Live Aid Marathon Concert Now on DVD
| Published 12/10/04

Graphic by: Doni Neel

Now for the first time, the surviving footage of the concert is available on DVD. The recently released four-disc, 10-hour set recaps in detail the planning and performances that made Live Aid a crowning achievement for a generation.

In London, over 72,000 fans – among them Prince Charles and Princess Diana – witnessed performances by David Bowie, Queen, U2, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Sting, Dire Straits, The Who, and George Michael. On the other side of the ocean, celebrities Jack Nicholson, Bette Midler, Chevy Chase, and Don Johnson introduced the crowd of 100,000 in Philadelphia to Bryan Adams, Duran Duran, Madonna, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, and Bob Dylan.

Phil Collins, one of the headline talents involved, had the distinction of being the only artist to play both venues. After performing “Against All Odds” and singing backup on Sting’s “Every Breath You Take” in London, Collins was flown on the Concorde to Philadelphia where he collaborated with Eric Clapton on “Layla” and enthralled the audience with a piano rendition of “In the Air Tonight”.

A young U2 made the world take notice as they gave one of the more powerful performances of the day. With many fans in attendance waving makeshift flags featuring the band’s name, Bono began the set with a defiant “Sunday Bloody Sunday”, shouting his own lines of “no more” throughout the song in reference to the starvation in Africa. During the lengthy guitar solo of “Bad”, the lead singer brought fans out of the crowd and embraced them before returning to the microphone and borrowing from Lou Reed’s “Take a Walk on the Wild Side” and the Rolling Stones’ “Ruby Tuesday” and “Sympathy for the Devil”.

However, if there was one single standout act from the event, most would agree Queen was that band. From the opening piano chords of “Bohemian Rhapsody” to the closing guitar riffs of “We Are the Champions”, Freddie Mercury had the crowd on their feet throughout the 20-minute set. To see 70,000 clapping in unison to “Radio Ga Ga” and “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” is a thing of beauty and a testament to the charisma and showmanship of the late lead singer.

In addition to the concert footage, the DVD set includes several worthwhile extras. These include: the 1984 BBC documentary which focused on the starvation in Africa and served as inspiration for the concert; the music videos for “Do they Know it’s Christmas?” and “We Are the World”; footage of Phil Collins’ trip aboard the Concorde; a feature which documents the success of the event and what was done with the money raised; the music video for Mick Jagger & David Bowie’s “Dancing in the Streets”, which was included as part of the concert; remote performances by such talents as BB King and INXS, which were included live via satellite as part of the concert; and performances by such bands as Run DMC that took place but never aired.

As the event was not intended to be released to the public following its live showing, Geldof refused to approve the DVD until he became aware of the tremendous bootleg market that existed for the concert. Once the green light was given, the production crew scoured through hundreds of hours of B-roll footage filmed by MTV and the BBC, spliced it together, and created a fluid package void of inappropriately-timed commercial breaks and backstage interviews, both of which plagued the initial television broadcasts.

While the comparison to Woodstock is obvious, Live Aid did more than simply discuss alternative lifestyles. It made it possible for others to survive. And by doing so, it rightly earned the nickname of “the day the music changed the world”.