Bob Geldof was watching the nightly news on the BBC on October 23, 1984. It included a report on tragic events in Africa. The Boomtown Rats frontman could not believe what he saw. The famine in Ethiopia was the worst in a century. With encouragement from his partner, British TV personality Paula Yates, Geldof set out to do something about it.
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Who You Gonna Call?
On November 2nd, Yates was hosting the weekly music show The Tube in Newcastle. Geldof called her and asked to speak to Midge Ure of Ultravox, who was appearing on the show that week. Geldof asked if he had seen the report. He had. They agreed to meet up for lunch and discuss it further. On November 5th, they met and decided to record a song to raise money and awareness.
Geldof called Sting, who immediately said, “I’m in.” He called Simon LeBon of Duran Duran. He walked past an antique shop and saw Gary Kemp of Spandau Ballet, and he wanted to be involved. Geldof called Boy George, who was in New York City. He agreed to fly back just for the occasion. Geldof continued calling the top stars of the U.K. When he went to the London office of Phonogram Records to pitch the idea of releasing the record, Kool & the Gang happened to be there, so they were also invited.
The Preparation
“Do They Know It’s Christmas?” was composed by Ure and Geldof. The lyrics were adapted from a song Geldof had been working on called “It’s My World,” and Ure provided the music. The backing track was recorded over several days. Ure programmed drum machines and added keyboard parts. The beginning drum loop was a sample from “The Hurting” by Tears for Fears. Paul Weller of The Style Council added guitar, and John Taylor of Duran Duran provided the bass.
The Big Day
On the morning of November 25th, Geldof and Ure arrived at Sarm West Studios in London. The Daily Mirror was invited to document the day. A group photo was taken to publicize the record. The first task was to capture the group choir singing the chorus. The backing track and guide vocal were used as the musicians sang the chorus repeatedly. And then came the long process of recording the individual parts.
Today, this would be accomplished remotely. People would record their parts from wherever they are and simply send them in via cloud. In 1984, all the artists needed to be on site. Phil Collins added live drums over the drum machine. Most of the artists offered recorded messages for the B-side of the record. A few were included who were not available for the session, including Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Holly Johnson of Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and members of Big Country.
At the end of recording, Geldof added this message to the B-side: This record was recorded on the 25th of November 1984. It’s now 8 a.m. in the morning of the 26th. We’ve been here 24 hours, and I think it’s time we went home. So from me, Bob Geldof, and Midge, we say, Good morning to you all, and a million thanks to everyone on the record. Have a lovely Christmas.
Do They Know It’s Already Christmas?
December was fast approaching. Normally, a song trying to capitalize on Christmas sales would have been released in late October. “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” was released on December 3rd. Simon Napier Bell, who managed Wham!, cautioned Geldof of all the pitfalls. After everyone took their percentage and taxes were paid, they were hoping to generate 75,000 pounds. Geldof started calling the big retailers like Smiths, His Master’s Voice, Virgin, Woolworths, etc., and found there was a Record Retailers Organization and got them to agree not to take a cut. The English government was not so forgiving. They refused to waive the VAT (value-added tax). Geldof pleaded with Prime Minister Thatcher in a public forum. She did not back down at that moment, but the government agreed later to donate the same amount as the VAT.
The Results
“Do They Know It’s Christmas?,” attributed to to the project name of Band Aid, entered the British charts at No. 1. It topped the charts in 12 other countries as well, and earned 8 million pounds. The song inspired food drives around the world, and 20 similar charity records for famine relief were produced around the globe—including “We Are the World” by USA for Africa, which sold 8 million copies.
Geldof said, “This famine is one of the great shameful things of our time, and I find it an indictment of us and a pathetic way of living that a piece of plastic seven inches across with a hole in the middle is the price of someone’s life this year.” “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” became the best-selling British song of the ’80s.
Geldof Visits Ethiopia
After seeing the suffering in person, Geldof said, “The only way to describe it is, it’s like being taken through various degrees of hell, I suppose. You go in, and you see people that are relatively alright. You see thousands waiting at the entrance to these camps. Then, you get taken to these sheds where there’s corpses right beside live people, and then you do the sort of useless things like you cry, and that gives away to despair and rage that humans can still do this to one another and allow this to happen.”
Geldof went on to establish the Band Aid Trust to turn the money raised by “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” into results. In 1985, he spearheaded Live Aid, the dual concert held in London and Philadelphia that brought superstars from both sides of the Atlantic together to perform and further raise money for relief.
Feed the world
Let them know it’s Christmas time
Photo by Larry Ellis/Express Newspapers/Getty Images
