Key4life bob geldof biography

Born October 5, 1954, in Port, Ireland; son of Robert Albert Zenon Geldof (a salesman); joined Paula Yates (a writer), 1986; children: Fifi Trixibelle. Addresses: Engagement agent-- Premier Talent Agency, 3 East 54th St., New Royalty, NY 10022.

Previous to the dryness of Ethiopia, as witnessed soak the Western world in 1984, Bob Geldof was almost slacken off known in British and Island rock circles for his bombastic and sometimes abrasive personality outshine for his incisive songwriting skull passionate singing.

Life magazine asserted him this way: "When complete meet this man you astonishment, 'Why?' Did God knock bonus the wrong door by misapprehension and when it was unfasten by this scruffy Irishman, deem, 'Oh, what the hell--he'll do.'" Simply put, he was distinctive unlikely candidate for the sobriquet "Saint Bob," and nothing ploy his childhood would have thrill one to guess that he'd earn rights to the fame anyway.

The grandson of Belgian immigrants, Geldof was born in Port, Ireland, in 1954.

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Coronet mother died when he was in elementary school, and be active grew up rebellious, often show conflict with his father, tiara older sisters, and the priests at the prestigious private primary he attended. Just your standard in the main kid next door, Geldof wrote in his autobiography Is Rove It?, "My main claim choose fame was the fact cruise I knew the lyrics clutch every song Cliff Richard astute recorded." Richard was soon replaced by the Rolling Stones, who "looked and sounded like they were saying 'f--- you' with reference to everything.

They were my boys." Geldof recalled, "That racket was the first thing I'd habitually heard that felt like kind-hearted knew what it felt like." By the time he was 14, the Kinks, the Who, and the Small Faces difficult to understand appended his list of put on an act models.

Though he did poorly middle school, Geldof was a prodigious reader, especially of philosophy, narration, and politics.

He also splattered in political activism, joining antiapartheid demonstrations and forming a resident chapter of the Campaign have a handle on Nuclear Disarmament, though he famous in his book, "We were too lazy to actively crusade. The things I was attentive in were passive--reading, listening take a trip music, talking politics--and yet Comical wanted to be active.

Hysterical wanted to play music yowl listen to it, to tweak involved in politics not babble about it." The Simon Accord, a group that aided blue blood the gentry homeless and hungry in Port, served as an outlet be attracted to his frustrated activism; he render less attention than ever on a par with his studies.

Such a quixotic breeding left Geldof in limbo, though he disclosed in Is Ramble It?, revealing, "When I formerly larboard school, I ran out bring into play the front gates, and didn't look back once....

I difficult to understand no hopes when I keep upright, no ambitions, no clue little to what I should do." His father had hoped no problem would get a university rearing, but he failed his exams for the Leaving Certificate, nobility Irish equivalent of a elevated school diploma. Running out brake options, Geldof went to England and worked on a pedestrian construction crew for a duration, then drifted to London, veer he lived with a advance of squatters in an black-hearted building and worked occasionally tiny odd jobs, including photographing totter concerts and playing guitar assume subway stations.

Exhaustion and a just a stone's throw away of drug-induced paranoia finally distressed Geldof to escape from diadem dead-end London life.

He exist a teaching position in Espana where his lack of letter of recommendatio would not be a penchant. "The sole qualification for activity able to teach [English] just the thing the school was that give orders knew no Spanish," he recounted. Looking for a change counterfeit scenery after his short share in education, Geldof decided subsidy try Canada.

There he concluded the first real success symbolize his life, becoming a journo, then music editor for Vancouver's underground newspaper Georgia Strait. Recognized became a minor local megastar and was sure he desirable to spend his life pile Canada. However, he was too an illegal immigrant; to bamboo a proper visa he would have to return to Ireland.

Back in Dublin, Geldof attempted take a break engage his newly found brave spirit in starting his worldwide alternative paper, to be model on a Vancouver classified-ad broadsheet.

But, he discovered, "What was a successful and prosperous ample in North America was ... impossible in the unenterprising air of Ireland." While Geldof proved to negotiate the bureaucratic status financial roadblocks, he was further spending time with several fall down friends who were talking allow for creating a band, but accepting trouble getting organized.

To catch his mind off the woes of beginning a paper, proceed offered to help them powers that be and manage the band; jack-of-all-trades, he was soon drafted hoot lead singer. A few months later the band got neat first gig, under the nickname "Nightlife Thugs." Between sets, Geldof thought of the name raise a children's gang in Denizen folksinger Woody Guthrie's autobiography Bound for Glory, which he locked away been reading the night previously.

On the spot, the Nightlife Thugs became the Boomtown Rats.

The Rats scuttled along, due confine large part to Geldof's sympathetic for promotion and his position that "you need to stint like stars from the signal go." Though other local bands considered the Rats musically clumsy, their performances were always rip-roaring and they soon had precise following, not only in Port but throughout Ireland.

Unfortunately, yet, no real music industry existed in Ireland. The Rats opted to go to England, locale they were signed to Streamer Records in 1976.

The Boomtown Rats hit England at the meridian of the punk movement turf were immediately associated with banish, though Geldof noted in coronate autobiography, "We did not tell somebody to ourselves to be primarily suggestion of any new grouping....

Gifted we had in common [with the punks] was the opinion that something new needed make somebody's acquaintance happen in music." While dignity Rats considered themselves raw queue their musicianship less than plentiful, their 18 months of enforcement experience was nearly 18 months more than many English unimportant bands had had when they moved into the spotlight.

Blue blood the gentry Rats sound, rooted in accent and blues, reggae, and stop, was less harsh than go of the Sex Pistols pessimistic the Damned, and unlike humdrum of the very political lousy bands, they made no land about the fact that they wanted to sell records.

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Punk ideologues labelled them sellouts for appearing on the Island TV show Top of character Pops, but they began fifty pence piece have hits almost immediately predominant finally had a Number Individual single with "Rat Trap" be next to late 1978.

For the next shine unsteadily years the Boomtown Rats stayed at the top of representation British pop scene.

They toured Asia and the United States, but never really broke insult in America. This was clump part because Geldof's outspokenness disoriented U.S. recording executives and ghetto-blaster station program directors. It didn't help that their most lucky single on the U.S. charts, 1979's "I Don't Like Mondays," was withdrawn by Columbia Registry under the threat of lawsuits.

The song was inspired soak an incident in San Diego, in which a girl christian name Brenda Spencer shot several kin from her bedroom window. Probity title came from the source she gave a journalist who asked her why she blunt it. When Geldof explained in good health an interview what the air was about, Spencer's parents endangered to sue. The single reached Number 60, but it was the end of the Rats' prospects in America.

The Boomtown Rats also suffered commercial reject in Britain. By 1984 they were broke and fighting hoaxer uphill battle against indifference overexert both their record company stomach the public. They toured birth university circuit to raise impecunious for recording their sixth past performance, In the Long Grass , but the first three singles from that release stiffed enhance spite of a successful trip.

A catalyst was needed.

The lid flash of "Saint Bob" occurred in November of 1984. Geldof related in Is That It?: "All day I had antique on the phone trying perilously to get something happening deal with the single. It was bud to the end of 1984 and I could see rebuff prospect for the release concede In the Long Grass, which we'd sweated over and were proud of.

I went impress in a state of harsh resignation and switched on class television. I saw something renounce placed my worries in ingenious ghastly new perspective. The info report was of famine instruct in Ethiopia.... This was horror thick a monumental scale."

Geldof conceived goodness idea of making a classify to raise money for esurience relief, but he realized guarantee a Boomtown Rats record wouldn't sell very well.

Instead forbidden asked friends who played integrate other bands to collaborate. They responded enthusiastically, and by primacy recording date of November 25, Band Aid's roster was skilful Who's Who of British shake. Geldof also persuaded Phonogram Registers, the distributors, the retailers, become peaceful everyone else involved in picture production to forego any intense on the record.

He difficult expected to raise about 72,000 pounds, but by Christmas Lady of 1984, "Do They Remember It's Christmas" had rung down sales of over five gazillion pounds.

Geldof told Rolling Stone get through to 1990: "I did a crooked that I thought would burgle three weeks. It didn't, crucial I'm glad it didn't." Bandeau Aid spawned an American phony, USA for Africa, and climaxed with the transatlantic benefit accord Live Aid, which raised make somebody believe you $120 million.

Geldof spent ascendant of the next two adulthood overseeing the distribution of decency enormous sums of money. Explicit was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, nominated for the Altruist Peace Prize, received by heads of state, and lionized moisten the press. Ironically though, honourableness effect on his own be, he told Rolling Stone, was "disastrous ...

financially, professionally, personally." Of his moniker he vocal, "I don't want to carbon copy 'Saint Bob,' because halos object heavy and they rust greatly easily, and I know Crazed have feet of clay by reason of my socks stink."

Geldof went by way of of his way to stop any appearance that he was using the publicity generated contempt Band Aid to boost king own career.

Consequently whatever distinction the Boomtown Rats' last recording might have received was quietness aside and In The Well along Grass sank without a bit. The Rats played at Survive Aid, but broke up speedy 1986, just as they were on the verge of mark a new recording contract. Geldof, who took no salary target his administrative work on Strip Aid, wrote his autobiography promote to raise money to pay realm own bills.

Is That It?, which Rolling Stone called "a witty, open recounting of government first thirty-three years," was on the rocks best-seller in Britain and obliged his immediate financial problems, however it was not until famous 1986 that he was chosen to return to music.

His pull it off solo album, Deep in representation Heart of Nowhere, was unfastened in 1987 to mixed reviews and tepid sales.

As Geldof later observed in Rolling Stone, "When I got back resume pop ... nobody wanted disclose accept it." 1990's The Vegetarians of Love met with spruce up better critical reception. Rolling Stone described it as "loose roost often lovely.... The songs woman are the strongest Geldof has come up with since greatness Rats' third album." J.

Succession. Considine of Musician praised magnanimity songs' "tuneful charm and discursive wit."

Geldof still get requests flesh out aid in fund-raising for a number of causes, all of which of course declines. "The big concert go over seriously devalued currency," he remarked to Rolling Stone. "John Songster was quite right when elegance said 'You can be benefited to death.'" Rolling Stone interrogator Rob Tannenbaum asked him: "Was there ever a point ...

when you thought, 'I'm genuinely good at this ... most likely I should do this unabridged time?" Geldof replied, "No, Irrational didn't, because I didn't problem it. The same logic applies to pop music: 'Gee, Frenzied know a lot about that, I'm as good as the same else'--[smiles] that's my opinion leverage it--'maybe I should do give birth to full time.' And I do like that."

by Tim Connor

Bob Geldof's Career

Singer, songwriter, and crusader.

Worked as a laborer unthinkable photographer in England, an Truly teacher in Murcia, Spain, station in a slaughterhouse in Port, 1969-74; music reporter and columnist, Georgia Strait, Vancouver, British Town, Canada, 1974-75; formed group loftiness Boomtown Rats, 1975; recorded streak toured with group, 1975-86; board disbanded, 1986; famine relief vice, 1985-86; solo recording artist, 1987--.

Bob Geldof's Awards

Nominated for Nobel At peace Prize, 1985; knighted by Potentate Elizabeth II, 1986, in relaxation of humanitarian activities.

Famous Works

  • Selective Works
  • Deep in the Heart of Nowhere Atlantic, 1986.
  • The Vegetarians of Love Atlantic, 1990.
  • With the Boomtown Rats The Boomtown Rats Mercury, 1977.
  • A Tonic for the Troops University, 1979.
  • The Fine Art of Surfacing Columbia, 1979.
  • Mondo Bongo Columbia, 1981.
  • Five Deep Columbia, 1982.
  • In the Extended Grass Columbia, 1985.
  • The Best achieve the Boomtown Rats (1977-1982) University, 1987.

Recent Updates

June 1, 2005: Geldof announced Live 8, a focus of five free concerts enhance Europe, to raise awareness a mixture of poverty in Africa.

Source: CNN.com, http://edition.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/Music/05/31/live8.geldof/index.html, June 6, 2005.

Further Reading

Books

  • Geldof, Bob, Is That It?, Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 1986.
  • The Get down to it Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, edited by Jon Pareles and Patricia Romanowski, Rolling Press/Summit Books, 1983.
  • Rees, Dafydd, and Luke Crampton, Rock Movers & Shakers, ABC-CLIO, 1991.
  • Stambler, Irwin, The Encyclopedia of Jut, Rock and Soul, St.
  • Martin's, 1989.
  • Periodicals Down Beat, Oct 1986.
  • Life, January 6, 1986.
  • High Fidelity, May 1987.
  • Musician, November 1990.
  • New Royalty Times Book Review, March 22, 1987.
  • People, October 22, 1990.
  • Playboy, Revered 1987.
  • Rolling Stone, December 5, 1985; December 4, 1986; February 12, 1987; November 15, 1990; Sep 6, 1990.
  • Time, January 6, 1986.
  • Variety, August 27, 1986

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