‘A moment in time…’
Live Aid is such a tough one to dissect, because on the one hand, there is no denying that famine in Africa was an incredibly severe and global issue, but on the other hand, there is also no denying that rock and pop stars take themselves far too seriously. We see both sides of the coin in this excellent documentary for the BBC…
Celebrating 40 years since possibly the most famous live music event ever held, Live Aid at 40 reunites all the main players (who are still alive) with Bob Geldof, Bono, Sting et al from the pop side of things as well as various other prominent people who were involved with both Live Aid and Live 8 (nobody was ready for the Tony Blair jump scare). The result is a fascinating journey through an event that must go down as an achievement, even if the net gain for the people of Africa is a little murky.
Geldof, a man who attracts a lot of hate, comes out of it all pretty well. He remains passionate and eloquent and even self-aware at times. Bono, on the other hand, lives up to everyone preconceived notion that has sprung up around him. My general judge of someone’s character is to ask the question, would I like to go for five pints with them? I don’t think I could get through one with Bono. And his music’s shite. Anyway. I digress.
Live Aid at 40 is perhaps a little too deferential to its subject matter and to the various talking heads that appear, but it also serves as an important document of a pair of events that were huge pop culture behemoths – musos will eat it up.
