The British rock band Queen had a 21-minute set at Wembley Stadium during Live Aid on 13 July 1985, which began at 6:41pm[a]. In 2005, it was voted as the best rock gig of all time.[1][2][3]
The performance was recreated and is the focal point in the biographical film Bohemian Rhapsody (2018).[2]
Background
Queen were not originally meant to perform at Live Aid. Organiser Bob Geldof believed "their star had risen and fallen", adding: "I was asked to call them and get them to do it. Frankly, I didn't care because if you want one word to explain why punk happened: Queen." Geldof reluctantly agreed to contact the band after being pushed by promoter Harvey Goldsmith.[4] Lead singer Freddie Mercury was worried about their appearance being taken as a "political statement". Geldof managed to convince them otherwise.[3]
The performance began at 6:41pm, opening with an excerpt of "Bohemian Rhapsody".[5] The song transitioned into a upbeat faster tempo version of "Radio Ga Ga", with the crowd clapping in sync with Mercury. Mercury led the crowd in unison refrains,[6] and his sustained note—"Aaaaaay-o"—during the a cappella section came to be known as "The Note Heard Round the World".[7] The band finished their set with "Hammer to Fall", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", a shortened version of "We Will Rock You", and finally "We Are the Champions".[8]
Brian May and Mercury returned to the stage later to perform "Is This the World We Created...?", an acoustic track from the band's most recent album The Works, which was one of the final songs of the Wembley concert.[9]
The gig was recreated in the biographical film Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) as its climax.[12][13] Footage from the original performance can be seen to match very accurately with the film performance.
In 2019, the performance was recreated on The Simpsons as one of its couch gags.[10][14]
Reception
In 2005, Queen's performance was voted as the best live rock gig of all time.[1][2] According to the BBC's presenter David Hepworth, their performance produced "the greatest display of community singing the old stadium had seen and cemented Queen's position as the most-loved British group since the Beatles".[15] Paul Brannigan of Classic Rock called it "arguably the most iconic moment of the band's storied career".[16]
Geldof said: "[They] were absolutely the best band of the day. They played the best, had the best sound, used their time to the full. They understood the idea exactly, that it was a global jukebox. They just went and smashed one hit after another."[14]
Notes
↑ The exact time it started is disputed. Some sources say it started at 6:42pm while most say 6:41pm.
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Queen - Radio Ga Ga (Live Aid 1985) 