Most people have heard about the Live Aid benefit concerts which took place on July 13, 1985, simultaneously in London at Wembley Stadium and in Philadelphia at JFK Stadium. But…in case you’re hearing about the shows for the first time, they were organized by Bob Geldof of The Boomtown Rats fame, known for “I Don’t Like Mondays,” and Midge Ure of Ultravox, to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. The concerts featured a who’s who of pop and rock stars from Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young to Madonna, David Bowie to Run-DMC, and many, many more (look it up – the talent was incredible). As we celebrate the 40th anniversary, I’d like to share a few memories from the day.
Back in 1985, I was a 16-year-old music lover lucky enough to get the green light to go to the show—huge thanks to Mom and Dad! So, I gathered my waitressing money, jumped on the subway, and headed uptown to Wanamaker’s to get tickets. I would be attending with my bestie, Michele, my boyfriend at the time, and another friend. The four of us were the frequent concertgoers of our neighborhood crowd.
On the day of the event, we all met up early, maybe 6 or 7 a.m., and headed to JFK. We had general admission tickets for the field, so we didn’t have seats. Fine with me. The concert began with an attendee’s performance which I thought was pretty cool. How lucky was that dude? From there, the musical extravaganza commenced with one great performance after another. We ended up getting a spot just beneath the MTV stage which was right off the side of the main stage. It was cool looking up to see some of the performers getting interviewed by the VJs including Mark Goodman who was originally from Philly. During the day, Mayor Wilson Goode was standing near us and grooving to either the Four Tops or Hall & Oates with Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin (both from the Temptations). He was enjoying the show too!
Everyone remembers how brutally hot it was that day—about 95 degrees—and how fire hoses were spraying water to keep people cool. I remember the bathroom floor being really wet, kind of flooded, and gross. I used all my money to buy a t-shirt and program instead of food. I think I only ate fries. There were several truly memorable performances. Queen and U2 come to mind, but the highlights of the day for me were seeing Paul McCartney live from London even though his mic was out for part of his performance and the reunion of Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones doing a few Zeppelin numbers. We were near the side of the extended stage when Mick Jagger and Tina Turner performed, and Mick ripped off Tina’s skirt during “It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (but I Like It).” That was shocking! And Philly native Teddy Pendergrass’ first appearance since his paralyzing accident was very special. It was a long day but we were so excited we walked back to South Philly.
Live Aid was broadcast to an estimated 1.5 billion viewers across approximately 100 countries, making it one of the largest global broadcasts ever. It raised over 100 million dollars for famine relief.
Even now, I feel so thankful to have been part of such a historical event!