Post by Merc on Nov 28, 2013 23:50:34 GMT -5
In 1984, "Do They Know It's Christmas" came out as a UK charity single. The song presumed "Africans" not just Ethiopians were both starving and too stupid to read a calendar about a Christian holiday. Maybe because they were too starving to give a fuck? Why accuse them of ignorance too? YES WE KNOW IT'S CHRISTMAS FUCKS SAKE OH THE MILITIA IS COMING TO RAPE OUR VILLAGE. THANKS THOUGH FOR SINGING ABOUT US . Hot pop stars like Paul Young and Boy George and Bananarama and Marilyn and that faggy Spandau Ballet sung on this. Okay, authentically cool-then people too, like Bono and Sting. Singing about how the only water flowing is made of the bitter Sting of tears (Get it?), and you should thank God it's them , instead of you. Clanging chimes of doom! Jesus, these lyrics are suicide-making. Because those Africans don't know it's Christmas. As if that mattered while they were uh, starving. Also, Africa is a huge continent where many black people live, in case you didn't remember.
I mean, it's agony enough just trying to parse the lyrics here in 2013. How weirdly disconnected these stoned drunk high-on-cocaine British pop stars were. "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is such a bizarre pop single. For charity! Don't get me started on how much of that charity was wasted, the whole thing did nothing for Ethiopians starving. Just such a bizarre artifact of another time and age, truly ancient, this weird colonialism, or paternalism. Hey, it got Geldof a Knighthood (shame on you, Irishman) but whatever the fuck. It's just such a strange song. With some great talents on it, and a lot of shit talents too. It just really seems to treat "Africans" as an alien species or something. I dunno, of course they meant well. But all their efforts here made for a pop single that did jack shit for starving Africans.
Which I will talk about later. As well as, "We Are The World" by USA for AFRICA. (The whole continent apparently.) Amazing talents on hand, so dreadfully misguided. Such a horrible song. I will be bored this weekend so I will probably post more about it. I'll just note that
Pets Shop Boys declined Band-Aid, and Madonna was not invited to the recording of "WATW" immediately after the 1984 AMAs. A blessing. Thank God they at least had Lionel Richie and the guy from Journey to feed those starving Africans with their mouth-holes. More later.
I mean, it's agony enough just trying to parse the lyrics here in 2013. How weirdly disconnected these stoned drunk high-on-cocaine British pop stars were. "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is such a bizarre pop single. For charity! Don't get me started on how much of that charity was wasted, the whole thing did nothing for Ethiopians starving. Just such a bizarre artifact of another time and age, truly ancient, this weird colonialism, or paternalism. Hey, it got Geldof a Knighthood (shame on you, Irishman) but whatever the fuck. It's just such a strange song. With some great talents on it, and a lot of shit talents too. It just really seems to treat "Africans" as an alien species or something. I dunno, of course they meant well. But all their efforts here made for a pop single that did jack shit for starving Africans.
Which I will talk about later. As well as, "We Are The World" by USA for AFRICA. (The whole continent apparently.) Amazing talents on hand, so dreadfully misguided. Such a horrible song. I will be bored this weekend so I will probably post more about it. I'll just note that
Pets Shop Boys declined Band-Aid, and Madonna was not invited to the recording of "WATW" immediately after the 1984 AMAs. A blessing. Thank God they at least had Lionel Richie and the guy from Journey to feed those starving Africans with their mouth-holes. More later.
