At Wembley Stadium on July 13, 1985, at just gone twenty to seven, Queen took the stage as part of Live Aid, performing in front of a worldwide audience of almost two billion people. Although only six songs, the band’s set is widely considered to be the pinnacle not only of Live Aid itself, but perhaps Queen’s entire on-stage career. However, speaking in the latest issue of MOJO, promoter Harvey Goldsmith reveals the performance almost never happened—but when it did, how the band delivered the performance of a lifetime. “The more Freddie hammed it up,” recalls Goldsmith, “the more the audience lapped it up…”
Harvey Goldsmith: “Bob Geldof and I were putting Live Aid together and going through potential artists. Being the producer, I understood how slots work and who went where. I was also dealing with the technical side: we were doing two shows [London and Philadelphia] and had to stay strictly to time because of the satellite.
“I thought about it, and said for the late afternoon slot the perfect act would be Queen. Bob said, ‘No, they’ve peaked. I don’t think they should play.’ I said to Bob, I really think they’ll be perfect to go on in that 5.30, 6 o’clock type slot – knowing Freddie as I did, I knew they’d really make a show of it. Bob and I went backwards and forwards. I had to do a lot of persuading. He said, ‘No, we’ve got other acts we could put on.’ I dug my heels in and said there’s no better act that could do this than Queen. Look, I know about these acts. I know who should play when. When shows open at 12 and go on until 10 at night there is always a lull in proceedings around that slot in the afternoon, so you need someone really cool who can just lift it up. That’s become a really important slot in all festivals of that type – Live Aid really showed how it could work.
“Also, I had to be very mindful of the technical side, the layout of their equipment and who we could get on and off so that we didn’t have too many big acts with huge amounts of equipment one after the other because it would have just delayed things – even though our turntable stage allowed us to have one band playing, one setting up and one coming off. Nevertheless, when you’ve got a lot of equipment one after the other you need to space it out.
“When asked, at first Queen were a bit reluctant. They’d just finished a long tour and were all a bit wrecked and wanted a break. And it was very close to the day. Freddie stood back from it all a bit – I think he wanted to see what the reaction to Live Aid’s announcement was. When he realised the reaction of the press and media and the demand for tickets, he talked to the band and to their manager Jim Beach, and they decided to do it. Of course, they wanted to close the show. And I said, No, I want you to go on at this slot. I think what really swung Freddie over was the thought that he could play to a billion people in one go, live. Nobody had ever done that before. I think he just felt, ‘OK, I’ll show you…’
“Before the day I went around and spoke to everybody and laid it all out. Because we were on such a tight deadline and had such a short period of time to change over, I had to say, I don’t care what time you go on but I do care what time you come off. Please stick to your time. And on the morning of the show, as soon as I got down to Wembley I sent a runner around to buy 40 clocks which I dotted around everywhere.
“We couldn’t allow the acts to mix their own sound, though they could advise, otherwise it would have been chaos. We didn’t have time for soundchecks either; there was a line check but it was done silently. I was lucky – I had the most fantastic technicians and team around me.
“Queen had rehearsed for a week, and when they went on, Freddie smelt blood. He went for the throat and delivered like nobody else could deliver. And the rest of the band lifted themselves up too – and you lift yourself up even more when it’s your hometown.
Freddie became the mass conductor and Queen didn’t actually have to do anything because the audience did it for them. The more Freddie hammed it up, the better Brian played his guitar riffs and solos, and the more the audience lapped it up and played it back to the band. It was one feeding the other.
“Queen performed a short set, but it was the set of a lifetime, and it transformed them as a band. If you talk about Live Aid, most people go: ‘Yeah, Queen.’”
As told to Mat Snow
“Freddie announced, ‘You know Michael Jackson has just put out this album called Bad?... What do you think about us calling our next album Good?’” Get the latest issue of MOJO to read exclusive interviews with Brian May and Roger Taylor on the majesty of Queen, the genius of Freddie Mercury, the art of songwriting and more**. Plus! Bowie, blow, and Jon Bon Jovi: the inside story behind the making of Queen’s Under Pressure. More info and to order a copy HERE!**