IGNORE NAYSAYERS
Queen Stole the Show at Live Aid Due to Their Sound Engineer’s Gutsy Action
Why it’s important to trust your expertise and how sometimes your most important job is to help someone else shine
Attending the Live Aid concert will forever be one of the most memorable days of my life.
My sister, Jackie, had camped out all night on the street in Manchester to get us tickets. On July 13, 1985, together with over 72,000 excited spectators at Wembley Stadium and approximately 2 billion TV watchers — 40% of the world’s population at the time, we witnessed a piece of history unfold.
Live Aid was a benefit concert organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure in the wake of a horrific famine in Ethiopia. The lineup featured more than 75 acts, including Elton John, Queen, Madonna, Santana, Run DMC, Sade, Sting, Bryan Adams, the Beach Boys, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Duran Duran, U2, the Who, Tom Petty, Neil Young and Eric Clapton.
Despite the incredible atmosphere in the stadium, up until Queen’s performance, the sound quality of the music had been mediocre at best. There was no time for rehearsals, sound or lighting checks, and some of the performances were rough around the edges.
