Live Aid: JFK Stadium, 13th July 1985 poll.

You forgot:

Mick Jagger's shirt
John Taylor's pants
Chrissie Hynde's boot

Simon Le Bon's voice cracking on 'A View To A Kill'

^ that is the one thing that really sticks in my mind. don't even remember half of these performances, what were sabbath like?

Incredible that it's been 30 years since Live Aid now. Obviously, it's always been remembered as being this monumental event, but looking at this particular line-up of artists/bands... fucking hell! With a handful of exceptions, there seems to be a lot of artists/bands on here that were well past their prime even by 1985.

George Thorogood and the Destroyers

o__0

Anyone know who Bernard Watson is without looking it up?

stings other real name iirc

pretenders and madonna jump out as being the only ones who actually were still in their primes in 1985 (prob simple minds too).

i had to look up Bernard Watson before i voted for him

bernard watson sounds like a made-up 80s golfer

Watson's contribution is not on the official DVD set; apparently, neither the BBC nor ABC-TV filmed Watson, and no known recording of him at Live-Aid exists.

:(

this is the most depressing wikipedia entry I have read in some time

voted for him of course

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AabuU9apiCY

http://liveaid.free.fr/rewind/complete/images/010bernardwatson/01.jpg

George Thorogood and the Destroyers

with BO FUCKING DIDDLEY!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXMgx92muQo

pretenders and madonna jump out as being the only ones who actually were still in their primes in 1985 (prob simple minds too).

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Tuesday, July 14, 2015 10:36 PM (10 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Madonna would go on to become even bigger than she was in 1985, though. Duran Duran were probably at the very peak of their success, but on the other hand it wouldn't be long before they were on their way out. Simple Minds probably at their biggest, although artistically their best years were already behind them.

Note that The Power Station are on the bill, but not Arcadia.

that 'fucking' was made in awe rather than opprobrium btw obv xps

pretenders and madonna jump out as being the only ones who actually were still in their primes in 1985 (prob simple minds too).

Raising Hell hadn't even been recorded yet

Duran Duran were at the height of their imperial phase: "A View to a Kill" had just hit #1, Power Station with two top tens (and Robert Palmer had left the band; Michael Des Barres sang in his stead), Arcadia around the corner, John Taylor and "I Do What I Do."

The Pretenders' set is good! I own the DVDs and "Middle of the Road" is pretty ferocious.

Madonna + Thompson Twins + Nile Rodgers is the most mortifying thing I've ever seen. Ever the canny superstar, Madonna and her tambourine hide from the camera as much as they can.

Note that The Power Station are on the bill, but not Arcadia.

― You’re being too simplistic and you’re insulting my poor heart (Turrican),

Arcadia's album not out for another five months.

that bernard watson story is amazing

Even Bernard Watson was past his prime back then

there is a profile of Bernard Watson aka David Weinstein here: http://dangerousminds.net/comments/meet_david_weinstein_the_18-year-old_kid_who_opened_live_aid

There is a clip online, but it only lasts thirteen seconds and an announcer is heard talking over it. David has the complete footage, though he says he hasn’t watched it in years. The tape currently sits in a box in his parent’s garage.

After the adrenaline ceased flowing and the initial disappointment faded, David was on cloud nine after Live Aid. In the weeks that followed, he traveled overseas with not much of a plan. Upon returning, he ran into a girl he knew from high school who introduced him to psychedelics. He admits he “kind of went in and out of it” for a while, but later on he became a father. Happy to “just be a daddy,” he raised a boy who has recently gone off to college. All the while, David continued writing. He’s spent the last two-and-a-half years compiling three decades worth of songs and literature he’s written, which he’ll unleash on the world very soon

unleash on the world soon

Arcadia's album not out for another five months.

― The burrito of ennui (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, July 14, 2015 10:57 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Oh shit, yeah. For some reason it always seems like the side projects were out at around the same time.

Also - Thompson Twins: why!?

Nile Rodgers produced them and Madonna.

he did the mick jagger album that year too, man was busy

I had a feeling that it may have been the Nile Rodgers connection, although Here's To Future Days came out after Live Aid? It's funny, Thompson Twins worked with both Nile Rodgers and Alex Sadkin, who had both worked with Duran Duran around the same time - yet, it just goes to show, you can work with successful and relevant producers, but if you suck, you suck.

he did the mick jagger album that year too, man was busy

― feargal czukay (NickB), Tuesday, July 14, 2015 11:09 PM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I have a feeling that strong stimulants probably aided his work rate in the '80s.

I like to think that the title Here's To Future Days was a hat-tip to Can

I guess I'm too late to say "wasn't he a busker who was petitioning to play Live Aid by busking outside with a sign asking to be put onstage"

Phil Collins playing both shows (and I seem to remember they kept cutting to him mugging for the camera while sitting on the concorde?) strikes me as the most 1985 Phil Collins-y thing I can think of.

Let's have a look at who either wasn't at Live Aid (because they couldn't do it/turned it down/refused to turn up/weren't invited) or didn't get a slot of their own even though they were there:

Bruce Springsteen
Michael Jackson
Prince
Billy Joel
Boy George
Waylon Jennings
Kris Kristofferson
Tears For Fears
Huey Lewis and The News
Paul Simon
Peter, Paul and Mary
Rod Stewart
Cliff Richard
Cat Stevens
Liza Minnelli
Yoko Ono
Cyndi Lauper
Deep Purple
Eurythmics
Frank Zappa
George Harrison
Foreigner
Yes
Marillion
The Moody Blues
The Police
Big Country
Lionel Richie
Harry Belafonte
Dionne Warwick
Sheena Easton
Cher
Diana Ross
Van Halen
Frankie Goes To Hollywood
The Smiths
Talking Heads
Donna Summer
Depeche Mode
Thin Lizzy
Rush

Sheena Easton
Cher
Diana Ross

WTF? Don't quite get why it posted those last three twice. Anyway, I'm kinda fascinated with who chose not to do it. Paul Simon, of course, would go on to do Graceland, but ended up turning down Live Aid for some reason or other.

The Police

Weren't they already as good as kaput by 1985?

Black Sabbath at Live Aid was actually an event since at that point Ozzy was well into his solo career and the band was essentially broken up. At least it should have been an event. As Ultimate Classic Rock remembers:

Ozzy had been building his solo career since 1979, and drummer Bill Ward had checked out for medical reasons by the following year (before briefly returning in ’83). Bassist Geezer Butler had cashed in his chips after the ill-fated Born Again tour too, leaving only guitarist Tony Iommi to prepare his first solo album.

As such, the group’s brief reformation for the Live Aid extravaganza should have garnered more attention than it did beyond the diehard heavy metal community. Instead, it was mostly this smaller, but still-diehard group who acknowledged it as some kind of second coming when Iommi (dressed head-to-toe black leather and dangling crucifixes), Osbourne (sporting his ‘80s glam metal silver finery and teased bouffant) and company took the stage on July 13, 1985 in Philadelphia.

Black Sabbath proceeded to attack three of their best-loved heavy metal classics, “Children of the Grave,” “Iron Man” and “Paranoid.” Then, in less than 15 minutes, it was all over. The renewal of the band’s once-strong camaraderie simply vanished: Ozzy Osbourne returned to his burgeoning solo pursuits, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler faded into semi-retirement and Tony Iommi reluctantly released 1986’s Seventh Star as a Black Sabbath album when the project was hijacked by record-label suits.

I think it was so underwhelming because while metal was huge then, most of the huge metal bore little resemblance to Black Sabbath (as odd as that seems now). Yes, there were exceptions, most notably in the metal underground that was being birthed (the early thrash bands were all about speed but still loved the mighty Sab and you had doom metal groups such as Trouble and Saint Vitus who showed their love a lot more literally) however that music was a couple years away from any mainstream success. Mainstream metal in 1985 owed very little debt to Sabbath so when they did their three songs, nobody noticed (which was a shame).

They were introduced by Chevy Chase.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kv1up9V62vo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rw1liFkjzcc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vmqOiLjirM

Ashford & Simpson

They brought out Teddy Pendergrass during their set, his first stage appearance since a 1982 car accident that had left him a quadriplegic. iirc, the audience's response was overwhelming.

most of the huge metal bore little resemblance to Black Sabbath (as odd as that seems now)

That doesn't seem odd at all. What else in 1985 bore resemblance to anything that was at its height of popularity in the early 70s? Oh right, NOTHING.

CSNY.

In what universe was a whole lot of 1985 music even slightly reminiscent of CSNY?

Weren't they already as good as kaput by 1985?

― Johnny Fever, Wednesday, July 15, 2015 12:00 AM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Kinda. They did play shows and attempt to record a new album in 1986, so they could have played Live Aid. They were definitely well on their way to splitting up, though, which they eventually had by late '86.

In what universe was a whole lot of 1985 music even slightly reminiscent of CSNY?

― Johnny Fever

Well, I misread your sentence and thought you said what act was recording music that sounded like the early seventies.

btw Joan Baez's speech? Reason #2532 Why Hippies Suck.

Kinda. They did play shows and attempt to record a new album in 1986, so they could have played Live Aid. They were definitely well on their way to splitting up, though, which they eventually had by late '86.

― You’re being too simplistic and you’re insulting my poor heart (Turrican), Tuesday, July 14, 2015 8:11 PM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

They played some (most? all?) of the dates on the summer '86 Amnesty International tour. At least on the Chicago stop, it was a surprise "reunion" -- many in the audience were expecting Sting's solo band, and the place went nuts when the Police came out.

Oh right, yeah. My recollection of Police history has grown kind of dusty from never being called on anymore.

oh god, Phil Collins played drums for Led Zeppelin?

In tandem with Tony Thompson, yep.

I always thought either one of them would've sounded fine with Zep, but the two of them playing together added confusion, and Page was drunk and out of tune, and Plant's range vanished in 1975. The drums were the least of Zep's problems that day.

When I think of "1985 music", I always think "big drum sounds", "slick production", "stadium rock"... it seems like even the synthesizer bands were trying to beef up their sound and get it as big sounding as they possibly could. Productions around 1985, 1986 always feel really crisp and precise. This was the era of Brothers In Arms and Songs From The Big Chair etc.

I've gotta say, it would have been funny as fuck to see Ride The Lightning-era Metallica playing Live Aid, even though it was far from likely. The idea of a mainstream audience in '85 suddenly being subjected to 'Fight Fire With Fire'. The band would have no doubt been awesome, but I could imagine the reaction being "whoa, what the fuck is this!?"

what 'metal' was huge enough in 85 to play tho?

It did lead to this being recorded though LOL
Hear N' Aid - Stars
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5H94GHb-10

Van Halen were huge at the time. I suppose Quiet Riot or Twisted Sister were big enough for this.

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/phil-collins-led-zeppelin-live-aid/

I don't think the zep performance was that bad by live zep standards, which are pretty low

Van Halen were huge at the time.

True, but they were in limbo; Eddie was mad that Roth had put out a solo record.

Priest would have been killer in 85

They played

Robert Plant, when asked about his most vivid memory of Live Aid: "Absolute wonder at Madonna's arse."

Tom Petty flipped off the audience in the middle of American Girl.
good enough for me.

They played

― Josefa, Tuesday, July 14, 2015 11:13 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yes i know thanks that's why i posted that as an example of a band in their "prime"

Sorry, just above that we were talking about 'metal' bands who might have played, e.g. Van Halen, Metallica

Van Halen were huge at the time. I suppose Quiet Riot or Twisted Sister were big enough for this.

― billstevejim, Wednesday, July 15, 2015 1:11 AM (15 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Twisted Sister had only just released Stay Hungry the year before, which had 'We're Not Gonna Take It' and 'I Wanna Rock' on it, so it could have been a possibility.

Stuff like Slippery When Wet and Hysteria were all well after Live Aid.

Def Leppard were pretty huge in the US from Pyromania in 1983 onwards though

Should've had ZZ Top btw

I would've liked to have seen Culturcide and the Dead Kenndys.

Although they are a punchline today, George Thorogood and the Destroyers killed their short set. It's one trick, but it's a good one in the right context.

Def Leppard were pretty huge in the US from Pyromania in 1983 onwards though

True but iirc, at the time of Live Aid their drummer was still convalescing/working out how to play with one arm.

the beach boys performance is really incredible. probably the last time brian was fully "with it" and carl and al sound incredible.

I had totally forgotten they even played but yeah watching it now it's kinda surprising how together and into it they all are

THAT FATAL KISS... IS ALL WE NIEIEIIIED!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxR6AJAh-Gw

not sure how to vote in this. do you pick best performance, band then or what you think of them now?

but the right answer seems to be the Pretenders.

Dance...into the fi-yah

So silly

I like to imagine useless "had they lived" scenarios, and can definitely see Elvis performing an earnest, ham-fisted set here.

(Not a fat Elvis, obviously, but a tan, rested, and ready one.)

Just noticed Judas Priest played at Live Aid, cool.

Although they are a punchline today, George Thorogood and the Destroyers killed their short set. It's one trick, but it's a good one in the right context.

I've been listening to a lot of Thorogood lately, and I'm starting to think he's one of the most underrated guys around. On the one hand, he's incredibly consistent, on an AC/DC or ZZ Top level, but on the other, his albums are full of surprising covers (Bob Dylan's "Drifter's Escape," Frank Zappa's "Trouble Every Day"). He's kind of seen as a one-hit wonder, but should really be seen as a journeyman, a guy who cranks out an album every few years and just stays on the road, entertaining people. I interviewed him a few years ago and was really impressed by his attitude.

Yeah but in the prevailing context, that consistency never fails to lapse into predictability

Dude, he's a blues player - "predictability" kinda comes with the territory.

It's well known that Led Zeppelin considered their Live Aid performance so poor that they refused to allow it onto the DVD which came out years later, but Santana also requested that his performance be omitted from the DVD. The only reason he's ever given was "Live Aid wasn't a good memory", which is a little vague. Any ideas what he could have possibly meant by that?

I'm going to guess the combination of piles of cocaine everywhere plus enormous egos created an ugly atmosphere backstage and ultimately onstage for some bands.

odd that i don't remember that much from the Philly leg of this show. i vaguely remember Thorogood being pretty good (so that's who i voted for); the Cars sounding the same live as they did on record; and Led Zeppelin and CSNY (with Bob Dylan i think) being pretty bad.

I'm going to guess the combination of piles of cocaine everywhere plus enormous egos created an ugly atmosphere backstage and ultimately onstage for some bands.

― brotherlovesdub, Saturday, July 18, 2015 8:30 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yeah, that's possible. I've noticed more seems to be written about what went on backstage at the UK Live Aid compared to the US one. There's seems to be far more anecdotes, for some reason.

*There

I wonder if Zep were coked up for this?

Probably, I guess

Jimmy Page in particular looks fucked throughout.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

I have the entire NYC TV simulcast recorded on two VHS tapes. Haven't digitized it (how?!!?) and I no longer own anything that can play back VHS but I do remember most of it being terrible.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Haha.

H&O, Daryl Hall particularly, looked particularly coked out.

I also have it, on one 6-hour long VHS tape, complete w commercials.

Wonder if they broadcast the same show to everywhere or if there are alternate mixes/camera angles...