Do They Know It's Christmas?

Do They Know It's Christmas? is the title of a song recorded and released by supergroup Band Aid. Written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, The song was released in November 1984 as a fund-raising single for famine relief in Africa.

Tracklisting

 * 7" FEED 1

A. Do They Know It's Christmas?

B. Feed The World


 * 12" FEED 112

A. Do They Know It's Christmas ? (12" Mix) - remixed by Trevor Horn

B1 Do They Know It's Christmas ? (Standard Mix)

B2 Feed The World

Timeline

 * 25 November 1984: Do They Know It's Christmas? is recorded in one day at SARM Studios, Notting Hill, London between 11 am and 7 pm.
 * 26 November 1984: Bob Geldof appears on the Mike Read Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 1 in order to promote the single.
 * 03 December 1984: the record is released.
 * 11 December 1984: the single has entered the charts at no.1 (the second single of the year to do so after Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Two Tribes). Do They Know It's Christmas? replaced FGTH's The Power of Love (with its Nativity-themed video) which had taken just two weeks to reach the top. It dropped down to N3 with Wham!'s Last Christmas entering the charts at N2.
 * 13 December 1984: promo-clip of the recording/performance of the single is shown on Top of the Pops. The clip will be shown for each week of the single's five-week stint at no.1.
 * 25 December 1984: Band Aid appear in the studio for the Top of the Pops Christmas Day Special. The formation is slightly different since some artists could not make it to the BBC Studios. George Michael, for example, is absent and Sting is shown as partially miming over his vocal part, while Paul Weller famously mimes to Bono Vox's part. Billy Currie of Ultravox is shown miming a keyboard part with a toy piano. Other notable new additions 8who did not partecipate in the original recording) include members of Slade, Bronski Beat, Frankie Goes To Hollywood and Nik Kershaw.Band Aid - Do they know it's Christmas (Top of The Pops, 1984 - widescreen)