It is marked as the most defining moment in the majestic history of Queen – when the band took to the stage of London’s Wembley Stadium to perform at ‘the Greatest Show on Earth’, the 13 July 1985 worldwide Live Aid concert beamed by satellite to 160 countries and watched by an audience of 1.5 billion worldwide, 72,000 of them in Wembley Stadium.
Masterfully commanding the stage for 22 minutes, Freddie (Mercury), Brian (May), Roger (Taylor) and John (Deacon) truly conquered the globe with a performance that continues until today – nearly 35 years on – to be regarded as one of the greatest live performances of all time.
Concertgoers attending tonight’s, Sunday 16 February Fire Fight Australia benefit concert for National Bushfire Relief, taking place at Australia’s ANZ Stadium in Sydney Olympic Park, will have a unique chance to share in a piece of rock history revisited when Queen’s Brian May and Roger Taylor, now fronted by permanent singer Adam Lambert, take to the stage.
For the first time since that historic event in 1985, Queen will perform in full its original 22 minute Live Aid set, perhaps only known to many of today’s younger audience from its restaging by actors in the band’s commercial behemoth film, Bohemian Rhapsody.
The six-song set is made up of Bohemian Rhapsody, Radio Ga Ga, Hammer To Fall, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions.
Said guitarist Brian: “We’re very happy to be able to do our bit to help Australia to fight back against the terrible fires. This is Australia’s pain but it’s Humanity’s problem. My heart has broken seeing the plight of the animals. I hope the concert will help them too. We all need this tragedy to never happen again. “
Drummer Roger Taylor said: “This would seem to be not only Australia’s problem but a climate change problem that affects the whole world. We are here right now and anything we can do to help in finding Australia a way to recover is the least we can do as musicians. We are all in trouble.”
Said Adam Lambert: “It’s terrifying to see what is happening to our world, and we need to take responsibility now. To be able to be part of ‘Fire Fight’ which is doing just that, is a real honour”.
All concert ticket profits will go towards key organisations providing vital Rescue, Relief and Recovery and Rehabilitation:
RESCUE: Rural and regional fire & rescue services in affected states;
RELIEF & RECOVERY: Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery; and
REHABILITATION: RSPCA Bushfire Appeal.
All donations made throughout the broadcast will go directly to the Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal’s Fire Fight Fund to ensure local community groups can access support throughout their recovery journey, when the time is right for them.
Fans can donate at anytime at: https://firefightaustralia.com
