Forty years ago Sunday — July 13, 1985 — Live Aid, the massive all-star charity concerts, took place in London and Philadelphia. Organized by Bob Geldof to raise money for African famine relief, the shows featured anyone who was anyone in music at that time, from legends like Bob Dylan, Elton John, Queen, Tina Turner and David Bowie to younger acts like Madonna, U2, Bryan Adams and Duran Duran. Sting performed at the London show, both solo and with Dire Straits and Phil Collins.
“I can’t believe it’s 40 years. It just seems like yesterday, but it was an important moment,” Sting tells ABC Audio. “It really was almost a spontaneous moment, but really because of Bob Geldof. … Without Bob, it simply wouldn’t have happened. And he stuck with the idea, all this 40 years, and what we achieved on that day has propagated up till now.”
Bryan Adams performed in Philadelphia, between Judas Priest and The Beach Boys.
“I do remember Jack Nicholson introducing me,” Adams recalls. “It was definitely something special. There was no question about it. I didn’t get to hang around unfortunately because I had a gig that night. So we did that and then we just got back in the bus and left for the next town.”
Nile Rodgers of Chic performed with Madonna and The Thompson Twins that day. “Oh my God, it was one of the greatest days of my life because Joan Baez knew who I was,” Rodgers laughs. “I couldn’t believe it.”
But Rodgers, who produced Madonna’s Like a Virgin album, says she pulled a diva move at the end.
“What happened was, Madonna wasn’t invited to sing on the record ‘We Are the World,'” he recalls. “So when it came to do the finale, she split.”
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