Live Aid – My Memories of July 13, 1985

Live Aid, July 13, 1985....hard to believe 27 years have passed. I was in JFK Stadium on bleacher seats for 15 hot hours, along with 100,000 other very sweaty people. JFK deserved to be torn down. What a decaying dump. Thank goodness I had backstage passes (radio fringe benefit) so I could use the (sort of) nice port-o-johns! I said hi to Madonna, but she never acknowledged or looked at me. Paul Shaffer did, though. :-)

Incredible lineup: Joan Baez. The Hooters. The Four Tops. Billy Ocean. Ozzy Osbourne. RUN-DMC. Rick Springfield. REO Speedwagon. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Judas Priest. Bryan Adams. The Beach Boys. George Thorogood/Bo Diddley. Simple Minds. The Pretenders. Santana/Pat Metheny. Ashford & Simpson/Teddy Pendergrass. Madonna. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. Kenny Loggins. The Cars. Neil Young. Power Station. The Thompson Twins. Eric Clapton. Phil Collins. The surviving members of Led Zeppelin. Duran Duran (poor guys had to follow "Stairway To Heaven"). Patti LaBelle. Daryl Hall & John Oates with Eddie Kendricks & David Ruffin. Mick Jagger. Jagger/Tina Turner. Bob Dylan/Keith Richards/Ron Wood (must have been interesting backstage with Jagger).

The finale, with Lionel Richie & everyone swaying in the dark to "We Are The World". What a show! And yet I remember people being disappointed that Springsteen didn't show up. :-)