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Do They Know It's Christmas?

"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
Cover artwork by Peter Blake
Single by Band Aid
B-side
  • "Feed the World" (1984)
  • "One Year On (Feed the World)" (1985)
Released3 December 1984
Recorded25–26 November 1984
StudioSarm West Studios, London
Genre
Length
  • 3:55 (7-inch version)
  • 6:20 (12-inch version)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Music video
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" on YouTube

"Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of popular British and Irish musical acts.[2] It was recorded in a single day at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, in November 1984.

"Do They Know It's Christmas" was released in the United Kingdom on 3 December 1984. It entered the UK Singles Chart at number one and stayed there for five weeks, becoming Christmas number one.[3] It sold a million copies in the first week, making it the fastest-selling single in UK chart history until Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997".[4] UK sales passed three million on the last day of 1984.[5] The song also reached number one in 13 other countries. In the US, it fell short of the top ten in the Billboard Hot 100 due to a lack of airplay, but sold an estimated 2.5 million copies by January 1985.[6][7] It had sold 11.7 million copies worldwide by 1989[8] and 3.8 million copies in the UK by 2017.[9]

"Do They Know It's Christmas" raised £8 million for Ethiopia within a year, far exceeding Geldof's hopes.[10] The success led to several other charity singles, such as "We Are the World" (1985) by USA for Africa, and spin-off charity events, such as Comic Relief and the 1985 Live Aid concert. In a UK poll in December 2012, it was voted sixth on the ITV television special The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song.[11] Some critics however have viewed the song as condescending and offensive for its depiction of Ethiopians, who comprise one of the world's oldest Christian communities, as well as for its description of Africa as barren.[12][13][14][15] The song's co-writer Ure wrote "it was all about generating money. The song didn't matter: the song was secondary, almost irrelevant."[16]

"Do They Know It's Christmas?" was rerecorded and rereleased in 1989, 2004 and 2014. The 1989 and 2004 versions also raised funds for famine relief, while the 2014 version raised funds for the Ebola crisis in West Africa. All three reached number one in the UK, and the 1989 and 2004 versions became Christmas number ones. The 2004 version sold 1.8 million copies.[9] Geldof has said a new supercut version of previous recordings of the song is being compiled to mark the 40th anniversary.[17]

  1. ^ Breihan, Tom (28 September 2020). "The Number Ones: USA For Africa's 'We Are The World'". Stereogum. Retrieved 30 July 2023. ...they recorded 'Do They Know It's Christmas?,' an ooky but well-meaning holiday synthpop ditty.
  2. ^ "Looking Back At Live Aid, 25 Years Later". MTV. Retrieved 22 October 2016
  3. ^ "Flashback: Band Aid Raises Millions With 'Do They Know It's Christmas?'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 27 August 2021. The single, released in the United Kingdom on December 3rd, 1984, was crafted to "touch people's heartstrings and to loosen the purse strings".
  4. ^ Sedghi, Ami (4 November 2012). "UK's million-selling singles: the full list". The Guardian. London, England. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  5. ^ "Band Aid sales top 3m – proceeds set to reach Ethiopia by summer". Music Week. 12 January 1985. p. 3.
  6. ^ Green, Paul (5 January 1985). "Ethiopia-Aid Single, Video Take Off". Billboard. New York City, USA: Billboard Publications. p. 3.
  7. ^ Holden, Stephen (27 February 1985). "The Pop Life; Artists Join in Effort for Famine Relief". The New York Times. New York City, USA. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  8. ^ McFarlen, Donald (December 1988). Guinness Book of World Records, 1989, page 155-156. Jim Pattison Group. ISBN 9780806902760. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
  9. ^ a b Copsey, Rob (19 September 2017). "The UK's Official Chart 'millionaires' revealed". The Official Charts Company.
  10. ^ Presenter: Midge Ure (21 October 2004). Band Aid: The Song That Rocked the World. BBC (TV Documentary).
  11. ^ "The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song". ITV. 22 December 2012.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference Ure2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Friend, David (30 April 2024). "Bob Geldof says 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' supercut planned for 40th anniversary". CTV News. Retrieved 30 April 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

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