Live Aid musical made Pete Townshend want to re-record iconic Who track

Its soundtrack is entirely made up of the hits from the day, although director Luke Sheppard was keen to make clear that it's not a "karaoke version" of the concert.

"A big part of what we wanted to do was not make impersonations of the artists," he said "We’ve seen the concert and the recordings, but most of all this is about putting a new generation of talent on stage and putting out our own versions of Live Aid."

This sentiment was very much echoed by Bob Geldof, who, at a press event attended by RadioTimes.com and other press, praised the show for its reimagining of the classic songs.

He spotlighted the musical's version My Generation by The Who, which has been transformed into a much slower and more soulful arrangement than the upbeat rock we all know.

"I took Pete Townshend to see the show," he recalled, "and he couldn’t imagine his song – which is beyond anthemic, it's one of the pillars on which rock and roll stands – and he just gripped my knee and I knew he was thinking, 'Should I re-record this like that?'

"What Matthew Brind (musical supervisor) has done with the arrangements, it's just so weird as musicians to hear the classics put together for an audience today.

"But we knew that was what was necessary for a hit West End show."

Band Aid co-founder Midge Ure added that his expectations were low before seeing the show: "I went to see the show and I expected cheese, but there were moments where this jaded old pop star had a lump in his throat.

"One song in particular jumped out from me: I was never a Bob Dylan fan, but this song that was written in 1962 – Blowin' in the Wind – the interpretation they’ve done of that, the singing, the lighting, the arrangement was phenomenal, and it changed my mind completely."

Just for One Day starts up at Shaftesbury Theatre from 15th May and, for any of those still sceptical, Geldof had a clear message: "I read something that said it’s 'oh, another jukebox musical'. Dude, it’s the global jukebox, it can’t be anything else. That’s what the concert was, we called it the global jukebox and it was hit after hit after hit.

"It’s a phenomenal piece of work."

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