An unlikely moment at Live Aid has been credited by some fans of Bob Dylan as the performance that “hooked” them on his work.
The veteran songwriter was far from his best during the mid-1980s, having just released Empire Burlesque a month before the charity drive concert. Dylan took to the stage with The Rolling Stones‘ Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards for the performance, and though on paper it sounds like a magnificent triple of stars, the gig has not gone down all that well with some fans. Others, specifically self-proclaimed punk rockers, have hailed the performance though, saying it’s the reason they got into Dylan’s work. An upload of Dylan, Wood, and Richards’ performance to YouTube drew a mixed reaction, but some were keen to share it’s the show that turned them onto Dylan’s work.
One person wrote: “As a young punker at the time this is where I got hooked on Dylan, I know it was criticised at the time but I loved it and ‘Ballad of Hollis Brown’ is still in my top ten Dylan songs.” Another hailed the performance as an unlikely pairing of the three, writing: “If this wasn’t recorded, not a single person would believe it happened.” A third wrote: “Jack Nicholson introducing Bob Dylan, accompanied by Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood… just WOW!”
Others believe the gig showcases just how strong a writer Dylan is. One person wrote: “And some people wonder how Dylan won a Nobel prize in literature. What a truly gifted writer of lyrics. He came at a time when he was needed to tell the stories.”
Those who were complaining about the quality of the performance were knocked back by those who couldn’t tell the difference between Richards’ playing style then and now. One person joked: “People complaining of them being wasted or stoned. But I’ve never been able to tell the difference in a stoned Keith Richards and the usual Keith Richards.”
Another added: “What a glorious mess.” A third wrote: “Beautiful, just beautiful.” Some have suggested The Beatles would’ve gotten back together for the show had John Lennon not been killed five years prior.
While speculative, some fans of The Beatles do claim the band could have gotten back together had Lennon not been shot in December 1980. The Fab Four had been offered several lucrative offers to get back together on stage, and at one point, very nearly did, but a reunion of all four members never came to be.
The closest listeners got was The Beatles: Anthology and the three songs to come from the recording sessions of the anniversary package. Comments left on a video of Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr reuniting at Friar Park in 1994 had people speculate on whether the band could have gotten back together for a Live Aid performance. McCartney would play a solo slot at the charity event, his first public performance since Lennon’s death.
One person wrote: “I honestly believe that had John not been murdered, The Beatles would have reunited and played at Live Aid.” Another had hopes for such a reunion too, adding: “Could you even imagine that?! Holy shit, that would have been the moment of the millennium!”
A third fan cited the Imagine documentary released shortly after Lennon’s death and wrote: “John says he never ruled out any future collaboration long before Live Aid was even an idea. Whether the band would have actually played Live Aid is impossible to tell, though they were given a handful of offers to get back together.
You can watch Dylan, Wood, and Richards perform at Live Aid below.
