Before I sat down to write this column, I made sure to talk with a cross-section of people. Twenty-five years is a long time. Perhaps it was just that I was getting old. But, I played the new version of “We are the World-25” back to back with the original for several people after its release. And almost everyone I spoke with….including the younger demographic that may have no idea who Bob Dylan, Ray Charles, Tina Turner, and Diana Ross may look or sound like….preferred the original version better than the recent re-release to help those desperately in need in Haiti. I expected there to be some rap in it. After all, 25 years ago, rap was in its infancy, at least at mainstream radio. But the song wouldn’t have been complete in 2010 without it. Quincy Jones, I believe, did an incredible job of putting the right people in the right places to “solo” throughout the song. And I did have the sample of younger folks ask me who Tony Bennett and Barbra Streisand were. I really MUST be getting old. Streisand has appeared in many movies along with her significantly successful singing career, and Tony Bennett is, well, Tony Bennett. And, the voice and image of the late Michael Jackson, especially superimposed next to his sister Janet as they sang the hook in the song, sent chills up my spine. It seemed like he was still with us. He was the reason the first version even came into existence. It was only right to see him and hear him on the new version. I was blown away by some of the individuals and their performance in the new version. Pink was absolutely fantastic and sang from the heart. She captured, I think, the historic moment of all of these talented people coming together for the common cause. I probably could have done without the auto-tuning of some of the voices, which I’m sure were needed to help keep them on pitch. That element of the song didn’t seem to fit. With so many of the original members that gathered in 1985 still with us, and recording today, it was disappointing to see that, aside from Lionel Richie and Jones, voices like Huey Lewis, Steve Perry, Bruce Springsteen, Cyndi Lauper, and other mega stars from that era couldn’t have contributed. I think, though, that technology and more media choices than we had back in the 1980’s will help this version eclipse the old one in what’s most important, and that is raising money to rebuild Haiti. It’s hard to fathom that cell phones were non-existent, as was the world wide web in 1985. The only way you knew how to contribute was to listen to the radio. The only way you could see the video was to tune in MTV, who took the bull by the horns and perhaps over played it a bit back in the day. Now, you can donate to the Red Cross relief fund by texting five numbers from your cell, the video is all over the internet, and….you can listen at the touch of a button to the music. Radio falls somewhere in there now, but not nearly as it did in 1985. So, while I am not a huge fan of the new version, believing there’s nothing that is hardly ever better than the original, it didn’t have to be. The song will serve its purpose well and we’ll play it in our current rotation as the clean up and rebuilding of the country of Haiti continues.