Band Aid 30’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas”: Review Revue
Sir Bob Geldof and Midge Ure assembled a Who’s Who of British and Irish pop this past weekend to record a slightly revised version of holiday charity single “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” this time to provide aid to the ebola crisis in Africa. Billed as Band Aid 30 and featuring such artists as One Direction, Ellie Goulding, Ed Sheeran, Bono, Sam Smith, Rita Ora, Emeli Sande, Paloma Faith, Sinead O’Connor, Chris Martin and Seal, this marks the fourth rendition of the song to be made since 1984 (with Bono being the only singer from the original to take part).
Below, we’ve rounded up a smattering of critics’ opinions on the new (and improved?) “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” a single that’s now riding high on iTunes around the globe (it’s #1 in England and #2 in the States) and raising funds to battle the deadly ebola disease.
:: The New York Daily News says, “The latest take on ‘Christmas’ varies the arrangement, allowing for more contemplative sections and a few inversions of the melody. It also fiddles with the lyrics, updating them with references to the relevant location (West Africa). The verses feature some nice cameos, including an engaged and haunting one from Elbow singer Guy Garvey and an impassioned one from Sinead O’Connor. Her vocal, while hushed, has an intense inflection.”
:: London’s Telegraph notes, “It is actually a very oddly constructed song that owes its classic status more to its place in history than its elegant form or powerful lyricism. There are much, much better universal anthems, songs with inherent power like Blowin In The Wind, All You Need Is Love, Let It Be, He Ain’t Heavy (He’s My Brother) or (to pick a slightly more recent example) Coldplay’s Fix You. But this song has history on its side. If there is a global emergency and you want to get pop star together to raise money quickly, here is a purpose-built track.”
:: The Guardian chimes in with this: “Unlike Band Aid 20, there’s no guest rap, no knowingly mock-dramatic guitar showboating and no self-congratulatory burst of applause at the end. It’s marked by a certain earnestness, which you could say befits a song addressing what’s been described as the most severe acute public health emergency of modern times, but also tells you something about pop music in 2014, when album sales were dominated, in Britain at least, by singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran and retro soul singer Sam Smith, both of whom appear.”
:: The Times gives the single four stars while stating, “As a summation of British pop in 2014, Band Aid 30 tells us that singing with breathy soulfulness is held in high regard, that emoting wildly is nothing to be afraid of and that the modern pop star is a man or woman of the people. They’re like you and me, just a bit nicer and with better voices.”
:: The Independent calls out the producers for removing Bono’s original “tonight thank God it’s them instead of you” line: “Though often misread as callous and selfish and ‘loathed’ by Bono himself, it repeats a stance that the West too often takes when looking fearfully across the oceans at tragedies unfolding abroad. But now it’s gone. Presumably because there are people out there who might not detect the intent behind it and send an angry tweet, which in 2014 is solid justification for banning anything. In its place comes ‘Well tonight we’re reaching out and touching you’, a line that at best sounds like it was written in the back of the One Direction tour bus…”
:: SPIN calls the lyric change “unfortunate but possibly for the best.”
:: The Huffington Post UK assessed the performers: “One Direction were given a nod to their official status as the nation’s favourites, with the honours of the first, crucial lines. This they performed surprisingly movingly, quietly and atmospherically. They were followed by an effortless Ed Sheeran, before Rita Ora opened her lungs to bring the song properly to life, with ‘And in our world of plenty…’ Sam Smith then acquitted himself adequately, but was overshadowed by Paloma Faith’s distinctive tones during her bit, ‘But say a prayer, pray for the other ones.’ Guy Garvey, Emeli Sande and Chris Martin were among the others to follow her, but by now we were all waiting for Bono, with his brand new line – ‘Well, tonight we’re reaching out and touching you’ – and he gave it his all, despite his delayed plane, and this being his third appearance in four Band Aid singles.”
:: Finally, yours truly wrote the following on Chart Rigger: “If you ask me, it’s miles ahead of the 2004 Band Aid 20 version, which featured Daniel Bedingfield, Robbie Williams, Will Young, Sugababes, etc… If I had to rank the four versions of this holiday chestnut, it’d go like this: 1. The 1984 original, 2. The 2014 Band Aid 30 version, 3. The 1989 Band Aid II version, 4. The 2004 Band Aid 20 version.”
Enough of the critics — what do you think of the newest rendition of “Do They Know It’s Christmas”? Let us know your thoughts below!
