What, no Nina Hagen "African Reggae"? Of course, it's awesome and so probably doesn't count.

Do they know it's Christmas is an awesome, catchy tune and raised a bunch of money for charity. You do realize the song was actually meant to help Africans, right? I hope they play it 1200 times this Christmas.

While I understand the potential for offense in "Do They Know It's Christmas?", I find it only a little condescending. Perhaps that's because I'm white and from the USA. The white, first-world Brit writers and performers of the song tried to use their recently widened perspective to open the eyes of those with eyes even more clamped shut by the commercialized holiday that was blowing up around them when the record was made. Certainly, I found it less treacly and phony than "We Are the World," which included African American performers seemingly even further isolated from Africa than the whites of Band Aid.

Only a LITTLE condescending, @11? Holy crap that song is the most ridiculously - nay, riDONKulalously - eurocentric piece of claptrap ever penned. I mean it's gibbering nonsense. There won't be snow in Africa this Christmastime? There won't be snow in Australia either, but you don't see them crying about it. It's this little thing called the Southern Hemisphere. Or the Equator. Do they know it's Christmas? really? REALLY?

That song is so stupid it's like, not even offensive anymore, it's just mindboggling.

And a really pretty tune.

I won't get into the politics of whether the money raised from the single actually "helped" Africans, except to say: not really, no.

I used to be a racist, but then I read this article and it inspired me to buy Black Water < >

The Sinead O'Connor song is about identity, and protecting identity from (arranged) marriage. Read up on Mandinka wedding ceremonies. Notice the "I do" refrain in song.