Self Aid was an

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work du ...

benefit concert A benefit concert or charity concert is a type of musical benefit performance (e.g., concert, show, or gala) featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate h ...

held in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

on 17 May 1986. The concert performances were primarily by Irish musicians, although

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, author and television host. According to ''Rolling Stone'', Costello "reinvigorated the literate, lyrical ...

and

Chris Rea Christopher Anton Rea ( ; born 4 March 1951) is a British Rock music, rock and blues singer-songwriter and guitarist from Middlesbrough. Known for his distinctive voice and his slide guitar playing, Rea has recorded twenty-five studio albums, ...

, both Englishmen of Irish descent, were designated "honorary Irishmen" for the day; the event was promoted by

Jim Aiken James Wilson Aiken (May 26, 1899 – October 31, 1961) was an American football player and coach of football and basketball. He served as the head football coach at the University of Akron (1936–1938), the University of Nevada (1939–1946), a ...

. The concert included the last performance by

The Boomtown Rats The Boomtown Rats are an Irish rock/ new wave band originally formed in Dublin in 1975. Between 1977 and 1985, they had a series of Irish and UK hits including " Like Clockwork", " Rat Trap", " I Don't Like Mondays" and " Banana Republic". T ...

until they reformed in 2013. The purpose of the concert was to highlight the chronic unemployment problem in Ireland at the time, with nearly 250,000 people unemployed. The 14-hour concert was the largest that had ever been staged in Ireland. All musicians that took part donated their time free of charge. All profits from the concert and subsequent album, ''Live for Ireland'', went to the Self Aid Trust. The

telethon A telethon (a portmanteau of "television" and "marathon") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other cause. Most telethons feature heavy solicitatio ...

raised millions of pounds for a job creation trust fund as well as over 1000 job pledges. The song chosen for the finale was "Let's Make it Work", written by

Christy Moore Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was one of the founding members of the bands Planxty and Moving Hearts and has had significant success as a solo artist. His first albu ...

and Dublin songwriter Paul Doran. Tributes were paid to

Phil Lynott Philip Parris Lynott (, ; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the co-founder, lead vocalist, bassist, and primary songwriter for the hard rock band Thin Lizzy. He was known for his distinctive ...

who had died just 4 months earlier, including a performance by a reformed

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. The band initially consisted of bass guitarist, lead vocalist and principal songwriter Phil Lynott, drummer Brian Downey, guitarist Eric Bell and organist Eric Wrixon although Wr ...

with

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career, he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, Heavy metal music, heavy ...

on lead vocals. The concept of the concert — job creation through pledges — attracted criticism both at the time and subsequently, with critics claiming that no jobs had actually arisen as a result other than vacancies that already existed.

Concert performers

The line-up included: * Auto Da Fé *

Bagatelle Bagatelle (from the Château de Bagatelle) is a billiards-derived indoor table game, the object of which is to get a number of balls (set at nine in the 19th century) past wooden pins (which act as obstacles) into holes that are guarded by wood ...

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* Blue in Heaven *

* Paul Brady * Chris de Burgh * Cactus World News *

The Chieftains The Chieftains were a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous w ...

Clannad Clannad () were an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal, by siblings , and (Moya) (in English, Brennan) and their twin uncles Noel and (Duggan). They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history. Beginn ...

De Dannan De Dannan (originally ''Dé Danann'') is an Irish folk music group. It was formed in 1975 by Frankie Gavin (fiddle), Alec Finn (guitar, bouzouki), Johnny "Ringo" McDonagh (bodhrán) and Charlie Piggott ( banjo) as a result of sessions in ...

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as "Ireland's first rock star", he is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances. He has sometim ...

The Fountainhead ''The Fountainhead'' is a 1943 novel by Russian-American author Ayn Rand, her first major literary success. The novel's protagonist, Howard Roark, is an intransigent young architect who battles against conventional standards and refuses to com ...

* In Tua Nua *

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...

Moving Hearts Moving Hearts is an Irish Celtic rock band formed in 1981. They followed in the footsteps of Horslips in combining music of Ireland, Irish traditional music with rock and roll, and also added elements of jazz to their sound.Harris, Craig''Movin ...

The Pogues The Pogues are an English Celtic punk band founded in King's Cross, London, in 1982, by Shane MacGowan, Spider Stacy and Jem Finer. Originally named Pogue Mahone—an anglicisation of the Irish language, Irish phrase :wikt:póg mo thóin, ''p� ...

* Scullion * Brush Shiels * Stockton's Wing *

* Those Nervous Animals * U2

Live For Ireland songs

* Maggie's Farm - U2 (6:46) * Seven into the Sea - In Tua Nua (3:53) * Many Rivers to Cross - Elvis Costello and the Attractions (2:41) * Dirty Old Town - The Pogues (3:45) * Don't Pay the Ferryman - Chris DeBurgh (3:32) * Harry's Game - Clannad (2:32) * The Bridge - Cactus World News (4:19) * Looking after No. 1 - The Boomtown Rats (4:50) '' ot on US release' * Here Comes the Night - Van Morrison (3:58) * Don't Believe a Word - Thin Lizzy (2:23) '' ot on US release' * Steel River - Chris Rea (4:48) * Make it Work - Christy Moore / Paul Doran (Larry Mullen) (3:13) * The Lark - Moving Hearts (5:35) * The Island - Paul Brady (5:09) * Feel it Now - The Fountainhead (5:01) * Exiles - Auto Da Fe (5:17)

Alternate tracks on US release

* Boil the Breakfast Early - The Chieftains * Joey's on the Street Again - The Boomtown Rats

Alternate tracks on double vinyl/cassette release

* My Friend John - Those Nervous Animals * A Sense of Freedom - Les Enfants * The Arrival of Queen Sheeba in Galway - De Dannan * Old Pal - Brush Shiels * Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy - Bagatelle * Keep on Climbin' - Freddie White * Tell Me - Blue in Heaven * Follow Me - Rory Gallagher * Carol - Scullion * Leave My Kitten Alone - Elvis Costello and the Attractions * Skidoo - Stockton's Wing * Independence - Big Self Note: There have been multiple versions of this album, with varying tracks, in different formats and across different territories

References

External links

Live For Ireland album
{{Irish Festivals 1980s in Irish music Benefit concerts Music in Dublin (city)