{"id":530,"date":"2025-12-16T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/16\/15-ways-the-recording-of-do-they-know-its-christmas-was-a-complete-mess\/"},"modified":"2025-12-16T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T14:00:00","slug":"15-ways-the-recording-of-do-they-know-its-christmas-was-a-complete-mess","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/16\/15-ways-the-recording-of-do-they-know-its-christmas-was-a-complete-mess\/","title":{"rendered":"15 Ways the Recording of \u2018Do They Know It&#8217;s Christmas?\u2019 Was a Complete Mess"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">In 1984, everyone was expecting fascism, but they mostly got hairspray and keytars. That doesn\u2019t mean the politics was great; there was that whole Reagan thing, and the famine in Ethiopia captured the hearts and minds of the west. It was under these conditions, and maybe only under these conditions, that the recording of the classic Christmas supergroup song \u201cDo They Know It\u2019s Christmas?\u201d was possible, resulting in one of the most chaotic recording sessions in pop music history.<\/span><\/p>\n<article id=\"entry-1\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>15 <\/label><span>They Were on a Time Crunch<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Boomtown Rats singer Bob Geldof was inspired to release a song to raise money for famine relief after\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk\/2\/hi\/uk_news\/702700.stm\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">watching a BBC news report<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> on Ethiopia in late October 1984. It had to be a Christmas song, collaborator Midge Ure decided, explaining that \u201con a purely fiscal level, Christmas number ones sold more than a number one at any other time of year,\u201d and it\u2019s not like the Rats were booming those days. That meant he only had about a month to put it all together.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-2\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>14 <\/label><span>It Had to Be an Original Song<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">In those pre-Mariah days, pop stars didn\u2019t usually write their own Christmas songs, but \u201cit couldn\u2019t be a cover because otherwise half the royalties would go to the songwriter,\u201d\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classicpopmag.com\/features\/band-aid-feeds-the-world-remembering-a-christmas-miracle\/\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">Ure continued<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">. They wanted to maximize aid to Ethiopia, so they gave themselves just a few days to write a hit Christmas song.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/1\/6\/1426216.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426216\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-3\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>13 <\/label><span>The First Draft Stunk<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Whatever you think of the famously cheesy song, it was an undeniable hit, but that was far from certain at first. When Geldof heard Ure\u2019s initial stab at the project, he\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classicpopmag.com\/features\/band-aid-feeds-the-world-remembering-a-christmas-miracle\/\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">said it sounded like<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> the theme to the \u201860s police drama\u00a0<i>Z-Cars<\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/4\/7\/1426247.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426247\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-4\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>12 <\/label><span>Ure Had to Produce the Song Himself<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Geldof wanted Trevor Horn, a former member of the Buggles who\u2019d risen to fame producing Frankie Goes to Hollywood, to produce the song, but everyone agreed Horn was\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classicpopmag.com\/features\/band-aid-feeds-the-world-remembering-a-christmas-miracle\/\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">too much of a perfectionist<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> to get it done on such short notice. He did lend the crew his studio for 24 hours, leaving them no choice but to DIY it.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/5\/0\/1426250.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426250\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-5\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>11 <\/label><span>Geldof Bagged Spandau Ballet By Chance<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Meanwhile, Geldof was running literally all over the world, trying to catch pop stars like Pokemon for the recording. He met up with Spandau Ballet\u2019s Gary Kemp completely by chance after\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/do-they-know-its-christmas-band-aid-1984-geldof-761428\/\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">running into him in a London antique shop<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">, and the band\u2019s singer ended up performing the song\u2019s first line.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/5\/1\/1426251.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426251\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-6\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>10 <\/label><span>Kool &amp; the Gang Were a Spontaneous Invite, Too<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">A lot of the stars who appeared on the single were invited by chance. For instance, Kool &amp; the Gang only got involved because they\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/popheist.com\/do-they-know-its-christmas-band-aid-40-anniversary-bob-geldof\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">shared the same record label<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> as the Boomtown Rats and happened to be in the offices when Geldof pitched the idea.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/5\/2\/1426252.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426252\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-7\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>9 <\/label><span>Paul Weller Played Guitar (and Got Cut)<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Famous musicians contributed more than vocals. Phil Collins played drums on the song, Duran Duran\u2019s John Taylor supplied the bass line, and Paul Weller of The Jam recorded some guitar riffs. The latter were cut, however, as \u201che&#8217;s not a heavy distortion guy like me,\u201d\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.guitarplayer.com\/news\/do-they-know-its-christmas-2024-gets-guitars\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">Ure said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">. \u201cIt was kind of jangly, probably using one of my guitars, quite \u2014 dare I say \u2014 Smiths-like,\u201d he continued, which was the most devastating possible insult to a guitarist in 1984.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/0\/1426270.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426270\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-8\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>8 <\/label><span>People Showed Up Uninvited<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Security was dangerously lax at the studio, and Geldof was all but inviting people off the street, so no one batted an eye when\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Midge-Ure-If-Was-Autobiography\/dp\/1852271442\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">one-hit wonder Marilyn showed up unannounced<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">, hoping for a photo op. Actor Nigel Planer also arrived without an invitation, in character as Neil from\u00a0<i>The Young Ones<\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/1\/1426271.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426271\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-9\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>7 <\/label><span>Needless to Say, There Was So Much Cocaine<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Journalist Robin Eggar, the only one in attendance,\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/culture\/music\/3631962\/From-fears-to-tears.html\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">later reported<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> that the band Status Quo had \u201cproduced  bag of cocaine\u201d during the session, shocking absolutely no one. There was plenty of booze as well, although \u201cBoy George had to buy his own brandy\u201d and Eggar \u201cbrought six bottles of wine from  flat, which disappeared in a nute.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/3\/1426273.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426273\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-10\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>6 <\/label><span>Ure and Geldof Were at Each Other\u2019s Throats<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Possibly due to the above, the generous spirit behind the gathering didn\u2019t always translate into conviviality between the band leaders. Ure later wrote that he and Geldof\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Midge-Ure-If-Was-Autobiography\/dp\/1852271442\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">fought throughout the recording<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">, giving the poor drunk artists conflicting instructions when they couldn\u2019t agree.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/4\/1426274.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426274\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-11\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>5 <\/label><span>Those Who Couldn\u2019t Come Were Still Roped In<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">If Geldof had gotten his way, David Bowie would have sung the first line of the song, but in 1984, it was kind of hard to get Bowie on short notice. The same was true for Paul McCartney and Mick Jagger, but they were all\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/popheist.com\/do-they-know-its-christmas-band-aid-40-anniversary-bob-geldof\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">convinced to contribute<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> by recording spoken messages for the single\u2019s B-side or, in Jagger\u2019s case, an intro for the music video.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/5\/1426275.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426275\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-12\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>4 <\/label><span>Boy George Was the Last to Record<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">After failing to reach him by phone, Geldof showed up to Boy George\u2019s New York City hotel room, where he found the androgynous singer\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/popheist.com\/do-they-know-its-christmas-band-aid-40-anniversary-bob-geldof\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">passed out drunk<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">. He didn\u2019t consider that an excuse, however, and ordered Boy George onto a plane for London, where he was the last performer to record his lines.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/6\/1426276.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426276\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-13\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>3 <\/label><span> Damon Albarn Served Tea<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">On the 20th anniversary of the single\u2019s release, Geldof gathered a new generation of musicians to record in a gathering that was apparently a bit cleaner but no less chaotic. One journalist in attendance was confused to be\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk\/2\/hi\/entertainment\/4008261.stm\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">served tea by a pink-aproned Damon Albarn<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">, who nevertheless did not appear on the song.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/7\/1426277.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426277\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-14\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>2 <\/label><span>They Changed the Lyrics<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Some of the lyrics of \u201cDo They Know It\u2019s Christmas?\u201d have always been a bit problematic in their depiction of Africa, so when another recording was scheduled for the 30th anniversary, Geldof figured it was time for an update. The new lyrics focused on the West African Ebola crisis, however, which\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2014\/nov\/11\/band-aid-30-patronising-bob-geldof-ebola-do-they-know-its-christmas\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">wasn\u2019t considered much of an improvement<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/8\/1426278.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426278\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"entry-15\" class=\"entry entry-article\">\n<h2 class=\"subheading subheading-num\"><label>1 <\/label><span>Ed Sheeran Regretted It<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\">Although he didn\u2019t consider it when he participated in the 30th anniversary recording, Sheeran came to agree that the song\u2019s optics weren\u2019t great, and\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/music\/2024\/nov\/18\/ed-sheeran-i-wish-i-wasnt-on-40th-anniversary-version-of-band-aid-do-they-know-its-christmas\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">got publicly mad<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> that he wasn\u2019t consulted about a 40th anniversary remix that included his vocals. Maybe he was just trying to distract from his own charitable efforts a few years earlier that were\u00a0<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/global-development\/2017\/dec\/04\/ed-sheeran-comic-relief-film-poverty-porn-aid-watchdog-tom-hardy-eddie-redmayne\"><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#1155cc;\">decried by real activists<\/span><\/a><span style=\"background-color:transparent;color:#000000;\"> as \u201cpoverty porn.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lozad\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/2\/7\/9\/1426279.jpg\" data-media-id=\"1426279\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/article><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cracked.com\/article_49481_15-ways-the-recording-of-do-they-know-its-christmas-was-a-complete-mess.html?newsletter-cat=music\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In 1984, everyone was expecting fascism, but they mostly got hairspray and keytars. That doesn\u2019t mean the politics was great; there was that whole Reagan thing, and the famine in Ethiopia captured the hearts and minds of the west. It was under these conditions, and maybe only under these conditions, that the recording of the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":531,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/s3.crackedcdn.com\/phpimages\/article\/1\/2\/3\/1426123.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[970,971,972,969,968],"class_list":["post-530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-theatre_and_comedy","tag-christmas","tag-complete","tag-mess","tag-recording","tag-ways"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/530","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=530"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/530\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/531"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=530"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=530"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}