Do They Know Its Christmas?
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"Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of popular British and Irish musical acts. It was recorded in a single day at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, in November 1984. "Do They Know It's Christmas" was released in the United Kingdom on 3 December 1984. It entered the UK Singles Chart at number one and stayed there for five weeks, becoming Christmas number one. It sold a million copies in the first week, becoming the fastest-selling single in UK chart history; it held this title until 1997, when it was overtaken by Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997". UK sales passed three million on the last day of 1984.The song also reached number one in thirteen other countries. In the US, it fell short of the top ten in the Billboard Hot 100 due to a lack of airplay, but sold an estimated 2.5 million copies there by January 1985. By 1989, it had sold 11.7 million copies worldwide. Geldof hoped that it would raise £70,000 for Ethiopia; within a year, it raised £8 million. The success led to several other charity singles, such as "We Are the World" (1985) by USA for Africa, and spin-off charity events, such as Comic Relief and the 1985 Live Aid concert. The original version of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" has sold 3.8 million copies in the UK. In a UK poll in December 2012, it was voted sixth on the ITV television special The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song."Do They Know It's Christmas?" was rerecorded and rereleased in 1989, 2004 and 2014. The 1989 and 2004 versions also raised funds for famine relief, while the 2014 version raised funds for the Ebola crisis in West Africa. All three reached number one in the UK, and the 1989 and 2004 versions became Christmas number ones. The 2004 version sold 1.8 million copies.