(Warner Music)

The original Live Aid event was a two-part concert held simultaneously at Wembley Stadium, London, and JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, on July 13, 1985, in response to widespread African famine. Organized by onetime Straight employee Bob Geldof, the musicians certainly came together in service of a good cause. Still, despite the efforts of all those involved, hunger still looms large over the African continent and Geldof has found the need to resurrect the Live Aid empire with a second concert series held in June and two separate DVD packages.

Call it nostalgia, but 20 years later, the star power, in all its breadth, still shines brightly. Geldof assembled the finest cast of '60s burnouts, '70s AM hitmakers, and '80s new-wave aspirants around.

U.K. rockers Queen come out on top with singer Freddie Mercury exuding charisma by the ton, and a hungry audience devoured every note. That performance alone is worth the cost, but be warned, the single-DVD version of Live Aid is nothing more than an aural and visual prick tease. Edited versions of all of the songs, often cut right when the getting is good, only give a fragment of the talent displayed on the four-DVD version. With money from both releases going to support the Band Aid Trust, both you and the charity itself will be better served if you save your pennies for the whole works.