It's Christmas time (nearly) and quite soon it will be impossible to switch on the radio without being bombarded by the preachy strains of a slightly shambolic Christmas song recorded 25 years ago in an effort to feed the world.


Band Aid's 'Do They Know It's Christmas?', written in haste by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure of Ultravox, was unprecedented. Shocked by BBC newsreader Michael Buerk's report of the famine in Ethiopia, which claimed a million lives, and the distressing footage of children with distended stomachs in a bleak African landscape, Geldof and Ure strong-armed some of the biggest names of the 1980s music scene into making the charity record.


Geldof pledged that every penny would go to the cause. He even faced down Margaret Thatcher's government, which initially refused to waive VAT on the single but later relented.


It was also the perfect news story, and the world's media were on hand as the biggest acts of the era – Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, George Michael, Sting, Bono, Paul Young and Bananarama – turned up to record their contributions in a single day. Geldof even insisted that Boy George fly in from America – he turned up at six in the evening. Ure and Geldof worked late into the night mixing the record, before Geldof went on the radio the next morning to plug it.


The single sold a million copies in the first week of its release in early December 1984 in the UK, and went on to be the fastest-selling single of all time. It stayed at No 1 for 16 weeks in Ireland, and was the biggest selling single here until Elton John's Princess Diana tribute, 'Candle in the Wind', in 1997.


It was meant to be the song that changed the world. Only it didn't. The United Nations warned in June that as many as 6.2m Ethiopians would need some kind of food aid in the next few months.


According to Melanie Verwoerd, Unicef Ireland Executive Director: "The economic crisis has hit Ethiopia incredibly hard – in 2008, food prices nearly doubled. And severe drought has exacerbated a bad situation. Drought is deadly in this country, where 80% of the population lives off the land. Livestock have died, fertiliser is scarce, fuel prices have sky­rocketed. People in Ethiopia – especially children under five – are in trouble."


Ethiopia's ambassador to Ireland, Zeruihun Retta says the current situation is not comparable to 1984 as the country is now stable. "While the main cause for the 1984 horrific famine was the effects of climate change, relief efforts were compounded by the fact that Ethiopia was gripped by internal conflict. Today, while the principal cause of the ongoing drought still remains the effects of climate change, the prevalence of durable peace and stability has ensured the efficient and rapid deployment of relief aid."


However, the ambassador says that because farming is dependent on rain and with rains being late this year he cannot give an assessment of the situation in early 2010. But he argues that Ethiopians are sick and tired of being portrayed as "bowl dependents".


1. Adam Clayton - U2 were on the verge of their transformation from OK Irish rockers to corporate rock mastodon when the Band Aid single was recorded in 1984. Clayton, now 49, lives in Rathfarnham, Dublin.


2. Phil Collins - Prog-rocker turned crooner Phil, 58, the former Genesis drummer sold bucketloads of syrupy singles. Now a granddad, he's working on an album of Motown covers.


3. Bob Geldof - Architect of Band Aid and 1985's Live Aid concerts, St Bob of the Boomtown Rats saw his career nosedive. Now 58, he has made a tidy €35m out of his Ten Alps TV company. Still championing Africa, he organised 2005 Live8 gigs.


4. Steve Norman - Spandau Ballet's multi-instrumentalist spent most of the 1990s in Ibiza or playing sax on the global club scene. Norman, 49, has a new lease thanks to SB reforming.


5. Chris Cross - Cross's bass guitar on Ultravox's 'Vienna' helped make it one of the era's most recognisable tunes. Cross, 57, became a psychotherapist and mental health counsellor.


6. John Taylor - Duran Duran's bassist quit the band in 1997 for a less than thrilling solo career. He rejoined in 2001.


7. Paul Young - Sang the opening "It's Christmas time..." line on the Band Aid single. The soul cover artist, 53, spent much of the '90s plugging away before becoming a nostalgia tour staple.


8. Tony Hadley - Spandau Ballet's frontman, 49, had a less than successful solo career after the band split in 1989, culminating in his appearance on the ITV reality show Reborn in the USA in 2003. He won. Currently touring with a reformed SB.


9. Glenn Gregory - Heaven 17's frontman sang "no rain nor river flows" on the Band Aid single. The electro-poppers are still touring after a slump in the 1990s. Gregory, 51, is also now a producer.


10. Simon Le Bon - Duran Duran lead singer Le Bon, 51, has never been far from the gossip columns, mainly due to wife, model Yasmin Le Bon. Currently working on DD's 13th album.


11. Simon Crowe - Drummer with the Boomtown Rats, the 54-year-old kicked off a new tour with the band, minus most of its original line-up, in Blackburn recently.


12. Keren Woodward - Bananarama's singer and songwriter, now 48, shacked up with Wham!'s Andrew Ridgeley and lives an idyllic existence in a Cornwall farmhouse. Still with Bananarama.


13. Martin Kemp - Struck it lucky by being asked to play bass with Spandau Ballet, and learned to play in three weeks. Became an actor and hit the big time in EastEnders.


14. Siobhan Fahey - Fahey, 51, quit Bananarama in 1988 to form Shakespear's Sister. Married Eurythmics' Dave Stewart in 1987 and in '90s was treated for depression.


15. Jody Watley - In 1984 she was a singer for the soulful R&B band Shalamar. She left the band for a relatively successful solo run. Now 50, she set up Avitone records in 1995.


16. Bono - U2's lead singer, 49, continues to look down on the world through sunglasses while lecturing us all about poverty and the environment. Meanwhile, his band go on global tours which leave a carbon footprint the size of an oil slick.


17. Paul Weller - Ex-Jam frontman was already in his second incarnation with the Style Council in 1984. Massive solo career, with critical acclaim. Best Male Solo Artist at this year's Brits.


18. James 'JT' Taylor - Kool and the Gang singer JT quit in 1988 and never quite reached the same heights. He's still performing at 56.


19. Peter Blake - An obvious choice to do the Band Aid cover art. At 77, the celebrated designer, best known for Sgt Pepper..., has been working with Brian Wilson.


20. George Michael - Still in Wham! in 1984, Michael, 46, went on to global stardom and tacky front pages. Outed as gay in 1998 when caught in a public toilet in Los Angeles. Retired last year.


21. Midge Ure - Ultravox's lead singer, 56, co-wrote the Band Aid single, with whom he also helped produce the Live Aid concert in 1985. He lives in Bath with his wife but still tours as a solo artist and with Ultravox.


22. Martyn Ware - Pop synth pioneer who founded Human League and Heaven 17, Ware, 53, went on to be a producer for Erasure. Still touring with Heaven 17.


23. John Keeble - Spandau Ballet's drummer (50) continued to work with Tony Hadley after its demise in 1990.


24. Gary Kemp - SB's guitarist and songwriter's career failed to ignite. Kemp, 50, couldn't emulate Martin's acting success. Married actress Sadie Frost but divorced 1997.


25. Roger Taylor - Duran Duran's drummer, 49, quit the band after the US Live Aid concert in 1985. Rejoined the band in 2001.


26. Marilyn - In 1984 Marilyn, aka Peter Robinson, was riding high with his only hit, 'Calling Your Name'. Went on to suffer mental health problems and financial difficulties. Lives with his mum in north London.


27. Sara Dallin - Bananarama's co-founder, 47, has remained in the band since it was formed in 1979. Joined ABC and Paul Young on tour in 2008 and at this year's Rewind Festival.


28. Pete Briquette - Bass guitarist for the Boomtown Rats and is now a record producer, occasionally collaborating with Geldof. Composed the music for BBC series Geldof in Africa.


29. Francis Rossi - Lead singer and guitarist for the venerable Status Quo is still Rocking All Over the World at 60. They never quit, but banned from Radio 1's playlist for being past it in 1995. Not invited on to 2005's Live8 bill despite opening Live Aid.


30. Robert Kool Bell - A founder of funky US R&B band Kool and the Gang in 1964. The only American group on the British Live Aid single, they never went out of fashion.


31. Dennis Thomas - The other Kool and the Gang founder, the sax player and Bell stayed with it.


32. Andy Taylor - Duran Duran's guitarist formed the band Power Station with Robert Palmer in 1985. Worked as a backing musician in the '90s. Rejoined DD in 2001 but left again in 2006.


33. Jon Moss - Culture Club's drummer joined reunion in 1998-2002. Moss, now 52, admitted to a relationship with Boy George.


34. Sting - Ex-Police frontman, 58, has sold so many records that if you stacked them they'd probably reach to the Amazon and back. Released umpteenth studio album this month.


35. Rick Parfitt - The other half of Status Quo, 61. See Francis Rossi.


36. Nick Rhodes - Duran Duran keyboardist. The only member, apart from Le Bon, to stick with it through its 29-year history.


37. Johnny Fingers - Boomtown Rats' founder is now big in Japan. Fingers, 53, lives in Tokyo and works in the music industry.


Not in main picture - Boy George: Culture Club singer was a true star of the Eighties, but is now almost unrecognisable. He was jailed for unlawful imprisonment of a male escort. George, 47, also fought drug addiction. He plans a comeback.