Live Aid

Live Aid World Wide, July 13, 1985: So young then. Me and Gaia the Dead Head. Philadelphia at the the old JFK Stadium. Live Aid was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure of Ultravox and played four cities worldwide, Philly, London, Sydney and Moscow, raising nearly $250 mil. In Philadelphia the artists were Madonna, Tom Petty, The Stones, CSNY, Powerstation and Duran Duran. So stuck up were we, like Madonna didn’t belong; so full of ourselves and turning up our noses at anything pre-'83. So stupid is youth – fabulous, but stupid.

The worldwide line up featured Queen, Adam Ant, Hall & Oates, BB King, Dylan, Boomtown Rats, Cher, Bowie, Dire Straits, Pretenders, Cars, Beach Boys, Style Council, The Who and Simple Minds. Crazy. These artists provided their time and performances free and the concert came off like nothing before or after, and is part and parcel of what can be achieved when egos wane and giving back becomes a part of stardom.

I cannot comment on the criticisms of Live Aid, the pettiness of many of the stars (despite the offer of time) and the possible misappropriations of funds following the event, but for those of us in our 20s, long on cool and short on understanding, Live Aid was one of those events that helped us to ease a bit in adulthood. Gaia was left to question whether marijuana reform was as key as world famine relief or failing farms. I was left with a sense that clubland, which was my world at the time, was less than the center of the universe. Live Aid was my intro to responsible adulthood. Kinda sucked at the time.