We Are the World
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "We Are the World" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Single by USA for Africa | ||
| from the album We Are the World | ||
| Released | March 7, 1985 | |
| Format | CD, 7" | |
| Recorded | January 28, 1985 | |
| Genre | Pop | |
| Label | Columbia | |
| Writer(s) | Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie | |
| Producer | Quincy Jones, Michael Omartian | |
| Alternative cover | ||
 |
||
"We Are the World" is a 1985 song written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, produced and conducted by Quincy Jones and recorded by a supergroup of 45 popular musicians billed as USA for Africa (United Support of Artists for Africa).[1] The charity single was intended to raise funds to help famine-relief efforts in Ethiopia, which had experienced unusual drought and political instability in 1984 and 1985. Sales from the single and accompanying album and video ultimately raised over $63 million for the famine relief.[1] [2]
Contents |
[edit] History
The song was inspired by the charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" which had been released a few months prior in November 1984.[3] After that performance, which mostly included British musicians, Band Aid organizer Bob Geldof attempted to contact American musicians for an American Christmas charity single, but he had little luck in getting the musicians to reorganize their schedules for recording. Harry Belafonte, who had not been contacted by Geldof, contacted music manager Ken Kragen about putting together a concert to help raise money for African causes.
A temporary but severe drought in Ethiopia during 1984/1985 had decimated local food supplies, and famine relief was still needed for 6 countries, noted by the United Nations (UN): Ethiopia (commonly in news reports), Chad, Mali, Niger, Sudan and Mozambique.[4] Kragen, the manager of Lionel Richie and Kenny Rogers, didn't believe that a concert would make enough of a difference and suggested a charity single instead, including about a dozen artists. However, response from musicians was overwhelming, and Kragen turned down about 50 artists who wished to appear on the song.
Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie wrote the song for the group, knowing there were people dying in Africa.[4] Quincy Jones agreed to produce and sent a demo to all the participating artists, along with a note to "check their egos at the door".[3][5]
The song was performed as the finale of Michael Jackson's July 7, 2009 memorial service at Staples Center in Los Angeles after the death of Michael Jackson on June 25, 2009. The song featured religous symbols and portraits by photographer Steve McCurry.
[edit] Vocal format
Jones worked out which singers would perform which lyrics, studying recordings of each of the selected singers to decide which would work well with each other.[3] He paired Billy Joel with Tina Turner and Willie Nelson with Dionne Warwick. Michael Jackson was to be paired with Prince, but Prince was a no-show for the recording,[3] so Jackson was paired with Diana Ross instead.
During the performance, the solo portions allowed the distinctive voices of the well-known lead singers to be heard individually, or in pairs, before the entire ensemble sang the third repetition of the chorus. Later into the song, the climax is intensified by a modulation from E to F.
The arrangement created a dramatic effect by having the entire group sing together, but only after many of the celebrity singers were each revealed in solo/duet parts, with two repetitions of the chorus as solos/duets. The bridge was also sung as solos and duets by Michael Jackson, Daryl Hall, Huey Lewis, Kim Carnes, and Cyndi Lauper, building the crescendo into the entire group singing "We are the world, we are the children..."
The audio effect of the various reveals, by their famous solo voices, was also repeated in the video version, with closeup views of each singing artist before the entire singing group was shown (the video is a composite of multiple filmings). That sequence of reveals was a result of the pairings made by Quincy Jones.
[edit] Recording session details
The January 1985 recording session was held during and after the American Music Awards at the A&M Studios in Hollywood, California.[3] Michael Jackson skipped the American Music Awards ceremony, that night, to record the chorus of the song as a guide to the other artists. The artists who performed on "We Are the World" arrived in-studio from limousines (as most of them had participated in the awards show previously) - except Bruce Springsteen, who arrived driving a pickup truck. Prince's agreement to attend had been tentative, and he did not appear.[3] Prince's absence was parodied in a Saturday Night Live sketch that referenced the actual arrest of his bodyguards who were involved in a scuffle the evening of the American Music Awards.
Many of the male singers found in rehearsal that the key of the chorus was too high for them to reach, so Quincy Jones told them to refrain from singing until later in the session when the chorus was switched to a lower key.[3] For purposes of the video recording, some of the singers proceeded to pretend to sing.[3] Four of the men, Waylon Jennings, Kenny Rogers, Bruce Springsteen and Willie Nelson, stepped to the side during this time until the key could be recalibrated.[3]
Bob Dylan was unaccustomed to delivering lines while surrounded by so many people in the studio.[3] Stevie Wonder demonstrated the lines while mirroring Dylan's voice at the piano, and when Dylan delivered his solo perfectly, the room burst into applause.[3]
Cyndi Lauper's jewelry clicking required a retake of the bridge section and during a break in the session, Al Jarreau and Lionel Richie broke into an impromptu version of Harry Belafonte's 1950s hit "Banana Boat Song (Day-O)" in honor of Belafonte's role in organizing the project[3] which led to a suggestion, "This should be the B-Side." Wonder added a chorus to "Day-O" about his and Ray Charles' blindness.[3] Wonder came back after the session to "touch up" his vocals.
[edit] Disagreement about the lyrics
The lyric "there's a choice we're making / we're saving our own lives" was originally written as "there's a chance we're taking / we're taking our own lives" but was rewritten when it was feared the original phrasing's first part might look like the artists are patting themselves on the back while the last part might suggest suicide.[6] Also, the artists discussed whether they should sing "we are the ones who make a brighter day" instead of the original "better day". They eventually ended up singing "brighter day," although Bruce Springsteen sings "better day" towards the end, in his second solo part. VH-1's Pop-Up Video stated that Waylon Jennings left the recording session due to a dispute over the lyrics. The dispute started when Stevie Wonder announced that he would like to substitute a line in Swahili. After a few rehearsals, a full-fledged creative conflict broke out. Geldof pointed out that Ethiopians do not speak Swahili. Michael Jackson then proposed to keep his original line "Sha-lim sha-lingay" but after a few rehearsals, it too ran into opposition, because it does not have a meaning. Eventually Al Jarreau cried, "We can make a meaning" and came up with "One World, our word" which was changed one last time in "One world, our children."
[edit] Selected vocalists
John Denver, who had been actively campaigning against world hunger in the 1980s, had offered to participate in the recording, but was turned down. According to Kragen, the reason John Denver was turned down was because several people felt his country image would hurt the pop/rock credibility of the song. [7] Linda Ronstadt, ill with the flu, missed the session, and Pat Benatar was not available due to her pregnancy, since there was concern about the bright lights and crowding in the studio. Madonna was asked to take part, but she declined because of commitments for tour preparations. All of Michael Jackson's brothers except Jermaine were at the recording, as was his sister LaToya. Sister Janet Jackson, who would have her first hit album a year later, and oldest sister Rebbie were not in attendance.
[edit] Solos (in order of first appearance)
- Lionel Richie
- Stevie Wonder
- Paul Simon
- Kenny Rogers
- James Ingram
- Tina Turner
- Billy Joel
- Michael Jackson
- Diana Ross
- Dionne Warwick
- Willie Nelson
- Al Jarreau
- Bruce Springsteen
- Kenny Loggins
- Steve Perry
- Daryl Hall
- Michael Jackson
- Huey Lewis
- Cyndi Lauper
- Kim Carnes
- Bob Dylan
- Ray Charles
[edit] Extras
[edit] Chart performance
When released as a single, "We Are The World" rose the charts rapidly in the U.S., "one of the fastest-selling singles of the modern pop era,"[3] reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on April 17, 1985 and remaining there for four weeks. It immediately sold out its initial shipment of 800,000 copies, and sales reached 1.5 million shortly afterwards.[3] It also reached #1 in the UK, and made the top spot in almost every country throughout the world. In the UK, it was the 33rd best-selling single of 1985.
| Country | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia | 1 |
| Belgium | 1 |
| Brazil | 1 |
| Pakistan | 1 |
| Canada | 1 |
| Denmark | 1 |
| India | 1 |
| Philippines | 1 |
| Taiwan | 1 |
| France | 1 |
| Ireland | 1 |
| Israel | 1 |
| Italy | 1 |
| The Netherlands | 1 |
| New Zealand | 1 |
| Norway | 1 |
| Portugal | 1 |
| Sweden | 1 |
| Spain | 1 |
| Switzerland | 1 |
| United Kingdom | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 27 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 76 |
[edit] Documentary
Two documentaries were developed from 45 hours of film footage shot during the recording session. The first documentary premiered on HBO in May 1985, and the second was sold in stores beginning that summer.[3]
[edit] Impact
Although the single wasn't released until March 7, 1985 (5 weeks after the studio sessions), the anticipated impact of USA for Africa was already being mentioned, by the United Nations, on 1 June 1985, within 3 months of the album's release.[4] Ultimately, the single sold 7.5 million copies in the US. It was released on an album, We Are the World, which sold over three million copies. Including revenues from the single, the album, the video and related merchandise, "We Are the World" raised over $63 million for famine relief.[1] [2] The sales of the recordings raised many millions of dollars, and supplies[4] were sent to Africa. The impact of these relief efforts however is not unanimously seen positively: Famine scholar Alex de Waal argues that, "The humanitarian effort prolonged the war, and with it, human suffering."[8]
The song went on to win four 1985 Grammys for: Song of the Year, Record of the Year,[1] and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group.
[edit] See also
- "Voices That Care" – Popular musicians', entertainers' and athletes' charity single
- "Tears Are Not Enough" – Canadian charity single.
- "Do They Know It's Christmas?" – UK charity single.
- "Hear 'n Aid" – Heavy Metal artists charity single.
- "What's Going On" – American artists to stop the spread of AIDS.
- "What More Can I Give" – a charity single for the September 11 attacks
- "That's What Friends Are For" – recorded as a benefit for American Foundation for AIDS Research.
- "Stop the Madness" – an anti-drug song sponsored by US President Ronald Reagan.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d "We Are the World by U.S.A. For Africa". Songfacts. 2002. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1560.
- ^ a b "USATODAY.com - Moments of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" (news), USA Today, 2006-07-27, webpage: USAT-MTVcover.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Behind the scene of a pop miracle". Los Angeles Times. 1985-03-25. http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-archive-we-are-the-world-mar24,0,3073561.story.
- ^ a b c d "Situation in six African countries still severe and deteriorating; efforts to aid drought-stricken nations continue", UN Chronicle, United Nations, 1 June 1985, webpage: FLib-UNC-African-severe.
- ^ The idiom "egos at the door" refers to setting aside notions of personal rank, when entering the room, for the duration of the event.
- ^ Interview with Quincy Jones for official video (1985).
- ^ [1]
- ^ Alex de Waal, Famine Crimes: Politics & the Disaster Relief Industry in Africa, African Rights and the International African Institute, 1997, ISBN 0253211581, p. 127
[edit] External links
- USA for Africa official web site
- Lyrics and extended trivia
- The song's lyrics and the singers who sang each line
- ""We Are the World" song celebrates 20 years". MSNBC. 2005-02-05. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6870678/. Retrieved on 2006-09-21.
- Gylne Tider - We Are the World 2006 music/promo video
| Preceded by "One More Night" by Phil Collins |
Billboard Hot 100 number-one single April 13, 1985 - May 4, 1985 |
Succeeded by "Crazy for You" by Madonna |
| Preceded by "Easy Lover" by Philip Bailey & Phil Collins |
UK number-one single April 14, 1985 |
Succeeded by "Move Closer" by Phyllis Nelson |
| Preceded by "Rhythm of the Night" by DeBarge |
Billboard's Hot Soul Singles number-one single May 4, 1985 - May 11, 1985 |
Succeeded by "Fresh" by Kool & the Gang |
| Preceded by "Johnny, Johnny" by Jeanne Mas |
French (SNEP) number-one single May 5, 1985 - May 19, 1985 |
Succeeded by "Éthiopie" by Chanteurs sans Frontières |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
