Springsteen spin off: We Are the World video and challenge :)

[MercyA]

I just watched the We Are the World video again yesterday and it was so fun to see so many 80's singers rocking it out together for a good cause. 

I think I heard that the singers weren't supposed to deviate from the music but a certain singer with brightly colored hair did anyway. So awesome. [No! I had it totally wrong. Cindi Lauper asked Quincy Jones for permission to improvise and he reportedly was delighted to give it.] 

I recognized sixteen of the principal singers right off the bat and I'm betting some of you can beat me and get all of them! Yes, it's cheesy, but fun. Give it a whirl, count how many you recognize, if you want, and tell me your favorites. I'll do the same in a bit but don't want to give too many singers away.

Bonus if you recognize singers / actors in the choir too!

 

Edited December 26, 2021 by MercyA

[chocolate-chip chooky]

@MercyA, do you remember Band Aid and Band Aid II? 

My 15yr old put together a truly fabulous Christmas playlist for yesterday. It had everything from Frank Sinatra to Alice Cooper to BTS to The Wiggles to The Beach Boys to Mariah Carey to My Chemical Romance to Run DMC to Baby Shark, and truly everything in between. SO FUN!

I'll take a crack at your challenge when I get a spare few minutes 🙂 

[MercyA]

20 minutes ago, chocolate-chip chooky said:

@MercyA, do you remember Band Aid and Band Aid II? 

My 15yr old put together a truly fabulous Christmas playlist for yesterday. It had everything from Frank Sinatra to Alice Cooper to BTS to The Wiggles to The Beach Boys to Mariah Carey to My Chemical Romance to Run DMC to Baby Shark, and truly everything in between. SO FUN!

I'll take a crack at your challenge when I get a spare few minutes 🙂 

I do not, but I remember Farm Aid and the (non-musical) Hands Across America, in which my small town participated. Anyone else take part in Hands Across America in 1986?

Your son's playlist sounds super fun!

[Junie]

We use this video in our 20th Century American History course in our homeschool.  It introduces 80s music in one short video (with clean lyrics!).

[Selkie]

I recognized 25, but there are several that I have absolutely no clue who they are. My favorite would have to be Willie Nelson. I ❤️ him because he rescued 70 horses from the slaughterhouse and they now live on his ranch in Texas.

[Melissa Louise]

There's a white dude with a beard and standing-upish hair - no idea who he is, and don't recognize his voice. Also don't recognize a youngish black guy with a beard. 

Between this and the MTV 40th.anniversary doco on the BBC, many ear worms! 

I don't really have a favourite - I wasn't a particular fan of any of the singers, but it was a nice blast from the past. 

Edited December 26, 2021 by Melissa Louise

[Selkie]

7 minutes ago, Melissa Louise said:

There's a white dude with a beard and standing-upish hair - no idea who he is, and don't recognize his voice. Also don't recognize a youngish black guy with a beard. 

Kenny Loggins is the first one, I think.

[Melissa Louise]

Just now, Selkie said:

Kenny Loggins is the first one, I think.

Oh, yes, you could be right!

What is going on with his hair?!

 

[Selkie]

7 minutes ago, Melissa Louise said:

Oh, yes, you could be right!

What is going on with his hair?!

 

His style has always been questionable...he's the one who had a naked wedding! Imagine being invited to that...

[MercyA]

1 hour ago, Selkie said:

I recognized 25, but there are several that I have absolutely no clue who they are. My favorite would have to be Willie Nelson. I ❤️ him because he rescued 70 horses from the slaughterhouse and they now live on his ranch in Texas.

25, go Selkie!!! I love Willie for rescuing those horses, too. 

Willie Nelson did have one of the strangest lines in the song: "As God has shown us by turning stones to bread..." Sounds nice, but I'm pretty sure there's no recorded Biblical instance of that. Closest I can think of is Jesus teaching: "Which of you, If your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?" Or maybe someone confused manna with the water coming from the rock in the Old Testament? ETA: Thought of one more: Satan tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread, but He didn't do it. I'm probably overthinking this. 🙂

But all that is neither here nor there. He did a great job in the song!

Edited December 26, 2021 by MercyA

[MercyA]

You may spot Dan Akyroyd in the choir. Didn't know he could sing! 

My particular favorites: Cindi Lauper, Paul Simon, Steve Perry, Huey Lewis.

[Tap]

Here is the Wiki link that gives more information about the benefit. It also lists the artists, chorus members and instrument players. If you hover over the names, a picture will appear. 

Edited December 26, 2021 by Tap

[chocolate-chip chooky]

Only 15!  That's a bit embarrassing 😐🤭

 

[MercyA]

5 minutes ago, chocolate-chip chooky said:

Only 15!  That's a bit embarrassing 😐🤭

 

15 is great!!! I only got 16. 

[chocolate-chip chooky]

58 minutes ago, MercyA said:

You may spot Dan Akyroyd in the choir. Didn't know he could sing! 

My particular favorites: Cindi Lauper, Paul Simon, Steve Perry, Huey Lewis.

Paul Simon! There was one that I thought was either Simon or Garfunkle. 15.5 for me! 😄

[Junie]

You know you have a talented group of singers when Bette Midler is not given a solo.

 

[Carrie12345]

7 hours ago, chocolate-chip chooky said:

@MercyA, do you remember Band Aid and Band Aid II? 

🙂

Loved “Do They Know It’s Christmas” as a kid, LOATHE it as an adult. Which stinks, because dh plays it all the dang time.  How did so many of us walk around belting “Well tonight thank God it’s them instead of youuuuuuu!” Without a second thought???  There won’t be snow in Africa this Christmastime? Shocker! ANd I don’t know what the stats were on Christianity that year, but I do know much of the continent wouldn’t particularly care that it was Christmas.

(I pick apart more problematic lyrics with dh, but those are my highlights, lol.)

7 hours ago, MercyA said:

I do not, but I remember Farm Aid and the (non-musical) Hands Across America, in which my small town participated. Anyone else take part in Hands Across America in 1986?

 

Hands Across America brought me a lot of anxiety. 1. I was placed next to a classmate with a severe skin condition affecting his hands that no one dared to ask about, so my 3rd (?) grade self did it while scared but trying not to let him pick up on that and 2. I worried so much that my classmate who didn’t HAVE hands would feel uncomfortable about the whole thing.

And now I clearly have to update my therapist that my symptoms go back a lot farther than I had remembered…

[MEmama]

Nm 

Edited December 26, 2021 by MEmama

[ktgrok]

9 hours ago, chocolate-chip chooky said:

@MercyA, do you remember Band Aid and Band Aid II? 

My 15yr old put together a truly fabulous Christmas playlist for yesterday. It had everything from Frank Sinatra to Alice Cooper to BTS to The Wiggles to The Beach Boys to Mariah Carey to My Chemical Romance to Run DMC to Baby Shark, and truly everything in between. SO FUN!

I'll take a crack at your challenge when I get a spare few minutes 🙂 

um...is it in a format that can be shared??? 

1 hour ago, Carrie12345 said:

Loved “Do They Know It’s Christmas” as a kid, LOATHE it as an adult. Which stinks, because dh plays it all the dang time.  How did so many of us walk around belting “Well tonight thank God it’s them instead of youuuuuuu!” Without a second thought???  There won’t be snow in Africa this Christmastime? Shocker! ANd I don’t know what the stats were on Christianity that year, but I do know much of the continent wouldn’t particularly care that it was Christmas.

 

YES!!!!! Even as a kid I was like, pretty sure it is SUMMER in a good portion of that continent, so there won't be snow ANY Christmas, EVER! And that line about being glad it wasn't us was horrible!!!!

 

[happi duck]

8 hours ago, Junie said:

You know you have a talented group of singers when Bette Midler is not given a solo.

 

I was thinking the same thing!

[chocolate-chip chooky]

7 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

Loved “Do They Know It’s Christmas” as a kid, LOATHE it as an adult. Which stinks, because dh plays it all the dang time.  How did so many of us walk around belting “Well tonight thank God it’s them instead of youuuuuuu!” Without a second thought???  

Oh my goodness. Really? Bob Geldof wrote that? I'm sure I would have been walking around belting that out too. Crikey. 

[chocolate-chip chooky]

5 hours ago, ktgrok said:

um...is it in a format that can be shared??? 

 

 

I have no idea if the link would send you to our family Spotify account.  But here's a taster. (You're welcome 😉)

 

[Amethyst]

I think I got 17 or 18. Who was that blonde woman next to Cyndi Lauper?

[Wheres Toto]

19 hours ago, Melissa Louise said:

There's a white dude with a beard and standing-upish hair - no idea who he is, and don't recognize his voice. Also don't recognize a youngish black guy with a beard. 

Between this and the MTV 40th.anniversary doco on the BBC, many ear worms! 

I don't really have a favourite - I wasn't a particular fan of any of the singers, but it was a nice blast from the past. 

The first white guy with a white beard is Kenny Rogers.

I knew about 18.  So many of them look so different than they do now.  They were so young.  

[Selkie]

1 hour ago, Amethyst said:

I think I got 17 or 18. Who was that blonde woman next to Cyndi Lauper?

Kim Carnes

[Amethyst]

3 minutes ago, Selkie said:

Kim Carnes

Wow. There’s a blast from the past

[MercyA]

2 hours ago, Amethyst said:

Wow. There’s a blast from the past

Bette Davis Eyes is one of my favorite songs of all time, because it reminds me so strongly of happy summers at the public pool when I was a little kid. ❤️

[MercyA]

4 hours ago, Wheres Toto said:

The first white guy with a white beard is Kenny Rogers.

I knew about 18.  So many of them look so different than they do now.  They were so young.  

That's right. Guy with brown hair and a brown beard is Kenny Loggins. I get their names mixed up!

[ktgrok]

9 hours ago, MercyA said:

Bette Davis Eyes is one of my favorite songs of all time, because it reminds me so strongly of happy summers at the public pool when I was a little kid. ❤️

I had a tape of the Chipmunks singing various songs and Bette Davis Eyes was one of them!

[Idalou]

On 12/26/2021 at 8:29 AM, ktgrok said:

um...is it in a format that can be shared??? 

YES!!!!! Even as a kid I was like, pretty sure it is SUMMER in a good portion of that continent, so there won't be snow ANY Christmas, EVER! And that line about being glad it wasn't us was horrible!!!!

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/U2Band/comments/pr25w5/well_tonight_thank_god_its_them_instead_of_you/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

 I found this interesting

[Carrie12345]

12 minutes ago, Idalou said:

https://www.reddit.com/r/U2Band/comments/pr25w5/well_tonight_thank_god_its_them_instead_of_you/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

 I found this interesting

Still doesn’t cut it for me. To be fair, I am 100% not religious, so of course it wouldn’t cut it *for me*. 😉 

[Idalou]

44 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

Still doesn’t cut it for me. To be fair, I am 100% not religious, so of course it wouldn’t cut it *for me*. 😉 

I agree. I feel the same cringe when I hear someone say there but for the grace of God...I understand it's meaning, but I still dislike it. 

And that was a fine period of time for fundraising, but I always wondered how much of the $ actually went directly to help.

 

[Idalou]

On 12/26/2021 at 12:28 AM, MercyA said:

You may spot Dan Akyroyd in the choir. Didn't know he could sing! 

My particular favorites: Cindi Lauper, Paul Simon, Steve Perry, Huey Lewis.

 Apparently you never watched The Blues Brothers? I saw them in concert way back when. That was a wild and weird time, lol.

[MercyA]

2 hours ago, Idalou said:

 Apparently you never watched The Blues Brothers? I saw them in concert way back when. That was a wild and weird time, lol.

Ah, yes. The Blues Brothers. My husband loved it; I suffered through it. 😉 That was decades ago! Thanks for the reminder, LOL! 

[Selkie]

1 hour ago, MercyA said:

Ah, yes. The Blues Brothers. My husband loved it; I suffered through it. 😉 That was decades ago! Thanks for the reminder, LOL! 

My dh loves it, too, and I can't stand it. Whenever he's flipping around the channels and it's on, he watches it again - and I'm like, "noooo 😱😱😱!!!" because I've had to sit through it a zillion times.

[happi duck]

Somehow I've managed to never see the Blues Brothers.  This thread reminded me but now maybe I don't want to see it!