Taking Sides: "Do They Know It's Christmas?" vs "We Are the World"

I think this is slightly sloppy exegesis. The way I read it, Geldof's question, unpacked, would have undertones that run something like: "We have this time of 'goodwill toward men [people]' that we call Christmas. From our actions, can the developing world (toward whom we have a huge responsibility, having colonized/fucked them over) TELL that we're enjoying such a period of self-congratulating charity?" It's true that "Do they feel like it's Christmas?/Do they feel like celebrating?" would be a better question. Not as singable.

Bono's "Them/Us" line has always bugged me and made me laugh. Geldof's explanation doesn't help; if he really was trying to get people to do all that thinking, he should've known that on top-40 radio, that wouldn't be the effect (celebrity charity singles don't lend themselves to anything beyond sloppy self-regarding sentimentality). Still, it's a likable boppy-synthesizer tune without all the taking-a-shit "sincere" vocal stylings of "WATW."

I bristle at the immediate equation of Christianity and empires--Jesus and Paul weren't Platonists or Europeans, and contemporary theologians (the good ones) are doing their damndest to extricate them from Constantinianism. Still, if people think it's an imperialistic ideology and nothing but, that's MOSTLY Christians' damn fault. We can continue this discussion on the "I Love Arguing About Religion in Public" message board.

>And by the way, if you want to get specific about the religion of >early-80s famine victims, the problem was centrally occurring in the >horn of Africa and into the Sahara, where Islam's had its greatest >inroads: Somalia and Sudan in particular. And while the focal point

And you're right, it's unfortunate that it probably never occured to Geldof et.al. to do this kind of analysis. Humans tend to be insular. When those same humans hold most of the economic/military cards and are helplessly implicated in centuries of imperialism, this works to perpetuate, of course, that same imperialism.

Regarding the lyrical debate on "Do They Know It's Christmas" one needs to remember that, in 1984, Islam wasn't qute as dominant in Ethiopia as it is today, so asking the question "Do They Know It's Christmas" may not have seemed as pointless then as it may seem now.

I can't believe all the nonsense on this thread.

"We Are The World" is so much the better performance since it includes people who can, you know, really sing (i.e. sell Richie/Jackson's banalities) next to people who really can't. Among those who can really sing are a number of blacks and women. Besides being unapologetically Christian, "Do They Know It's Christmas?" has the honor of featuring no blacks or women in lead roles. So much for community.

(inspired by reading this.

To make it simpler:

TS: Diana Ross, Steve Perry, Daryl Hall, Cyndi Lauper vs Simon Le Bon, Tony Hadley, Sting, Bono.

Um, except... even if you break it down to merely just the question of which is a better song, "Do They Know it's Christmas?" is head and shoulders above the cloying, steam-escaping flatulence that was "We Are the World."

Crap see no color.

If you prefer Tony Hadley, sure.

Besides being unapologetically Christian, "Do They Know It's Christmas?" has the honor of featuring no blacks or women in lead roles. So much for community.

Which is why it's quite an achievement that "DTKIC" is still a hundred times better than "WATW"!

I'm not sure why. Paul Young and Boy George are the only singers who sound like human beings.

"DTKIC" is a better song by a loooong way.

All that's preferable on "DTKIC" are the synth programs. Daryl Hall, Steve Perry, and Ray Charles -- with and without mullets and hernia faces -- could sell that awful line of Bono's ("WELL TONIGHT THANK GOD IT'S THEM INSTEAD OF YOU!!!!)

(I'm feeling feisty tonight)

they are both painfully bad songs. the cause was good though, they tell me

Besides being unapologetically Christian, "Do They Know It's Christmas?" has the honor of featuring no blacks or women in lead roles

In 1984, the vast majority of people living in the UK were actually white. May explain it.

The lack of female soloists was probably partly because most big UK acts of that era were male, but Ure and Geldof also decided that because the UK scene was so male dominated, they wanted an even more male dominated "group". I read somewhere that some huge female acts were left out of Band Aid because of that. Bananarama participated in the choir though.

Besides, I like the lineup in Band Aid better (those people made most of the best music of the 80s), but "We Are The World" is a stronger songs. Both lyrics are quite dreadful though, but I guess they had to if they wanted to find some sort of middle ground between people of all kinds of political wings.

If Tom's gonna take the "our shite" tact, I'm going to vote: NEITHER. Instead, I'll pick our lovely Canadian version, "Tears are Not Enough", despite the inclusion of some really horrid Canadian artists (please see the BNL thread for elaboration). Still, it had Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Cockburn, Gord Lightfoot, WAYNE GRETZKY!, and many other fab talents from the Great White North. Not that I can remember many of the words...oddly enough, I remember part of the section sung in French, but only phonetically. It doesn't get much more Canadian than that.
-- Sean Carruthers, Wednesday, 25 April 2001 00:00 (6 years ago) Link

OTM.

Hear N Aid kills both dead

The USA for Africa gang is way better than the Band Aid gang but I still like Do They Know It's Christmas best by far

Xgau makes a convincing argument. I've always liked "Do They Know It's Christmas?" more as a song for the sheer melody/instrumentation/production, but "We Are The World" definitely works better for the cause.

I guess "Sun City" takes it then?

"We Are The World" is one of the worst songs ever made - who cares about the quality of the singers?

So much insanity on this thread! Alfred OTM. Britishes at least have a valid chauvinistic reason for preferring Band Aid, but jeez, how long have the rest of you been living in a Bizarro world where Bob Geldof and Midge Ure write better songs than Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie?

"We Are the World" is classic American schmaltz, with all the good and bad that such a phrase entails.

Also, Greil Marcus' idiot reading of WATW as imperialist American celebrities devouring the world is a low point in 80s popcrit poststructuralism.

zeus' last comment is particularly shocking. I'm not defending WATW's songcraft, for God's sake, just the performances!

I knew the culturcide version before I ever heard of the real WATW. Its pretty funny, but you can't really come to the real one after it....

How different a thread would this be if Harry Belafonte's original intention regarding WATW - that it feature only black performers - had come to pass?

no Cyndi Lauper, no credibility

Yeah, I'd have missed Cyndi, and lots of other white folx too.

BTW, why is this not a poll thread please?

I'm afraid of the results.

Alfred: we talk about a bad song, which hasn't got better because of the performance. Or I just can't get your point.

OMFG OLD ILX WAS SO STUPID. We are the World >>>>>> Do they know its xmas

Britishes at least have a valid chauvinistic reason for preferring Band Aid, but jeez, how long have the rest of you been living in a Bizarro world where Bob Geldof and Midge Ure write better songs than Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie?

this cannot be stated enough

WATW = maudlin sappy gag-reflex mush

"Tonight thank God it's them instead of you"

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2007/20070406_ethiopia.jpg http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/graphics/2007/12/12/nbrit112.jpg

Culturcide's version was better.

I agree with your premise JW - Richie/Jackson theoretically ought to be able to write the better song - but WATW isn't it. Melodically, it's OK, hardly prime work from either guy; lyrically I mean it's not the offensive & condescending "Do They Know?" but I'd rather be offended by content than by vague nonsense (what the hell does "we are the children" mean in the context of the chorus? which children: the starving children? no, "we" are the ones who make a brighter day and are called upon to give; however, we are also "the children" etc etc - just total nonsense, deploying the word "children" 'cause everybody likes children - bizarre, confusing, senseless)

As the Culturcide chorus goes:

"We're not the world, we're not the children,
We're just bosses and bureaucrats and rock 'n' roll hasbeens,
There's a choice we're never given,
To run our own lives,
Without it, your better day is just a better lie."

Again, WATW is redeemed by the vocal performances.

You're insane.

Culturcide's is better than either, agreed.

Otherwise, this thread is pretty 0_o to me! It's like being asked "which do you prefer, this turd or that turd"?

They're both pretty awful records!

A better idea would have been "Let It Be (Zeebrugge)" versus "Ferry 'Cross The Mersey (Hillsborough)."

"We Are The World" is the biggest dollop of tepid, runny, poisoned-pancreatic pooh ever to be subjected on human ears. Raise your damn standards.

Although the real winner in this debate of course is "Sun City."

Someone post a Japanese version of "Do They Know?" so I can make a final decision.

I liked the Austrian Band Aid song (Opus?) where the chorus went "We're only doing this so that we can feel better" or something along those lines.

No one's arguing that either song is a good one in and of itself.

what the hell does "we are the children" mean in the context of the chorus? which children: the starving children? no, "we" are the ones who make a brighter day and are called upon to give; however, we are also "the children" etc etc - just total nonsense, deploying the word "children" 'cause everybody likes children - bizarre, confusing, senseless

That's incredibly disingenuous, J0hn. "We are the world/We are the children" is rather obviously hippie-esque "We are all one people" imagery, followed on with "we're the lucky ones who should help out the less fortunate ones" moral imperative. I kind of don't see how you can find that confusing or bizarre unless you're trying to shore up a shakey rhetorical stance based on thinking the song eats moose balls.

the Earth = d00med

TS: Love Song To The Earth vs Fistfucking God’s Planet

wow, can't believe macca took part in that shit

Love this guy:

"Do they know it's Christmas" - HANDS DOWN! Bono...FANTASTIC!!! Great song! I think the radio has decided it. When was the last time you heard "We are the World?" on the radio? However, every Christmas we hear "Do they know..." a million times. As George "Dubyah" Bush said of the British... "We have no closer friend..." Thanks for a great song!!!!!
― JK, Domingo, 23 de Dezembro de 2001 1:00 (sixteen years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink