Saturday, September 3, 2011

Video Saturday: Radio GaGa (Live Aid)

At the risk of sounding like one of those boring old farts who insist that the kids today just don't understand what a transcendent experience Woodstock was, man...The kids today just don't understand what a transcendent experience Live Aid was, man.

The 1985 concert for African famine was An Event. Just the abundance of tight pants alone renders it an all-time classic. And the mullets? Fugetaboudit. This was the 1980s crowning pop-cultural moment, showcasing hedonism and humanitarianism is a glitzy, self-important embrace that was all about looking good, sounding good, and doing good, maybe or maybe not in that order.

Oh yeah, there were some great musical performances, too, as well as some not-so-great ones. But Queen's set was legendary, for damn good reason. Few performers have ever held an audience in the palm of their hand the way Freddie Mercury did during "Radio GaGa." I still get goosebumps watching the massive crowd providing hand-claps as one frenzied unit.

We would only have Freddie for five years after Live Aid. Not nearly enough. I'm glad this video is forever.

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