| Self Aid | |
|---|---|
 Self-Aid poster with logo | |
| Genre | Pop music Rock music Traditional Irish music |
| Dates | 17 May 1986 |
| Location(s) | RDS Arena in Ballsbridge, Dublin, Ireland |
| Years active | 1986 |
| Founders | Tony Bolland Niall Matthews |
Self Aid was an unemployment benefit concert held in Dublin, Ireland on 17 May 1986.[1][2] The concert performances were primarily by Irish musicians, although Elvis Costello and Chris Rea, both Englishmen of Irish descent, were designated "honorary Irishmen" for the day; the event was promoted by Jim Aiken.[3] The concert included the last performance by The Boomtown Rats until they reformed in 2013.[4]
The purpose of the concert was to highlight the chronic unemployment problem in Ireland at the time, with nearly 250,000 people unemployed. The 14-hour concert was the largest that had ever been staged in Ireland.[3] All musicians that took part donated their time free of charge.[2] All profits from the concert and subsequent album, Live for Ireland, went to the Self Aid Trust. The telethon raised millions of pounds for a job creation trust fund as well as over 1000 job pledges.[1] The song chosen for the finale was "Let's Make it Work", written by Christy Moore and Dublin songwriter Paul Doran.[2] Tributes were paid to Phil Lynott who had died just 4 months earlier, including a performance by a reformed Thin Lizzy with Gary Moore on lead vocals.[5]
The concept of the concert — job creation through pledges — attracted criticism both at the time and subsequently, with critics claiming that no jobs had actually arisen as a result other than vacancies that already existed.[1]
- ^ a b c Carroll, Jim (19 May 2008). "Self Aid 22 Years On". Irish Times. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
- ^ a b c Lynch, Mick. "Self-Aid: Looking Back Twenty Years On". Retrieved 13 June 2010.
- ^ a b "Self-Aid to Help Irish Unemployed". Billboard. 98 (19): 90. 10 May 1986. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
- ^ "History of the Boomtown Rats". Boomtown Rats. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
- ^ Putterford, Mark (2002). Phil Lynott: The Rocker. Omnibus Press. pp. 271–272. ISBN 0-7119-9104-9.