1. DIscuss
  2. Bono's part is great but it's a very patronising song singing about how do Africans even know it's Christmas - parts if Africa were/are more first world than parts of Ireland

    And who the fuck cares if it's 'snowing outside' or even if it is 'Christmas' that's the last thing on those people's minds and all it does is eat into the guilty conscious of the people better off.

    A lot of critics seem to think the lyrics are very dodgy even though they were meant with the best of intentions - to save dying people.

    A LOT of artists did jump on the bandwagon but most with good intent but overall these 'charity' songs don't seem to help at all or are a short-sighted short-lived solution.
  3. I think theres a 10 hour version somewhere but can't find it.

  4. Originally posted by TheRealEdge:Bono's part is great but it's a very patronising song singing about how do Africans even know it's Christmas - parts if Africa were/are more first world than parts of Ireland

    And who the fuck cares if it's 'snowing outside' or even if it is 'Christmas' that's the last thing on those people's minds and all it does is eat into the guilty conscious of the people better off.

    A lot of critics seem to think the lyrics are very dodgy even though they were meant with the best of intentions - to save dying people.

    A LOT of artists did jump on the bandwagon but most with good intent but overall these 'charity' songs don't seem to help at all or are a short-sighted short-lived solution.
    I think the irony in the lyrics are lost on you,the song was a poke at the rich and the people who are fortunate and live comfortably as opposed to the people who have nothing.
  5. In the first Band Aid Bono' participation was strongest of all. In last Band Aid Bono was weakest of all.
  6. Originally posted by popmarter:[..]
    I think the irony in the lyrics are lost on you,the song was a poke at the rich and the people who are fortunate and live comfortably as opposed to the people who have nothing.
    Absolutely. Specially Bono's highlight line, "Tonight thank God it's them instead of you" is absolutely filled with irony. It's a poke to the 1st world in general -not only the rich- who feel/felt sympathy for the millions starving in Africa, but at the same time turn their backs on them
  7. His line is really powerful. That's why I love them so much, even though I joke around sometimes.
  8. It’s a song that I always play around xmas
    On Sunday we were putting up the Xmas Tree and my daughter played the song and told me to sing as i like to do,obviously filming everything
    Btw I always loved the Bono part which is very powerful
    About the argument...well we all know how bad turned the operations at that time in Africa
    And btw the problem of starvation isn’t solved at all and that makes me cry every time i think about it
    I do my best with Emergency organization and Medicins sans frontier which I support
    But it’s the governments who can change it all
  9. Originally posted by popmarter:[..]
    I think the irony in the lyrics are lost on you,the song was a poke at the rich and the people who are fortunate and live comfortably as opposed to the people who have nothing.
    erm thanks for the patronising response

    I KNOW what the lyrics are for and what they are meant to convey but you're missing my point - or it's lost on you - that those lyrics are patronising to the Africans and their plight

    Rich 'white' - or black for that matter - people aren't going to part with their money over 'ironic' lyrics to a pop song because a lot of pop stars tell them to
  10. Originally posted by TheRealEdge:[..]
    erm thanks for the patronising response

    I KNOW what the lyrics are for and what they are meant to convey but you're missing my point - or it's lost on you - that those lyrics are patronising to the Africans and their plight

    Rich 'white' - or black for that matter - people aren't going to part with their money over 'ironic' lyrics to a pop song because a lot of pop stars tell them to
    I think the context is missing here. Yes, 21st critics and artists have blasted the lyrics and sentiment of the song, they are probably right. However, this was one of the first events like this of its time. It even inspired USA for Africa which of course was a little different.

    The song was inspired by a CBC report that Sir Bob had watched.



    Bob Geldof who organized the event should be credited for his efforts to organize people and get the project done. The heart is always a little messy but so be it. He reacted to a situation. I agree with Bono and Bob, there shouldn't even be a discussion.
  11. It's my favourite Christmas song!!!! My friends and I used to cover this drunkenly and we would raise money for it and donate.
  12. Originally posted by miryclay:[..]
    I think the context is missing here. Yes, 21st critics and artists have blasted the lyrics and sentiment of the song, they are probably right. However, this was one of the first events like this of its time. It even inspired USA for Africa which of course was a little different.

    The song was inspired by a CBC report that Sir Bob had watched.

    [YouTube Video]

    Bob Geldof who organized the event should be credited for his efforts to organize people and get the project done. The heart is always a little messy but so be it. He reacted to a situation. I agree with Bono and Bob, there shouldn't even be a discussion.
    It was inspired by a BBC broadcast by Michael Buerk

    Nobody is saying their hearts (Band Aid) weren't in the right place but more people were interested in buying that single because of the novelty of the number of popular artists that were on it and wanted to buy tickets for the Live Aid concert for similar reasons

    I'm sure A LOT of people did donate too but it was a sticking plaster on a bleeding would that still weeps to this day

    At that time treating 'Africa' like it's a country and not a continent did not help because, as I've pointed to, the majority of Africans were not affected by famine so to sing lyrics such as "And there won't be snow in Africa this Christmas time
    The greatest gift they'll get this year is life" is extremely patronising to the majority of African people and the point of changing the starving people's plight by addressing government mismanagement and western indifference to dying people is what really matters - where were those lyrics?

    Also these lyrics "Where nothing ever grows - No rain nor rivers flow" now that's just plain not true - had any of those artists ever been? Another salient point

    As a song - throw away likeable pop, but as a solution? Then it's transience was obvious