
The Greatest Night in Pop
4.4
(90)
Documentary
Music
2024
97 min
PG-13
On a January night in 1985, music's biggest stars gathered to record "We Are the World." This documentary goes behind the scenes of the historic event.
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"4.5⭐️ The night almost every 80s superstar singer was brought together to record the now iconic song for Africa famine relief. This was excellent! Had no idea how much it took to pull together and that I would be so drawn in. So much drama, tension, insecurity and exhaustion. These are larger than life icons yet the human fragility in that room was palpable. I was truly moved by Bob Dylan as his unique gifts were outside the realm of that 80s power club and the fact that he knew it was written all over his face. I felt for his vulnerability in that moment. Huey Lewis’ being asked to step up and his sweet anxiety over his one line, Sheila E feeling used just to get Prince there (spoiler..he wasn’t), the sheer exhaustion in Bruce Springsteen’s even raspier raspiness by 5:00 in the morning, Waylon Jennings walking out, Diana Ross crying when it was over. With the threat of anything going wrong at any step in the process combined with all the emotion and enervated ego packed in a pretty small space it’s incredible the song was not only finished but completed in such a brilliant way (well that’s the brill of Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson!). Honestly, I was never into it all that much and out of everyone there probably only ever owned one artist’s work. But I’ll admit that was some pretty amazing stuff they accomplished there. "
"This documentary was amazing. A+++ I remember when We Are The World came out and how big it was to have so many famous, different, and beautiful voices on one track. We used to sing it at school events, church, everywhere. To see all the footage and the people who were there talking about the experience made me feel like I was in the room too. The jokes like the one about Stevie Wonder showing Ray Charles where the bathroom is "It really is the blind leading the blind". Watching Ray Charles remix the song on the piano on sight. Seeing all that talent in one room. I'll be rewatching this more than once. Harry Belafonte, Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, the sound guys, lighting, they all did something great with this song, just amazing."