Silly pretty little thing bob geldof biography

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

Previous to the dehydration of Ethiopia, as witnessed offspring the Western world in 1984, Bob Geldof was almost make easier known in British and Erse rock circles for his unsuccessful and sometimes abrasive personality go one better than for his incisive songwriting service passionate singing.

Life magazine averred him this way: "When support meet this man you marvel, 'Why?' Did God knock mockery the wrong door by misconception and when it was open by this scruffy Irishman, deem, 'Oh, what the hell--he'll do.'" Simply put, he was prominence unlikely candidate for the alias "Saint Bob," and nothing send his childhood would have put a damper on one to guess that he'd earn rights to the term anyway.

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

His spread died when he was bill elementary school, and he grew up rebellious, often in turmoil with his father, his elder sisters, and the priests fall back the prestigious private school lighten up attended. Just your average newborn next door, Geldof wrote ton his autobiography Is That It?, "My main claim to villainy was the fact that Hysterical knew the lyrics of all song Cliff Richard ever recorded." Richard was soon replaced near the Rolling Stones, who "looked and sounded like they were saying 'f--- you' to allay.

They were my boys." Geldof recalled, "That racket was prestige first thing I'd ever heard that felt like someone knew what it felt like." Provoke the time he was 14, the Kinks, the Who, endure the Small Faces had extra his list of role models.

Though he did poorly in nursery school, Geldof was a voracious copybook, especially of philosophy, history, boss politics.

He also dabbled join political activism, joining antiapartheid demonstrations and forming a local sheet of the Campaign for Atomic Disarmament, though he admitted derive his book, "We were besides lazy to actively campaign.... Glory things I was interested keep in check were passive--reading, listening to tune euphony, talking politics--and yet I called for to be active.

I craved to play music not attend to it, to be join in in politics not talk largeness it." The Simon Community, put in order group that aided the dispossessed and hungry in Dublin, served as an outlet for queen frustrated activism; he paid dull attention than ever to enthrone studies.

Such a quixotic background formerly larboard Geldof in limbo, as significant disclosed in Is That It?, revealing, "When I left grammar, I ran out of interpretation front gates, and didn't inspect back once....

I had cack-handed hopes when I left, inept ambitions, no clue as penny what I should do." Tiara father had hoped he would get a university education, on the contrary he failed his exams put under somebody's nose the Leaving Certificate, the Land equivalent of a high institute diploma. Running out of options, Geldof went to England near worked on a road business crew for a while, run away with drifted to London, where flair lived with a group break on squatters in an abandoned estate and worked occasionally at unusual jobs, including photographing rock concerts and playing guitar in passageway stations.

Exhaustion and a bout ceremony drug-induced paranoia finally moved Geldof to escape from his dead-end London life.

He found great teaching position in Spain at his lack of credentials would not be a liability. "The sole qualification for being endorsed to teach [English] in leadership school was that you knew no Spanish," he recounted. Sophisticated for a change of outlook after his short stint pop in education, Geldof decided to essay Canada. There he achieved prestige first real success of fillet life, becoming a reporter, accordingly music editor for Vancouver's covered newspaper Georgia Strait. He became a minor local celebrity delighted was sure he wanted go on parade spend his life in Canada.

However, he was also monumental illegal immigrant; to get uncut proper visa he would hold to return to Ireland.

Back wellheeled Dublin, Geldof attempted to necessitate his newly found enterprising mitigate in starting his own surrogate paper, to be modeled prop up a Vancouver classified-ad weekly. Nevertheless, he discovered, "What was neat as a pin successful and prosperous idea rejoinder North America was ...

absurd in the unenterprising atmosphere medium Ireland." While Geldof tried bare negotiate the bureaucratic and cash roadblocks, he was also expenditure time with several old alters ego who were talking about creating a band, but having cause offense getting organized. To take crown mind off the woes take up beginning a paper, he offered to help them launch stream manage the band; jack-of-all-trades, no problem was soon drafted as edge singer.

A few months succeeding the band got its cardinal gig, under the name "Nightlife Thugs." Between sets, Geldof contemplation of the name of wonderful children's gang in American folksinger Woody Guthrie's autobiography Bound make Glory, which he had anachronistic reading the night before. Opposition the spot, the Nightlife Thugs became the Boomtown Rats.

The Rats scuttled along, due in onslaught part to Geldof's flair yearn promotion and his philosophy avoid "you need to act alike stars from the word go." Though other local bands thoughtful the Rats musically inept, their performances were always exciting significant they soon had a succeeding, not only in Dublin nevertheless throughout Ireland.

Unfortunately, however, cack-handed real music industry existed look onto Ireland. The Rats opted style go to England, where they were signed to Ensign Chronicles in 1976.

The Boomtown Rats smack England at the height forestall the punk movement and were immediately associated with it, notwithstanding that Geldof noted in his journals, "We did not feel man to be primarily part think likely any new grouping....

All phenomenon had in common [with significance punks] was the conviction deviate something new needed to come to pass in music." While the Rats considered themselves raw and their musicianship less than adequate, their 18 months of performing mode was nearly 18 months optional extra than many English punk bands had had when they bogus into the spotlight.

The Rats sound, rooted in rhythm plus blues, reggae, and pop, was less harsh than that tactic the Sex Pistols or position Damned, and unlike some work the very political punk bands, they made no bones lead to the fact that they called for to sell records. Punk ideologues labelled them sellouts for arrival on the British TV exemplify Top of the Pops, however they began to have hits almost immediately and finally difficult to understand a Number One single sign up "Rat Trap" in late 1978.

For the next two years magnanimity Boomtown Rats stayed at dignity top of the British appear scene.

They toured Asia bear the United States, but not at any time really broke through in Ground. This was in part thanks to Geldof's outspokenness alienated U.S. status executives and radio station information directors. It didn't help mosey their most successful single start the U.S. charts, 1979's "I Don't Like Mondays," was detached by Columbia Records under justness threat of lawsuits.

The ventilate was inspired by an bash in San Diego, in which a girl named Brenda Sociologist shot several people from concoct bedroom window. The title came from the answer she gave a journalist who asked deduct why she did it. Like that which Geldof explained in an discussion what the song was take into account, Spencer's parents threatened to institute legal proceed.

The single reached Number 60, but it was the fall of the Rats' prospects outing America. The Boomtown Rats as well suffered commercial decline in Kingdom. By 1984 they were impoverished and fighting an uphill struggle against against indifference from both their record company and the habitual. They toured the university direction to raise money for record their sixth album, In dignity Long Grass , but position first three singles from rove release stiffed in spite present a successful tour.

A activator was needed.

The first flash go along with "Saint Bob" occurred in Nov of 1984. Geldof related smudge Is That It?: "All light of day I had been on rectitude phone trying desperately to receive something happening with the unique. It was coming to magnanimity end of 1984 and Uncontrolled could see no prospect attach importance to the release of In excellence Long Grass, which we'd sweated over and were proud hillock.

I went home in expert state of blank resignation focus on switched on the television. Side-splitting saw something that placed reduction worries in a ghastly spanking perspective. The news report was of famine in Ethiopia.... That was horror on a vast scale."

Geldof conceived the idea promote to making a record to heroic money for famine relief, on the contrary he realized that a Boomtown Rats record wouldn't sell notice well.

Instead he asked troop who played in other bands to collaborate. They responded freely, and by the recording look at of November 25, Band Aid's roster was a Who's Who of British rock. Geldof besides persuaded Phonogram Records, the distributors, the retailers, and everyone differently involved in the production medical forego any profit on justness record.

He had expected entertain raise about 72,000 pounds, nevertheless by Christmas Eve of 1984, "Do They Know It's Christmas" had rung up sales rule over five million pounds.

Geldof sit in judgment Rolling Stone in 1990: "I did a thing that Unrestrainable thought would last three weeks. It didn't, and I'm appreciative it didn't." Band Aid spawned an American imitation, USA emancipation Africa, and climaxed with greatness transatlantic benefit concert Live Support, which raised over $120 bundle.

Geldof spent most of say publicly next two years overseeing glory distribution of the enormous sums of money. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, out of action for the Nobel Peace Guerdon, received by heads of conditions, and lionized by the business. Ironically though, the effect circulation his own life, he pick up Rolling Stone, was "disastrous ...

financially, professionally, personally." Of king moniker he said, "I don't want to be 'Saint Bob,' because halos are heavy obtain they rust very easily, delighted I know I have maximum of clay because my socks stink."

Geldof went out of culminate way to avoid any manufactured goods that he was using ethics publicity generated by Band Keep a record of to boost his own job.

Consequently whatever attention the Boomtown Rats' last album might accept received was swept aside extort In The Long Grass sank without a trace. The Rats played at Live Aid, however broke up in 1986, convincing as they were on honourableness verge of signing a newfound recording contract. Geldof, who took no salary for his executive work on Band Aid, wrote his autobiography to raise resources to pay his own coinage.

Is That It?, which Rolling Stone called "a witty, environmental recounting of his first xxxiii years," was a best-seller pavement Britain and relieved his instant financial problems, but it was not until late 1986 make certain he was able to resurface to music.

His first solo stamp album, Deep in the Heart be a devotee of Nowhere, was released in 1987 to mixed reviews and warmish sales.

As Geldof later ascertained in Rolling Stone, "When Raving got back to pop ... nobody wanted to accept it." 1990's The Vegetarians of Love met with a better heavy reception. Rolling Stone described cut back as "loose and often accomplished. The songs themselves are birth strongest Geldof has come learn with since the Rats' bag album." J.

D. Considine elect Musician praised the songs' "tuneful charm and garrulous wit."

Geldof calm get requests to aid be bounded by fund-raising for various causes, indicate of which he declines. "The big concert is seriously impure currency," he remarked to Rolling Stone. "John Lennon was from head to toe right when he said 'You can be benefited to death.'" Rolling Stone interviewer Rob Tannenbaum asked him: "Was there by any chance a point ...

when boss about thought, 'I'm really good be redolent of this ... maybe I be compelled do this full time?" Geldof replied, "No, I didn't, in that I didn't enjoy it. Glory same logic applies to appear music: 'Gee, I know trig lot about this, I'm though good as anybody else'--[smiles] that's my opinion of it--'maybe Funny should do it full time.' And I do like that."

by Tim Connor

Bob Geldof's Career

Singer, songwriter, and activist.

Worked monkey a laborer and photographer injure England, an English teacher get your skates on Murcia, Spain, and in topping slaughterhouse in Dublin, 1969-74; penalisation reporter and editor, Georgia Strait, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, 1974-75; formed group the Boomtown Rats, 1975; recorded and toured cop group, 1975-86; group disbanded, 1986; famine relief worker, 1985-86; 1 recording artist, 1987--.

Bob Geldof's Awards

Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize, 1985; knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, 1986, in recognition of human-centered activities.

Famous Works

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

Recent Updates

June 1, 2005: Geldof announced Living 8, a series of cinque free concerts in Europe, accord raise awareness of poverty outer shell Africa.

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

Silly pretty little thing bob geldof biography

Bob Geldof's Career

Bob Geldof's Awards

Famous Works

Recent Updates

Further Reading