Band Aid: Historien om 'Do They Know It's Christmas'

It all started in 1984 when the Irish singer Bob Geldof saw a BBC report on TV. The report was from Ethiopia, where there was a great famine, because of the very low rainfall in that year. Thousands of people were starving, and many died of hunger.

When Bob Geldof saw it, he was so moved, that he decided to try to raise money to the starving people, using his contacts in the music industry.

Bob Geldof was at that time playing in the band Boomtown Rats, and in November, Bob Geldof had an appointment for an interview with BBC radio. But instead of telling about his new Boomtown Rats-album, he used the interview to talk about the idea Band Aid, and the famine in Ethiopia. Because of this, charity was a very discussed theme in the media.

Bob Geldof called the songwriter Midge Ure from the band Ultravox, and together they wrote the song “Do They Know It’s Christmas”.

Midge Ure and Bob Geldof put together a group of Irish and British singers and songwriters, among others was Sting from the rock band The Police and Bono from the Irish rock band U2.

When they should make the record, they called the producer Trevor Horn, and asked him to make the record, but he had not time. Instead, he told them that they could use his studio SARM West in London for free in 24 hours. Geldof said yes.