“Do They Know It’s Christmas?” – Band Aid, 2004

It’s Christmastime
There’s no need to be afraid
At Christmastime, we let in light and we banish shade
And in our world of plenty we can spread a smile of joy
Throw your arms around the world at Christmastime

But say a prayer

Pray for the other ones
At Christmastime it’s hard, but when you’re having fun
There’s a world outside your window
And it’s a world of dread and fear
Where the only water flowing is the bitter sting of tears
And the Christmas bells that ring there are the clanging
chimes of doom
Well tonight thank God it’s them instead of you

And there won’t be snow in Africa this Christmastime
The greatest gift they’ll get this year is life
(Oooh) Where nothing ever grows
No rain nor rivers flow
Do they know it’s Christmastime at all?

(Here’s to you) raise a glass for everyone
(Here’s to them) underneath that burning sun
Do they know it’s Christmastime at all?

Feed the world
Feed the world

Feed the world

Let them know it’s Christmastime again

Feed the world
Let them know it’s Christmastime again

Al quarto posto la versione più recente di “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”. Scritta nel 1984 per il primo Band Aid da Bob Geldof e Midge Ure, rifatta vent’anni dopo in occasione del secondo evento musicale, quello, per intenderci, aperto dagli U2 e da Paul McCartney sulle note di “Sgt. Pepper’s” e chiuso con l’ultimo concerto dei Pink Floyd (Waters, Gilmour, Wright e Mason insieme).

Per quanto mi riguarda, la versione degli anni ottanta è, per l’appunto, troppo anni ottanta (Boy George, Simon Le Bon e Tony Hadley insieme sono per stomaci forti). In questa ci sono Thom Yorke al piano, Justin Hawkins alla chitarra e Paul McCartney al basso.

Quarto posto:

“Nothing Compares 2 U” – Sinéad O’Connor, 1990

It’s been seven hours and fifteen days
since you took your love away
I go out every night and sleep all day
since you took your love away
since you’ve been gone I can do whatever I want
I can see whomever I choose
I can eat my dinner in a fancy restaurant
but nothing
I said nothing can take away these blues,

’cause nothing compares
nothing compares to you

It’s been so lonely without you here
like a bird without a song
nothing can stop these lonely tears from falling
tell me baby where did I go wrong?
I could put my arms round every boy I see
but they’d only remind me of you
I went to the doctor guess what he told me
guess what he told me
he said girl you better try to have fun
no matter what you do
but he’s a fool

’cause nothing compares
nothing compares to you

All the flowers that you planted mother
in the backyard
all died when you went away
I know that living with you, baby, was sometimes hard
but I’m willing to give it another try

nothing compares
nothing compares to you (3x)

“Nothing Compares 2 U” è stata pubblicata da Sinéad O’Connor nell’album “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” nei primi mesi del 1990.

Il brano è stato scritto e inciso da Prince nel 1985 con l’ensemble R&B ‘The Family’, senza lasciare molta traccia. Ci volevano la voce e l’interpretazione di Sinéad per dargli passione e instabilità. Passione e instabilità che si ritrovano in ogni momento della sua carriera, come quando canta a cappella “War” di Bob Marley al Saturday Night Live e poi strappa la foto di Giovanni Paolo II, come quando sale sul palco di “The Wall” a Berlino e reinventa “Mother” a fianco di Roger Waters, come nella scelta di incidere canzoni spirituali nell’ultimo album (“Theology”), in primis “I Don’t Know How To Love Him”, il canto della Maddalena scritto da Rice e Lloyd Webber per il “Jesus Christ Superstar”.

E’ così, appassionata e instabile, a partire dal look, dal modo di essere antidiva. Nel video c’è solo lei, in primo piano, straziante e commovente, una piccola, giovane ragazza irlandese che canta come nessuna prima di lei (e molte dopo), alternando urla e sussuri, lasciando disarmati di fronte alla sua sofferenza. Impossibile rimanere indifferenti.

Eccola: