Francis Rossi reflects upon Status Quo's 'special' Live Aid performance 35 years on
To mark the 35th anniversary of Live Aid
Last updated 13th Jul 2020
Status Quo guitarist and vocalist Francis Rossi has marked the 35th anniversary of Live Aid today (13th July) by reflecting upon the momentous concert at Wembley Stadium.
After the Coldstream Guards band opened with the Royal Salute and a brief version of ‘God Save the Queen', at one minute past midday on a gloriously sunny Saturday 13th July 1985, Status Quo were the first band to grace the Wembley stage.
Live Aid was Status Quo’s first concert since the conclusion of the End of the Road Tour in Milton Keynes in July 1984, which, in Francis Rossi’s own words, ended with everybody “coked-up and hating each other.”
Despite these fraught tensions within the band, Status Quo triumphed during their 14-minute set at Live Aid and had the 72,000 strong Wembley crowd bouncing as they performed ‘Rockin’ All Over The World’, ‘Caroline’ and ‘Don’t Waste My Time’.
Status Quo perform 'Rockin' All Over The World' at Live Aid:
Ultimately it proved to be Status Quo’s only show of 1985 and their final gig with bassist Alan Lancaster (except the reunion Frantic Four tour in 2013-2014) and drummer Peter Kircher in their ranks.
Reflecting upon Live Aid on the event’s 35th anniversary today, Francis Rossi said:
“Whenever Quo step onto a stage we strive to give it our best, no one audience or gig is more important than another to the band, but it is undeniable that the 13th of July 1985 was special. There were serious tensions in the band at the time, I arrived in some ways wondering how I’d been persuaded to turn up.
“Some of the other acts were interested in who was going to play last, to headline, whilst we decided to go on first so that we could be done and dusted. Turned out to be a great decision, it was Quo’s music that kicked things off as seemingly the whole world’s attention came to bear to on what Live Aid was trying to communicate.
“It was over in a flash and, whilst I’m not one for nostalgia or dwelling on past glories, at the time it felt important and thirty-five years later it still does.”
Check out 35 iconic images of Live Aid at London’s Wembley Stadium below featuring every live performer including Queen, David Bowie, Status Quo, U2, The Who, Dire Straits, Bryan Ferry and David Gilmour, Phil Collins and Paul McCartney.
35 iconic photos of Live Aid:
Live Aid
The UK edition of Live Aid took place on Saturday 13th July 1985 at London's Wembley Stadium. It was a baking hot summer's day with barely a cloud in the sky.
Live Aid
A complete sell-out, 72,000 people bought tickets for the Wembley Stadium raising funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine.
Status Quo at Live Aid
After the Coldstream Guards band opened with the Royal Salute and a brief version of God Save the Queen', Status Quo were the first band to take to the stage at Live Aid bright and early at midday. Francis Rossi and the late-great Rick Parfitt belted out three songs during their 14-minute set – 'Rockin' All Over The World', 'Caroline' and 'Don't Waste My Time'.
The Style Council at Live Aid
Second up at Live Aid were The Style Council, who had released their second album 'Our Favourite Shop' the previous month. Paul Weller, Martin Talbot and co. played 'You're The Best Thing', 'Big Boss Groove', 'Internationalists' and 'Walls Come Tumbling Down'.
The Boomtown Rats at Live Aid
Shortly before 1pm, Live Aid organiser Bob Geldof and his Boomtown Rats arrived on stage to a rapturous reception. Following the three-track set of 'I Don't Like Mondays', 'Drag Me Down' and 'Rat Trap', the 72,000 strong Wembley crowd broke out into an impromptu chorus of 'For He's A Jolly Good Fellow' in homage to Geldof. Earlier, another poignant moment came when Geldof halted 'I Don't Like Mondays' just after the pertinent line "The lesson today is how to die" to rapturous applause.
Princess Diana and Prince Charles at Live Aid
Princess Diana and Prince Charles were among those in attendance at Live Aid. Appropriately, here they are sat in front of rock royalty, Queen. They left shortly after Boomtown Rats missing many of the iconic moments that would happen on stage later.
Adam Ant at Live Aid
Prince Charming himself Adam Ant – aka Stuart Leslie Goddard – played just one song at Live Aid; his recent single 'Vive Le Rock'.
Ultravox at Live Aid
Live Aid co-organiser Midge Ure was rightfully met with a hero's welcome at the start of Ultravox's set. The synth-pop band played 'Reap The Wild Wind', 'Dancing With Tears In My Eyes' and 'One Small Day' before culminating with a euphoric 'Vienna'.
Spandau Ballet at Live Aid
Bedecked in kaleidoscopic suits and sporting glorious eighties hair, pop chart-conquerers Spandau Ballet treated the crowd to three songs – 'Only When You Leave', 'Virgin' and 'True'.
Elvis Costello at Live Aid
With just a four-minute slot on stage at Live Aid, Elvis Costello opted to cover The Beatles classic 'All You Needs Is Love' and duly sparked a huge crowd singalong.
Nik Kershaw at Live Aid
One of the most successful solo artists in the UK at the time of Live Aid, Nik Kershaw was granted a whopping 18 minutes on stage. He performed 'Wide Boy', 'Don Quixote', 'The Riddle' and 'Wouldn't It Be Good.'
Sade at Live Aid
Soul icon Sade performed a flawless 16-minute set at Live Aid of 'Why Can't We live Together', 'Your Love Is King' and 'Is It a Crime.'
Sting and Phil Collins at Live Aid
Introduced on stage by Noel Edmonds, Sting and Phil Collins alternated songs at Live Aid. Sting played 'Roxanne', 'Driven To Tears' and 'Message In A Bottle', while Phil Collins performed 'Against All Odds' and 'In the Air Tonight'. The pair then united for a finale of 'Long Long Way To Go' and 'Every Breath You Take'. Immediately afterwards, Phil Collins jetted off to Philadelphia via Concorde to perform with Led Zeppelin at the US Live Aid.
Howard Jones at Live Aid
Serial chart-denter Howard Jones played a poignant acoustic version of his 1984 single 'Hide and Seek' at Live Aid.
Bryan Ferry and David Gilmour at Live Aid
Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry was joined by fellow music legend David Gilmour on guitar for his four-song set at Live Aid. It consisted of 'Sensation', 'Boys and Girls', 'Slave to Love' and Bryan's trademark cover of 'Jealous Guy'.
Paul Young and Alison Moyet at Live Aid
Eighties teen idol Paul Young started his Live Aid set with a snippet of 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' before launching into his cover of Jack Lee's 'Come Back and Stay'. He was joined by Alison Moyet for 'That's The Way Love Is' before closing with 'Everytime You Go Away'.
U2 at Live Aid
While Queen were rightfully crowned the standout act at Live Aid, U2 were also rapturously received and the phenomenal performance helped propel them into international superstars. Opening with 'Sunday Bloody Sunday', they then played a sprawling 11-minute version of 'Bad' (extended as Bono went into the crowd midway through) that included snippets of 'Satellite of Love', 'Ruby Tuesday', 'Sympathy for the Devil' and 'Walk on the Wild Side'.
U2 at Live Aid
During U2's performance, Bono saved a teenage girl from being crushed by plucking her from the crowd. In an interview two decades later, she credited him with saving her life.
Dire Straits at Live Aid
Also extremely well-received at Live Aid were Dire Straits, who performed 'Money For Nothing' with Sting and 'Sultans of Swing'.
Live Aid audience
The Live Aid crowd who braved intense heat throughout the day.
Backstage at Live Aid
Comedians Mel Smith, Gryff Rhys Jones, Pamela Stephenson and Billy Connolly backstage at Live Aid.
Queen at Live Aid
Firmly entrenched in music folklore, Queen's 21-minute set at Live Aid on 13th July 1985 is rightfully regarded as one of the finest live performances of all time. Freddie Mercury was imperious throughout and – to use a cliché – he had the entire 72,000 strong audience in the palm of his hands.
Queen at Live Aid
The setlist of Queen's historic set at Live Aid was 'Bohemian Rhapsody', 'Radio Ga Ga', 'Hammer To Fall', 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love', 'We Will Rock You' and 'We Are The Champions'. Freddie Mercury also led a now iconic "day-oh!" crowd singalong during the performance.
Freddie Mercury
An incredible photo of Freddie Mercury during Queen's fabled Live Aid set.
David Bowie at Live Aid
Queen, of course, were a tough act to follow but fortunately David Bowie was up next and he performed a sublime 17-minute set consisting of 'TVC15', 'Rebel Rebel', 'Modern Love' and a spine-tingling 'Heroes'.
David Bowie at Live Aid
Another photo of the legendary David Bowie in his imperious live glory at Live Aid in 1985.
The Who at Live Aid
Sadly for The Who, their performance at Live Aid was blighted by technical difficulties. First, John Entwistle's bass wouldn't work and then the TV broadcast cut out (somewhat ironically) as Roger Daltrey was singing "why don't you fade away' during 'My Generation'. The performance returned to TV during the final verse of 'Pinball Wizard'. The Who closed with 'Love, Reign O'er Me' and 'Won't Get Fooled Again'.
Paul McCartney and David Bowie at Live Aid
Fellow music legends Paul McCartney and David Bowie backstage at Live Aid, 13th July 1985.
Live Aid at Wembley Stadium
The view from the crowd at Live Aid, 13th July 1985.
Live Aid at Wembley Stadium
The crowd at are hosed down with water at Wembley Stadium to cool down in the intense heat.
Elton John at Live Aid
Sir Elton John had one of the longest sets of the day at Live Aid, and he kicked it off with 'I'm Still Standing', 'Bennie and the Jets' and 'Rocket Man'.
Elton John at Live Aid
Elton was then joined by Kiki Dee for their huge collaboration 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' and WHAM!'s George Michael and Andrew Ridgley for 'Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me'. The set climaxed with 'Can I Get A Witness'.
Freddie Mercury and Brian May at Live Aid
Less than three hours after their massive triumph with Queen, Freddie Mercury and Brian May returned to the Live Aid stage at Wembley for an encore rendition of 'Is This The World We Created?'.
Paul McCartney at Live Aid
At 9.51pm, Beatles legend Paul McCartney took to the stage for a rendition of 'Let It Be'. Sadly, Macca's performance was blighted by technical woes and the stadium couldn't hear him for the first two minutes due the microphone on his piano failing - the TV audience could hear him slightly better as a nearby mic picked him up. When the mic was eventually fixed, the crowd duly sang along in unison and Alison Moyet, Pete Townshend, David Bowie and Bob Geldof joined Paul on backing vocals.
Live Aid finale
Live Aid came to a rousing and emotion conclusion with a performance of 'Do They Know It's Christmas?'. Among the performers on stage were Harvey Goldsmith, Bob Geldof, David Bowie, George Michael, Sting, Andrew Ridgeley, Howard Jones, Elton John, Roger Daltrey, Midge Ure, Paul Weller, Freddie Mercury, Rick Parfitt, Adam Ant and Bono.
Live Aid finale
The two Live Aid concerts in London and Philadelphia raised more than $127 million for famine relief in Africa.
Live Aid finale
Organiser Bob Geldof waves to the 72,000 strong crowd at the conclusion of 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' at Live Aid.
Live Aid ticket stub
A coveted ticket to Live Aid at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 13th July 1985. Tickets cost £5 plus an obligatory £20 donation.