalists and music industry executives - the greatest live performance in the history of rock. Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury at times led the crowd in unison refrains, and his sustained note during the a cappella section came to be known as "The Note Heard Round the World". The band's six song set opened with a shortened version of "Bohemian Rhapsody" and closed with "We Are the Champions". Mercury and fellow band member Brian May later sang the first song of the three-part Wembley event finale, "Is This the World We Created." At the conclusion of the Wembley performances, Bob Geldof was raised onto the shoulders of the Who's guitarist Pete Townshend and Paul McCartney. Live Aid eventually raised $127 million in famine relief for African nations, and the publicity it generated encouraged Western nations to make available enough surplus grain to end the immediate hunger crisis in Africa. It's also worth noting that the official Live Aid DVD is the only authorised video release in which proceeds go directly to famine relief, the cause that the concert was originally intended to help.

Courtesy of Neville Cawas Bardoliwalla OBE

The Day the World United

[Mr Yu · 10/10 · 11 April 2003]

I say with great certainty that this was the greatest musical event of my lifetime. Yet there seem to be no video or audio copy that is available. This Live Aid album would have brought in Millions of Dollars in relief aid. Think about the cassette, album, CD, & DVD money we would have all paid? I am lucky enough to have a scratchy cassette recording off of the radio from that day. Long live Freddy!!!!

The Global Jukebox - Relive a Musical & Cultural Touchstone

[moosfriend · 10/10 · 16 June 2009]

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

wow!

[skistar123 · 10/10 · 10 February 2005]

I just watched the whole thing the other day and blimey it nearly blew my head off. u2, Queen, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, The Who, Status Quo, Duran Duran, Phil Collins, The Boomtown Rats, Eric Clapton and Paul McCartney have to be my favourite performances. Wow it is the most amazing thing ever... everyone should go out and buy it, even if they don't like anyone who was in it because it all raises money for the Band Aid Charitable Trust anyway. People have complained about the complete concert not being there, that's only because most of it was locked away in the BBC's stores for years and years, some of the tapes were destroyed. In America, they were told to destroy the tapes and they did so, MTV luckily had some of the us concert, but not all of it! Also there were things like 'Rat Trap' by the Boomtown Rats was discarded because Bob Geldof ripped the microphone off the lead! I thought it was really well done... when's the next one?

The Day Rock Cared

[Sargebri · 5 April 2003]

This was probably the greatest gathering of rock talent since the halcyon days of pop festivals in the 1960's. Just imagine a bill featuring everyone from Run D.M.C. to Led Zeppelin. This was perhaps the greatest show in the history of popular music and all the musicians played pretty much for free and made it one of the most memorable events not only in music history, but in the history of the world. Too bad that spirit didn't carry over into the 90's. Maybe the world would be a better place.

Live Aid

[jboothmillard · 9/10 · 30 January 2006]

There is not one person in this country who can't remember the event that changed the world and charity forever. Live Aid, dreamt up by genius Sir Bob Geldof was the biggest fund raising charity event in 1985, mixing live entertainment and charity together was fantastic. Everyone you can think of was singing/performing there for ten hours! These people included: Bryan Adams, Adam Ant, Black Sabbath, Bono, David Bowie, Jeff Bridges, Tony Butler, U2, Dick Clark, Phil Collins, Billy Connolly, Elvis Costello, David Crosby, Simon Crowe, Paul Denham, Duran Duran, Bob Dylan, Sally Field, Tony Hadley, Mick Jagger, Sir Elton John, Casey Kasem, Martin Kemp, Madonna, Queen, Paul McCartney, Wham! (with George Michael), Jack Nicholson, The Pretenders, Griff Rhys Jones, Lionel Richie, Status Quo, Mel Smith, Sting, Tina Turner, Tracey Ullman and The Who. Viewers in the crowd included Prince Charles, Princess Diana and Tony Thompson. It was number 58 on The 100 Greatest TV Programmes. Very good!

Live Aid DVD

[terri_perkins · 9/10 · 2 February 2005]

This is an awesome production. 4 DVD's and almost all of the show. It includes highlights of the day including Queen, Black Sabbath, and The Pretenders. I bought 4 of them and gave three to friends for Christmas. The list of artists includes many hugely influential musicians, including David Bowie, Eric Clapton, Madonna, Elton John, Neil Young, the Beach Boys, Paul McCartney, U2, The Who, Sting, Bryan Adams, and many more. This release features more than ten hours of performances and a documentary called FOOD, TRUCKS & ROCK N' ROLL. Proceeds earned from this release go to the Band Aid Trust, which provides food to hungry people in Africa

Back When Music Was About Caring Not About Politics

[shelbythuylinh · 10/10 · 3 December 2021]

It was filmed all over the world to give to Africa. And that it is the largest ever gathering of rock artists and all kinds of music.

Bob Geldof a UK singer and musician that wrote "Do They Know It's Christmas" single, one of the many organizers for the big benefit there.

As it was about caring and music. Not about social politics that we have today.

Wished we can go back to those times.

All that and MORE!!

[CharlesMassi · 10/10 · 22 June 2005]

There was a tree just off to the left of the rear entrance at Live Aid along the wooden fence that surrounded that part of the stadium. Climbing up, I looked in, there were these two guys on the other side that saw me. I looked at them, and knowing what I was up to gave me the all clear. Thinking quickly I turned to look back at my friend Joe, gave him the high sign and jumped. I WAS IN! I walked straight across to the courtesy tent and had some pizza; mingling with the back stage crowd, I could not believe it. Very cool… Eventually I worked my way under the stage. I was now directly under the concert, hanging out and digging the situation. Now, right behind me was the stairs that led to center stage. This is where the talent went before getting on and who do you think was walking up at that time... TINA TURNER! I yelled "Hey Tina!" She stopped. I approached, took her hand and said, "Do Good Baby." (What else to say?) She said "ok I will", and up she went. WOW! Mental overload. Then a chick I met while I was under the stage took a picture of me shaking her hand. I met some cool people that evening. So Tina went up, I figured I would follow and making it to the top, security stopped me. I sad "Tina!"She looked back and gave me one of those "oh well" looks so I retreated. I went back down and under to the front of the stage. It was open, I had a clear view of Tina, and Mick Jagger getting down, that was until security told me I could not stay where I was... No problem, I went back to the stairs. So now what to do? This time I tried another approach, going to the back of the stage I found myself directly behind the concert, but this time security was a little thicker. I had to think about my next move, and sure enough, there was. This blind spot between these series boxes that made sort of channel about 3 feet high that went directly to the stage. All I had to do was crawl for about 15 feet and then walk right on, and that is exactly what I did. Wow! I could not believe it... I went to the scaffolding climbed it slid over on to the curtain rod, and now I was center stage directly above the concert. I could have jumped right on top of Bill Wyman. I had my shoe off, was going to toss it at him... I should have jumped on the stage; at least I would have made Letterman. However, I was good. ( I look back at that and should have jumped ) Now a photographer saw me and said that I could not stay there because I had no passes... This was fine since the concert was ending. Another thing I will never forget is singing "We Are The World" with everyone else on stage. Well, I was directly above them... Once the singing ended security locked hands and made a path for all the talent to walk in-between as they vacated the stage. So I climbed down walked right on stage and followed the "gang". I had to stop at center stage and wave to the crowd. It was incredible! I turned and walked past security down the back stage and got some more pizza. Now the fun starts... There was Joan Baize, and having no idea who she was at that time, I bragged to her about what I did... She was not fazed. Then there was Harry Bellefonte nice man, we talked about his neighborhood. Next was Cher, she was heading for the limo. We chatted about the concert, I probably could of got into the limo (I walked her right to it) but I could not leave all of this. At that point, I said goodbye and re-treated. I had some more Dominos. Then I went back to center stage and stood there in awe... It was truly amazing... By this time, the stadium was emptying. I went to the guest rooms and hung out... If I was only able to get in earlier, it would have been nice to meet Robert Plant and Jimmy Page. .. Now everybody left, it was time for me to go and it was hard to do. What an awesome situation to be in. But, I walked out the back, found my friends and told them the story. As for Joe, he got in also, having a neck full of back stage passes.

7/13/15 - Thirty years later and this thing will still blow your mind

[atomicpunk40 · 10/10 · 13 July 2015]

It was 30 years ago today - 7-13-85 - when Live Aid was unleashed upon the world. Of course it was expected, Bob Geldof had announced the event to the public a few weeks before. But nobody could have predicted the (still) staggering effect that this monster had on the public.

Live Aid started at 12:00 P.M. in London (7:00 A.M. in Philadelphia, and 6:00 A.M. where I lived at which was the Gulf Coast area of the U.S., which meant I woke up and this thing was already going on full blast). For the next 16 hours the entire world was given a concert like no other. Star after star played. Geldof tried to get as many reunions as he could and succeeded getting a number of them (The Who, Crosby Stills Nash and Young, Black Sabbath, but unsuccessfully failed to get the Beatles). He also threw in the spectacle of Phil Collins playing in London and then flying the Concord over to Philly to play a couple of songs before joining Led Zeppelin for what would be the fun, but notoriously sloppy Led Zeppelin reunion. But some mistakes aside Live Aid was something not to be missed. Nobody in my neighborhood was watching anything else that day but Live Aid until the very end. The concert was simply that mesmerizing.

The show in the thirty years since it has been telecast has lost none of its power to dazzle. Of course the Live Aid DVD it is not without flaws. Missing whole acts, songs cut from some of the performers, and the performance list for the Philly show is scrambled up for whatever reason (example: Judas Priest played BEFORE Madonna, the DVD setup has the reverse). It all kinda taints things a tad. But these are small potatoes. Live Aid is a wall to wall rock and roll amusement park for the eyes and ears that will leave you exhausted and exhilarated when it is through. When you do watch it you better make sure you have a whole day to do so because at 10 hours plus you will be there in your living room for quite a while. I should know... that is what happened to me today when I made my 30th anniversary viewing!

Best Concert Ever In History!

[MovieCriticOnline · 10/10 · 13 November 2018]

Nothing comes close to this magically concert. Sure, not every performance is amazing, but the ones that are, and there are plenty of those, are by far stunning. Queen and U2 top them with probably the best moments in history. Queen the total command of the world, and U2 very moving and ground breaking performance that made them stars.

Many many other great performances, like Dire Straits, Ashford and Simpson with Teddy Pendergrass, David Bowie, and the finales on both sides of the continents.

Just the sheer names of stars was pretty amazing. Too many to mention.Nothing like this will sadly ever happen again. Too many magnificent stars gone, like Bowie, George Michael,

A must watch for anyone that either would relive or capture this amazing moment in time.

And after all of that, a wonderful message and eye opener to a part of the world that needed and still needs help.

FEED THE WORLD!!

better for me then than now

[kwiggins · 8/10 · 23 January 2005]

I watched this on TV and, like many others, was moved by many of the performances, especially U2. Now, looking back, most of the performances are not that great. As others have noted, Queen and U2 steal the show. Bono and Freddie Mercury define the term, "stage presence." Other notable performances are INXS and the Cars, among others. I have Woodstock on DVD and the music's better, many performances are better (or worse in a more entertaining way than Live Aid) and the overall feel of the occasion is more alive. But the DVD is definitely worth the money. It's a time capsule of music stuck between the hippies and the grunge bands that would put many of these bands out of work. If you were there or saw it on TV, it will take you back to a place "we've been cast out of" as Chrissie Hynde put it. It was the greatest musical event of the 80s but, when I bought the DVD, I asked an attendant where it was located. The woman typed "Live age" into the computer. I corrected her and asked her if she had heard of Live Aid. Of course she hadn't, she was about 20.

Greatest Collection of Super Star Rockers of All Time!

[ecv70 · 20 March 2001]

July 13th, 1985. This was the most amazing concert I've ever seen. So many acts you had to take no-doze to catch them all. Too many to list but these guys were there, Phil Collins, Bryan Adams, Sting, The Cars, Madonna, Simple Minds, Beach Boys, Ozzy, Run DMC, REO Speedwagon, The Power Station, Rick Springfield, Queen, INXS, Elton John, Hall and Oats, Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, David Bowie, and how could you forget the band who had the #1 hit song at the time they played at Live Aid...Duran Duran. I'm still waiting for someone to release Live Aid on video or cd.

What a great concert

[stonan · 8 March 2002]

I remember this as is was yesterday. 16 hours non-stop great music with pop-corn, coca-cola in the living room. My best memory of the 80s without a doubt.

/Stonan