FEATURE:
Love Spreads
The HELP Album at Twenty-Five
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WITH most album anniversaries…
IMAGE CREDIT: War Child
we celebrate the artist involved and how the songs have resonated through the years. I do love to mark the anniversary of classic albums, as it is a good opportunity to revisit a wonderful moment of time. In the case of the HELP album, its twenty-fifth anniversary on Wednesday (9th September) is important for a couple of reasons. HELP is a 1995 charity album to raise funds for the War Child charity, which provided aid to war-stricken areas, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina. All the songs were recorded in a single day. The album features British and Irish artists including Paul McCartney, Paul Weller, Radiohead, Oasis, Blur, and the Manic Street Preachers. Like Live Aid, artists came together over a common cause that they felt very passionate about. Whereas the original Live Aid concert of 1985 was established to raise awareness and funds to combat the ongoing Ethiopian famine, HELP was different. Maybe the Live Aid concert was the inspiration for HELP, as that concert was unique in the way that it united huge artists from around the world. HELP was followed by 1 Love (2002), Hope (2003), Help!: A Day in the Life (2005), and War Child Presents Heroes (2009). If you are new to HELP and need to know a bit more information, then War Child – the album was recorded to raise funds for the charity – explain more here:
“The support from the artists was incredible. Taking time out from their busy schedules, they recorded the entire record in just 24 hours. In a pre-digital time when the only conflict the UK music industry cared about was Blur versus Oasis, even they were willing to come together to support some of the world's most vulnerable children.
IN THIS PHOTO: Sinéad O'Connor appeared on the HELP album in 1995
What is HELP?
HELP is a charity album launched in response to the Bosnian War. In 1995 the inter-ethnic conflict had taken the lives of 250,000 people and displaced a further two million. Those fleeing the bloodshed - ordinary men, women and children - were left with nothing, and little hope their lives would ever return to normal.
Tony Crean, International Marketing Manager at Go! Discs, along with music industry experts Anton Brookes, Terri Hall and Rob Partridge wante to do something to support families - and fast. They put their heads and contacts together to create the groundbreaking HELP album, in aid of War Child.
"We'll put aside our differences for the cause - and it's the only time you'll see the two of us agreeing on anything" - Noel Gallagher said in an interview.
To celebrate the album's 25th anniversary, we're so excited to announce that HELP will be re-issued on limited edition vinyl, and made available on digital and streaming platforms for the first time ever! Pre-order a record today.
The iconic album, originally launched in 1995, features tracks from Oasis and Friends, The Boo Radleys, The Stone Roses, Radiohead, Orbital, Portishead, Massive Attack, Suede, The Charlatans vs. The Chemical Brothers, Stereo MCs, Sinéad O'Connor, the Levellers, Manic Street Preachers, Terrovision, The One World Orchestra, Planet 4 Folk Quartet, Terry Hall and Salad, Neneh Cherry and Trout, Blur and The Smokin' Mojo Filters (Paul McCartney, Paul Weller and Noel Gallagher).
The names that were united for this album boggles the mind! I realise the cause and intention is more important than the calibre of the artists involved, but it shows that, when it came to a huge issue that could not be ignored, there was no ego at all! I will talk more about my experiences of music in 1995, but at a time when Britpop was at a high and people could have overlooked HELP, the album was a massive success:
With such a legendary line-up, how could it not be? In a time before The Cloud, iPhones and email, HELP raised over £1.25 million to transform the lives of children caught up in the Bosnian War.
A quarter of a century after its original release, we're relaunching the HELP album to raise vital funds for War Child's lifesaving work responding to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Want to know more about how the album came about? Hear about its history in the podcast Help - the Story of the War Child Album, narrated by Matt Everitt, told through recollection from the artists involved and the people that made the record. Listen here from 9th September.
To mark twenty-five years of such a landmark and vital album, one can download it. I would suggest you buy the vinyl edition, as the sound quality is richer, and one can keep the album for years to come as, in decades to come, it will still be hugely important:
Where can I buy HELP?
The HELP album will officially launch on 9th September - exactly 25 years after its original release.
For the first time ever, you'll be able to download or stream HELP on digital platforms.
Or you can buy one of our limited edition, 180g double vinyl LPs, by pre-ordering now. With only 2,020 copies available, you won’t want to miss out!
This reissue includes never-before-seen photos by world renowned photographer Lawrence Watson of the recording session with Paul McCartney, Paul Weller and Noel Gallagher at Abbey Road in September 1995”.
IN THIS PHOTO: Matt Everitt narrates the podcast, Help - the Story of the War Child Album, that looks back at the 1995 album and brings in artists involved (available to stream from 9th September)
At a time when refugees are risking their lives to come to this country, the importance of HELP seems even more defined and timely! I wonder, given the current COVID-19 crisis, the refugee struggles, and other issues around the world (including racism and political tension), a new album should be made to raise funds and awareness. I do think that we live in a time when we can look back to 1995 and how so many popular artists lent their voices because they were passionate about a cause that meant a lot to so many people. The tracklisting of the original album is immense:
1. Oasis and Friends – Fade Away
2. The Boo Radleys – Oh Brother
3. The Stone Roses – Love Spreads
4. Radiohead – Lucky
5. Orbital – Adnan
6. Portishead – Mourning Air
7. Massive Attack – Fake the Aroma (alternate version of Karmacoma)
8. Suede – Shipbuilding
9. The Charlatans vs. The Chemical Brothers – Time For Livin'
10. Stereo MC’s – Sweetest Truth (Show No Fear)
11. Sinéad O'Connor – Ode to Billie Joe
12. The Levellers – Searchlights
13. Manic Street Preachers – Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head
14. Terrorvision – Tom Petty Loves Veruca Salt
15. The One World Orchestra featuring The Massed Pipes and Drums of the Children's Free Revolutionary Volunteer Guards (aka The KLF) – The Magnificent
16. Planet 4 Folk Quartet – Message to Crommie
17. Terry Hall and Salad – Dream a Little Dream of Me
18. Neneh Cherry and Trout – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
19. Blur – Eine kleine Lift Musik
20. The Smokin' Mojo Filters – Come Together
At he date of publication (5th September), there are still vinyl copies of HELP available, so make sure you are quick and get your copy! If you miss out, one can stream it from 9th September, and make sure you tune into the podcast presented by Matt Everitt, as it will be illuminating and something you will not want to miss! 1995 was a marvellous year for music and life in general. I was only eleven when the year started, but I was obsessed with music and what was coming out. As I said, Britpop was at its peak and it was not long before Oasis and Blur would go toe-to-toe in the chart battle that saw Blur’s Country House defeat Oasis’ Roll with It. There was so much to love, and, from a cultural viewpoint, there were so many classic T.V. shows and films about. In this rather sweet bubble of bliss, I was not really expecting something as monumental and important as HELP. I was only two when Live Aid was on the T.V., and there hadn’t really been anything since then that sort of brought artists together because of something utterly horrifying happening in the world – correct me if I am wrong on that point! To see war-stricken areas on the news and see children displaced must have affected the artists on the HELP album in a profound way. I remember when the album came out and the news attention that it got. From a musical standpoint, seeing this compilation featuring so many of my favourite artists was great; the fact that there were some rare and unusual songs in the mix was another point of fascination! The album's sleeve notes included a contribution from the former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, as well as brilliant artwork by John Squire and Massive Attack's 3-D. HELP (or The Help Album) reached number-one in the U.K. albums compilation charts, but it was not eligible for the standard charts as it was a compilation. The album raised more than £1.25 million for War Child, and it remains one of the most important albums ever released. Go and buy a copy, stream it (on 9th September) if they are sold-out, and make sure you listen to the podcast, as it will be a rare opportunity to hear artists involved in the album recall such a…
IN THIS PHOTO: Radiohead, whose song, Lucky, appeared on the HELP album - two years before it was featured on their iconic album, OK Computer
SIGNIFICANT moment of modern history.