Paul Weller hated Band Aid video because “everyone was doing blow in the toilets”

Weller was part of the star-studded 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' line-up in 1984

Paul Weller has recalled the “horrible” experience of filming the Band Aid video, claiming that some artists were taking drugs in the toilets throughout.

The former Jam frontman appeared in Bob Geldof and Midge Ure‘s 1984 charity single ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’, which also featured the likes of George Michael, Bono and Phil Collins.

Speaking in a recent Q&A session (via Contact Music), Weller said: “[The video shoot] was horrible. Everyone was getting off doing blow in the toilets.

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“It probably would have been all right for me in the ’90s but I wasn’t into all that then. I was totally out of my comfort zone.”

The official video for ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ comprises footage of the featured artists recording their respective parts for the single at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London.

Weller’s comments come after he recently opened up about his 11 years of sobriety, explaining that he “gets more from music” now he has quit drinking.

“Now, when I look back to before I stopped, from the 00s onwards, I just think: ‘Christ, the state of me’,” he said. “I looked a lot older, a bit puffy, and red… just wrong.”

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Last month saw Weller achieve his sixth UK Number One album with ‘Fat Pop (Volume 1)’, which was recorded over the course of the coronavirus-enforced lockdown. The singer has now had a Number One record in five different decades.

Speaking during a Tim’s Twitter Listening Party focusing on his latest release, however, Weller said he wasn’t sure whether he’ll make another album. “[…] I don’t think people invest in music like we did before streaming/downloads etc,” he reasoned.

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