Are there any moments in musical history you wish you could have witnessed firsthand?
This past week, I watched “The Greatest Night in Pop,” a new documentary about the making of the 1985 “We are the World” song that raised funds for humanitarian aid for Africa.
It was incredible to see so many musical legends come together to participate in a cause that helped so many. “We are the World” raised more than $60 million in humanitarian aid. The song, written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omaritian, brought this varied group to A&M Recording Studios in Hollywood on Jan. 28, 1985 after the American Music Awards. The award show was hosted by Richie, who also won several awards that night and he was interviewed in this documentary, along with Cyndi Lauper, Bruce Springsteen, Dionne Warwick and Huey Lewis.
I’m going to list the names of those who sang solos during the song - it’s a long list, but when you read their names, take a moment to think of all the songs they have contributed to the soundtrack of your life. If you listened to the radio - or watched MTV - in the 1980s, you probably can think of at least one song - if not more - by each of these artists.
In addition to Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, artists included (in order of appearance on the song): Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Kenny Rogers, James Ingram, Tina Turner, Billy Joel, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson, Al Jarreau, Bruce Springsteen, Kenny Loggins, Steve Perry, Darryl Hall, Huey Lewis, Cyndi Lauper, Kim Carnes, Bob Dylan and Ray Charles. All these amazing performers that were all over the radio and MTV in those days.
Those in the chorus included Dan Aykroyd, Harry Belafonte (who initiated the project), Lindsey Buckingham, Sheila E., Bob Geldof, Waylon Jennings, Bette Midler, John Oates, Smokey Robinson, and members of the Jacksons, the Pointer Sisters and “the News” part of the Huey Lewis and the News band.
Can you imagine, all of them in one small room on one evening working on a project to feed the hungry in Africa? What a night! I definitely recommend this documentary as it offers a glimpse behind this historic evening, as well as lessons in leadership, teamwork, group dynamics and communication.
Watching the film brings to light details behind the writing of the song and the efforts that were made to coordinate the recording in that time before email and the Internet and is told through both videos from that evening and current reflections from some of the participants.
It was fascinating to watch the recording process and the strengths and vulnerabilities that each of these stars brought with them into the studio. One thing that stood out the most was Bob Dylan feeling uncomfortable with singing in front of everyone - yes, the legendary, Pulitzer Prize-winning musician Bob Dylan needed encouragement in the studio. As somebody who always feels very self-conscious about my vocals, I was grateful to witness that someone of his stature still experienced that even in the midst of a successful career. Those coordinating the evening made sure he felt comfortable doing his part and I don’t want to spoil anything, but their kindness was so touching.
“The Greatest Night in Pop” is currently available on Netflix.
My song that I’m sharing this week is one I’ve been working on for several weeks. I started with the lyrics, which have gone through several edits, and the melody. I wrote the song on a keyboard and then entered the chords in Hooktheory, which is a software platform designed to help musicians create music. I’m still in the very early stages of figuring out how it works, but I will try to explain it in case this process is something that you might be interested in trying.
I worked out all the chords on the keyboard and then entered them into the software so essentially I was creating a backing track for the song. This took awhile because I would sing it over and over again as I was entering the chords to make sure I was putting them in the right place.
Then I exported that file and now had a piano track that I could put into LogicPro. It also downloaded two other tracks and I wasn’t sure why, but I put them in Logic, too and used them to create an acoustic guitar track and a bass guitar track.
Once I had those down, I recorded vocals. After changing some lyrics, a few weeks into it, I ended up needing to record a whole other set of vocals, including double tracking vocals, background vocals and harmonies.
I also added some synth parts and drums.
The song is about something that has been on my mind for the past six months. Six months ago this week, thousands of young adults attending a music festival in southern Israel were brutally attacked. That morning, 364 people were murdered and about 40 were kidnapped. In nearby communities, individuals and families of all ages were brutally murdered. In all, about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were murdered that day and about 240 were kidnapped. There are currently 133 hostages, ages 14 months to 86 years, that are still being held captive in Gaza. Captives of multiple nationalities and religions. No word has been released publicly what condition they are in or if they are even still alive. Six months of families not knowing where their loved ones are.
This song is about the Oct. 7 massacre of the Supernova Music Festival and the despair felt after the brutal attacks, as well as the world’s response to it.
The process of creating this song took a lot of time, primarily because I was trying to figure out how to use HookTheory and then it always takes me a lot of time to record vocals. They still didn’t come out how I envisioned them, but I really wanted to finish up a version of this song so I can share it here as we reach the six-month mark of the hostages’ captivity. Perhaps I’ll go back and re-record the lead vocals at some point.
When you listen, try to imagine it with a great vocalist and a full orchestra - that is what I would have liked to do and, more importantly, think of those being held hostage today and pray that they are released - alive - to their loved ones and that this war comes to an end without any more loss.
One really strange thing happened as I was making this song. Because the festival featured trance music, I wanted to find a drum beat that had some connection to that, although this is not a dance song. I was auditioning different sounds in Logic Pro X Drummer, going through some trap beats as it sounded like dance music to me. As I was switching through the different sounds, I found one that sounded like it would work. Then I noticed the name of it - Supernova. The same name as the festival so I knew that I would need to make that beat work.
The name of the song is called “What’s Gonna Be?” and it’s for all of those who were affected by what happened on Oct. 7.
In the spirit of “We are the World,” I’m going to post this song on Bandcamp and donate any proceeds (minus the Bandcamp fees) to OneFamily, a nonprofit organization that helps support Israel’s victims of terror and bereaved families through their grieving and healing by providing emotional, legal and financial support. I visited this organization during a trip to Israel a few years ago and was very moved when hearing about the work they do and the difference they’ve made in people’s lives who have gone through those horrible experiences. Download the song at leisah.bandcamp.com or watch the lyric video here.
The message of “We are the World” still rings through today, so I’ll end this episode with the beautiful words of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie.
We are the world
We are the children
We are the ones who'll make a brighter day so let's start giving
There's a choice we're making
We're saving our own lives
It's true we'll make a better day, just you and me
What’s Gonna Be?
Joy ended at sunrise with rockets in the skies
No time for goodbyes, no time
Frantically running from the devil hunting
Survivors still hear the cries
They say history repeats itself
So I take the book off the shelf to see
What’s gonna be
All the monsters on those pages
Creating chaos through the ages
Laugh wickedly
What’s gonna be?Hatred burning at sunset
The smoke hasn’t cleared yet
We’ll never forget, again
Why is nobody listening, so many are missing
Bring them home, the table is setThey say history repeats itself
So I take the book off the shelf to see
What’s gonna be
All the prophets and the sages
Sharing wisdom through the ages
Stare silently
What’s gonna be?It’s not like we’ve never seen this before
The world’s no stranger to trauma and war
Flowers will bloom after the storm
But everything feels different now
They say history repeats itself
So I take the book off the shelf to see
What’s gonna be
In the back I find blank pages
Is there time to make some changes
It’s a mystery
What’s gonna be?© Leisah Woldoff
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