The Eighties in America - Salem Press (2009)

Besides the live acts performing in the two major
venues, the concerts included real-time video trans-
missions of live performances around the world.
Among them were performances by INXS in Mel-

bourne, Australia; B. B. King in The Hague, the

Netherlands; Yu Rock Mission in Belgrade, Yugosla-

via; Autograph in Moscow; Udo Lindenberg in Co-

logne, West Germany; and Cliff Richard at the BBC

studio in London.

London Prince Charles and Princess Diana intro-

duced the Wembley portion of the concert at noon,

Greenwich mean time (GMT). Various British dee-

jays served as masters of ceremonies. Seventy-two

thousand people attended. Status Quo opened, fol-

lowed by Style Council, the Boomtown Rats (Geldof’s

own band), Adam Ant, Ultravox, and Spandau Bal-

let. That much of the card took two hours, with some

sets as short as four minutes. Thereafter, London

and Philadelphia alternated, so fans experienced a

continuous stream of music. Subsequent acts on the

British stage included Elvis Costello, Nik Kershaw,

Sade, Sting, Phil Collins, Howard Jones, Bryan Ferry,

Paul Young, Alison Moyet, U2, Dire Straits, Queen,

David Bowie, the Who, Elton John, Kiki Dee, George

Michael, Andrew Ridgeley, and Paul McCartney. The

London show ended at 10:00p.m., GMT.

Philadelphia Comedians Chevy Chase and Joe

Piscopo, actor Jack Nicholson, and impresario Bill

Graham introduced the acts for ninety thousand

fans in Philadelphia. The show began at 8:00a.m.,

Eastern Daylight Time (EDT; 2:00p.m.GMT), with

Bernard Watson, Joan Baez, and the Hooters. Ad-

ditional performers included the Four Tops, Billy

Ocean, Black Sabbath, Run-D.M.C., Rick Spring-

field, REO Speedwagon, Judas Priest, Bryan Adams,

the Beach Boys, George Thorogood and the De-

stroyers, Bo Diddley, Albert Collins, Simple Minds,

the Pretenders, Santana, Pat Metheny, Ashford and

Simpson, Teddy Pendergrass, Kool and the Gang,

Madonna, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Kenny

Loggins, the Cars, Power Station, Thompson Twins,

Eric Clapton, Phil Collins (the only star to perform

live in both stadiums), Duran Duran, Patti LaBelle,

Hall and Oates, Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin,

Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, Bob Dylan, Ron Wood,

and Keith Richards. Highlights included sets by

Crosby, Stills, and Nash; Neil Young; and all four to-

gether. Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and John Paul

Jones reunited as Led Zeppelin, with Phil Collins

and Tony Thompson substituting on drums for the

late John Bonham. The Philadelphia show ended at

10:00p.m., EDT. The combined length of both shows

was sixteen hours.

598
Live Aid The Eighties in America

JFK Stadium, Philadelphia

Bryan Adams

Ashford & Simpson

Joan Baez

The Beach Boys

Black Sabbath

The Cars

Eric Clapton

Phil Collins

Crosby, Stills, Nash

& Young

Duran Duran

Bob Dylan

The Four Tops

Hall & Oates

Mick Jagger

Judas Priest

Eddie Kendricks

B. B. King

Kool & the Gang

Patti LaBelle

Led Zeppelin

Kenny Loggins

Madonna

Pat Metheny

Billy Ocean

Tom Petty

Power Station

The Pretenders

REO Speedwagon

Keith Richards

Letterman, David

Run-D.M.C

Santana

Simple Minds

Rick Springfield

Thompson Twins

George Thorogood

and the Destroyers

Tina Turner

Ron Wood

Neil Young

Wembley Stadium, London

Adam Ant

Boomtown Rats

David Bowie

Phil Collins

Elvis Costello

Kiki Dee

Dire Straits

Thomas Dolby

Bryan Ferry

David Gilmour

Elton John

Howard Jones

Nik Kershaw

Paul McCartney

Branford Marsalis

Alison Moyet

Queen

Sade

Spandau Ballet

Sting

Style Council

U2

Ultravox

Wham!

The Who

Paul Young

Melbourne, Australia

INXS Men at Work

Select Performers at Live Aid