By Henryk M. Broder, Christoph Dallach, Marc Fischer, Jan Puhl, Martin Wolf

The musician was a world-renowned star, but in London, his adopted home, the public and the press scoffed at his plans, saying that he had seen better days. A few singers even abandoned him for the competition. The disappointed musician, in his mid-50s by then, canceled and gave a benefit concert in Dublin instead. The spectacle was a tremendous success. The master donated the entire proceeds of 400 pounds to two hospitals and to forgive the debts and buy the freedom of 142 poverty-stricken people who had ended up in debtors' jail.

The Dublin benefit concert was to go down as a great moment in music history. It was the first performance of "The Messiah." The generous composer, whose feat helped lift him out of an emotional crisis in 1742, was Georg Friedrich Händel.

Fast forward 263 years and many charity events later and debt forgiveness is on the agenda once again. And, as in the "Messiah," resurrection is also part of the theme. But this time it's the resurrection of Holy Bob, as the Britons like to call 53-year-old musician Bob Geldof. The Irish rock star ("I Don't Like Mondays") and organizer of the two legendary "Live Aid" concerts in 1985 plans to stun the world this Saturday -- or at least entertain music fans in London, Berlin, Rome, Paris, Philadelphia, Barrie (near Toronto), Tokyo and Johannesburg -- with a grand total of eight concerts. A crowd of 100,000 is expected in Berlin alone, where the Avenue of the 17th of June, between the Brandenburg Gate and the Siegessäule (Victory Column), will be transformed into a huge concert arena. Admission is free.

The concert is free, because the purpose of "Live 8," the title of the global spectacle, is not necessarily to raise money, but instead to draw the attention of politicians and voters -- just a few days before the G8 summit of heads of state at Scotland's luxury Gleneagles resort -- to the problems of the world's poorest countries. The theme of the event is "The Long March to Justice," and the corresponding logo looks like a guitar whose neck has been tied into a knot.

In 1985, Live Aid was a major event broadcast onto television screens all over the world, an event that transformed youth culture. Music fans watching it on TV understood that in times of tragedy, such as famine in Africa, pop music could mean more than just fun, indulgence and silliness -- it could also mean responsibility, compassion and a willingness to help. Of course, committed musicians had held benefit concerts before, but Geldof and his fellow Live Aid performers were the first to embody a new type of musician, an artist on a mission to save the world and to appeal to politicians for their support.

This time the participating musicians (what Geldof has billed as the "biggest pop concert of all time" will feature major stars like Paul McCartney, Elton John and Robbie Williams, as well as regional musicians like German rock legend Herbert Grönemeyer) have already achieved something with their Live 8 campaign: a heated debate over the purpose of spectacular benefit events in an age of globalization.

Indeed, today it seems that pop stars are as politically savvy as politicians. Shortly after Geldof announced the happy news of the Live 8 concerts at a press conference in Berlin (he was joined by German Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul), one of the central goals of the event was already reached: The finance ministers of the G8 countries adopted what Finance Minister Hans Eichel calls an "historic decision" to forgive the debts of up to 37 poor countries. In other words, they agreed to pay both the principal and interest on these countries' outstanding loans.

An enthusiastic South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu called the decision "a good start," and the 60,000 Germans attending a concert by the group U2 at the Schalke Arena in Gelsenkirchen, Germany cheered when lead singer Bono announced the G8 decision. Politics and pop music are joining forces everywhere these days, with the artists seemingly spurring the politicians to action -- in a battle against poverty, against hunger, and for a world in which justice prevails.

But is there truly any hope that a major performance by rock musicians can achieve something where the world's politicians have obviously failed? Geldof believes that "Live 8 is not a cultural event, it's a political event," and he has also announced a sort of D-Day for rock musicians, a special type of landing operation -- at the G8 summit in Scotland. "On July 6, anyone who is able should go to Edinburgh to demonstrate. We have obtained 10,000 private boats in England that will pick up people from the Continent on the French coast." When Geldof gets going, "he's unstoppable," says fellow Live 8 musician Grönemeyer, "that's part of his charm."

These days Geldof is trying to motivate as many people as possible. "Those who have jobs should take a few days off, and those who are still in school should play hooky and bring along their teachers," says Geldof. After all, he adds, what can be better, "a few hours of geometry or the chance to change the world forever?"

An armada of 50 private aircraft is expected from the United States, led by Hollywood star John Travolta in his Boeing 707. Some of the German celebrities who plan to make an appearance are actress Anna Thalbach and Love Parade inventor Dr. Motte. "I've even invited the pope," says Geldof, "let's see if he shows up!"

The old man from Rome won't be showing up. Benedict XVI merely sent an autographed card. But at least EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso, who has plenty of other problems on his plate at the moment, met in Brussels with U2 singer Bono -- who took the opportunity to call upon the EU to significantly increase its development aid for the world's poorest countries. Then the pop star and EU executive posed for photographs, flashing the V sign in sunny solidarity with starving people all over the world.

NEXT PAGE: "If you're coming to Gleneagles with the intention of changing nothing, then you fucking might as well stay at home"

There is no lack of enthusiasm for doing good in today's world of show business -- and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Whether Britney Spears or Jeanette Biedermann, Naomi Campbell, Barbara Schöneberger or Veronica Ferres, they all support suffering children in the Third World or travel the globe as goodwill ambassadors for charitable organizations, from UNICEF to Terre des Hommes, through crisis regions and areas struck by catastrophes, to gain an impression of the situation and shake up people's consciences. However, warns Grönemeyer, we must be careful "that Africa doesn't turn into a pop brand name. It's a proud, self-confident continent that needs help to help itself."

The mobile show business social workers are outraged that people in Africa are dying of AIDS, drought and famine, "because they're too poor," says Geldof. He and Bono are urging the wealthy countries to call upon the United Nations to make good on a promise it made in 1970, when the OECD countries vowed to earmark 0.7 percent of their respective gross domestic products for development aid. According to the World Bank, the $80 billion the industrialized countries are currently spending on the world's poorest regions are about $50 billion short of what is actually needed. Critics of development aid complain that it's difficult to measure the effects of aid. Nowadays, more than 300 million people south of the Sahara Desert must survive on less than one dollar a month -- about a third more people than ten years ago.

Nelson Mandela, an icon of the fight against apartheid in South Africa, holds the predatory elites primarily responsible for the continent's woes. "Official corruption is one of the greatest barriers to development," says Kenyan politician John Githongo.

Some experts, like Berlin academic Stefan Mair, believe that the concept of providing help for self-help can only work in places where democracy and constitutional law prevail -- which is by no means the case everywhere in Africa. Armed conflicts or wars are currently raging in 13 of Africa's 53 countries.

Despite the fact that the bulk of aid money flows into local projects nowadays -- the construction of roads, schools and water lines --, much of what is built falls into disrepair or succumbs to neglect practically the minute aid workers are gone. Rupert Neudeck, founder of the aid organization Cap Anamur, complains that many aid projects are unrealistic, too theoretical and poorly planned. Critics say that the immediate relief provided to victims of famine in places like Ethiopia, which has been the recipient of large amounts of free grain, often destroys the livelihood of local farmers. In an interview with Der Spiegel in March 2005, Bob Geldof himself complained about what he believes are excessive donations for the Asian tsunami victims. In his assessment, "the aid organizations can't even distribute these huge sums quickly enough," adding that the "disaster in Asia" distorts our view of "the true catastrophes" in Africa. For some experts, even the instrument of debt forgiveness, part of a grandiose promise the G8 countries have now made, is a questionable way of rewarding countries that have defaulted on their debt.

But does criticism of spontaneous action and development aid mean that Africa should be left to suffer on its own in the future? Not at all, says Geldof. For years, he was against a reprise of the Live Aid concerts for Africa. But now Geldof has joined forces with U2 lead singer Bono and screenwriter Richard Curtis ("Four Weddings and a Funeral") -- and he makes an astonishingly statesmanlike impression. Speaking directly to the cameras, he issued the following threat to the representatives of the G8 countries: "If you're coming to Gleneagles with the intention of changing nothing, then you fucking might as well stay at home. Then we don't want you." He says "fucking" a lot.

At the same time, Geldof, in an interview with Time, admonished fans not to jeopardize the success of the project by criticizing US President George W. Bush. Bono, in all seriousness, praised British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown as the "Lennon/McCartney of global development." Brown returned the favor by waiving the organizers' liability for payment of value-added tax for the concert in London's Hyde Park, saving them £500,000 (€753,000).

As is usually the case with such events, there has been plenty of criticism of Geldof's selection of musicians for the marathon concert, partly because line-up is packed with the same aging pop millionaires who performed at the Live Aid concerts back in 1985: U2, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Sting, Duran Duran, Madonna and Geldof himself. British organization Black Information Link has also been critical of the dominance of white musicians. Indeed, hardly any black stars are part of the lineup, although hip-hop star Jay-Z, soul titan Stevie Wonder and Destiny's Child are at least providing for a dose of politically correct glamour in Philadelphia. To dispel any suspicions of neocolonial attitudes, British world music godfather Peter Gabriel is sponsoring an additional concert on July 2 that will exclusively feature African musicians, although the venue is a bit off the beaten track. "Africa Calling," presented by Senegalese musician Youssou N'Dour, is taking place in Cornwall. "And I thought apartheid had ended," said outraged BBC anchorman Andy Kershaw.

The London concert probably features the most attractive program, including currently hot bands like Coldplay and The Killers, as well as estranged Pink Floyd founders David Gilmour and Roger Waters. Fans are also hoping for reunions of other veteran combos, from the Sex Pistols to the Spice Girls. In contrast, by late last week only a few passé rockers, like Bon Jovi and the Dave Matthews Band, had announced that they would be performing at the US concert in Philadelphia. Rap star 50 Cent cancelled at the last minute, because he'd rather shoot a film about his life.

The French lineup includes Yannick Noah, Johnny Hallyday and opera star Andrea Bocelli. At Berlin's venue, in front of the Brandenburg Gate, bygone pop heroes like Brian Wilson, A-ha and Chris de Burgh will be performing alongside German rock legends like Bap. The organizers are still negotiating with model Claudia Schiffer to give a welcome address. Current groups like Silbermond (Silver Moon) and Wir sind Helden (We are Heroes) will be providing for a younger mood.