IN LIBYA? LIONEL RICHIE, JOSE CARRERAS & THE VIENNA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA IN LIBYA AT COLONEL GADDAFI'S COMPOUND IN TRIPOLI - ARE YOU MAD?

LIONEL RICHIE, JOSE CARRERAS & THE VIENNA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA IN LIBYA AT COLONEL MUAMMAR GADDAFI'S COMPOUND IN TRIPOLI - ARE YOU MAD?   I suppose the answer to that is YES!

                                                (Lionel Richie)

As I look at the appalling situation in Libya today, I reflect on the day that we presented a wonderful concert in Tripoli a few years ago. Here is how it happened:

I received a phone call early March 2006 from my dear friend Elissa Murtaza at that time founder and CEO of Mirage Promotions the number one concert company throughout the Middle East based in Bahrain and Dubai (later becoming Live Nation Middle East) - asking me whether we could find some artists to perform in Libya as part of a United Nations Peace Concert to be held in Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli, Libya.

Well, I had received some strange requests in my time, but this beat the lot!  Colonel Gaddafi; his personal compound in central Tripoli; Libya - all the political implications - no forget it – it’s impossible.

Despite the obvious objections and concerns there was one redeeming factor – this event had the approval of the United Nations (UN). The event was to be planned as a peace concert in memory of the 40 people who died including Col. Muammar Gaddafi’s adopted daughter Hanna, when President Reagan ordered the bombing after accusing Libya of involvement in the bombing of a nightclub in Berlin. The bombing took place on April 15^th 1986 and this concert was the 20^th anniversary of this sad occasion.

The concert was to be held in front of the ruins of the building that had been bombed and was in the same condition as the day the bombs fell. Needless to say this was a daunting task.

First of all we wanted to make sure the UN had approved of this high profile concert and were giving it’s blessing. It didn’t take long, we soon received a letter from UN confirming this – but how to get a major artist to perform – that was the question?

The initial request from the Libyan authorities was for Elton John (I was told that they had discovered Elton was gay) and took back that request and Luciano Pavarotti. As it happened  they both were not available on the dates concerned – So Elissa and I put our heads together and she went for Lionel Richie (via CAA) being one of the most popular artists in the world and a hell of a nice guy too. I went for someone to replace Pavarotti and after some pretty tough talks secured José Carreras via Rosi Pritz in Vienna and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.

                                                (José Carreras)

I was amazed we had succeeded to get two great artists to perform, but the UN backing and support was critical in this matter – if we hadn’t had that this the event would not have happened. But now we had to manage the concert from staging, sound, lights, travel, hotels, visas, catering, dressing rooms – you name it!

Monica Hamill (from our London office) and I flew to Tripoli and met up with Elissa who had arrived earlier the same day at the only major hotel and awaited the artists. Needless to say booking a symphony orchestra into hotels is never easy, let alone in Libya! 

I went straight to the site of the concert and had to go through numerous security checks – I don’t think I have ever seen so many Kalashnikovs and machine gun towers – and this was supposed to be a peace concert!

Gaddafi’s compound was enormous, surrounded by high walls and watch-towers manned by troops. The compound was covered in grass and trees, with Camels strolling around – there were what appeared to be air vents that popped up from time to time like large man made flowers or maybe periscopes. I had the feeling there was a whole city underneath us, but I could never see anything to prove this.

It was my first sight of the house that had been bombed and it was a sad sight by any standards – broken walls, staircases, furniture, tiles everywhere – lives taken in a flash – what a waste and terrible tragedy – its always the innocents that get hurt somehow (of course all this was taking place before the subsequent demise of the leader Colonel Gaddafi). However, what worried me most at that moment, was the tall statue of a big fist crushing an American jet that was situation immediately behind the stage plumb in the centre where the artists were to perform.

(The fist crushing an American jet - towering above the stage, with the bombed house next to the stage)

I was incensed, deeply concerned and immediately called Elissa back at the hotel home base camp. We had to get this statue covered – how can we have an American Artist Lionel Richie and for that matter a world star such as José Carreras performing a peace concert directly in front of a statue of a massive fist crushing an American jet?

Endless talks went on with the organisers about this issue and we were promised everything would be fine – so I headed back to the hotel. We spent a tense night because we were putting artists and orchestra musicians into their rooms. I don't think any of us slept very much - too much tension.

We were up early the next morning and the stage build up continued – so did our discussions regarding the “big fist” – tents were erected on site as dressing rooms and one of those large camper vans (home on wheels) appeared as one of the dressing rooms, which had to be cleaned - one of the joys of producing a concert!. Jose Carreras, arrived, met at the airport and whisked to the hotel suite. Lionel Richie arrived by private jet later that day from Los Angeles.

The next day – the day of the concert things were getting more and more tense – because the issue of the “big fist” was not getting resolved. I went early to the site again and stood on stage insisting that this statue be covered – by now everything was getting worse – I saw Gaddafi get out of his Range Rover and stare at me from short distance – Gaddafi was surrounded by body guards and everything was looking increasingly ugly. I thought maybe this is where it all ends - they can shoot me, but those artists are not going on stage until this horrendous statue is covered. The Libyan team around me were getting frantic – Gaddafi did not want his statue covered – well tough shit – I wasn’t going to allow the artists onstage until it was covered and Elissa said the same. We had to stand firm, but it was getting very scary.

                                           (Lionel Richie)

In the meantime, a big tent had been erected for Lionel Richie’s dressing room and we were asked if this was OK for Lionel – I remember us saying the tent is lovely, but its empty – can we please have some chairs, a table, hanging rack for his clothes and maybe a mirror? How about some food and drink (as per the contract technical and personal rider) - Lionel doesn't eat grass! In the end the tent got furnished in some way – probably the oddest dressing room Lionel has ever worked with - I had been blessed to work with Lionel a number of times and he is one of the easiest and most friendly artists, we had ever worked with.

By this time Lionel had arrived, he very kindly agreed to attend a press conference at the hotel, which was covered by local television and some of the world’s press – Reuters, CNN, BBC etc. I made an introductory speech, saying wonderful it was to be in Libya and in memory of Gaddafi's adopted daughter and others that had been killed - a peace concert in rememberance and for the future.

Back to the site – we still hadn’t got this bloody statue covered. About an hour before the artists were due to arrive, we got the statue covered, but everyone around the stage (at least the Libyans) were obviously very frightened. We were very worried too - Elissa, Monica and I were at our bulldog best – shoot us if you like, but come hell or high water, that damned statue gets covered or no concert!

                                                (José Carreras)

The artists arrived – the audience arrived, who had been seated in a huge tent having dinner before the show. When everyone was seated in the performance arena, we were welcomed by Gaddafi’s model daughter Aisha (known in the western press as the Claudia Schiffer of North Africa) – we had an Arabic speaker with us, so we knew what Aisha was saying which wasn’t complimentary to all of us non-Libyan party - in fact it was damned well rude – this peace concert was looking less and less peaceful. 

However, we needn’t have worried, Lionel Richie came on stage with his trio of musicians and knocked out the audience who waved and sang and clapped to his songs – Lionel left the stage to rapturous applause – a short interval and then the glorious voice of José Carreras backed by the superb Vienna Symphony Orchestra – the problem was that the mainly Libyan audience didn’t understand opera, so many of them left! The VIP's, Ambassadors and press rightly adored Jose's performance – he is such a marvellous artist and professional – he sang magnificently and the show was successful and we and the artists had done our job in the most difficult circumstances.

After the concert was over – everyone left leaving Elissa, Rosi Pritz who had come from Vienna, Monica and I to take care of the musicians of the orchestra (Lionel and Carreras had gone back to the hotel and in Lionel’s case he flew straight out later that night). It took us hours to get the coaches and everyone back and all their instruments in open air trucks. We obviously, weren't flavour of the month after the statue issue!  Exhausted, but happy that this event had taken place – I think we got some sleep that night, but not much – we all left the next day deeply relieved that this concert had taken place and that we had survived. I remember sitting on the British Airways flight to London, being very relieved we were out of Libyan air space!

                                        (The Vienna Symphony Orchestra)

It was only later than we learned that most if not all the Libyan team were put in prison after the show – no doubt because of the “Big Fist” being covered and Gaddafi being most displeased. What a nightmare - it is our understanding that they were all released after a couple of months - they had been helpful and welcoming and they should not have endured this nightmare. Lionel Richie received some flak in the US press for having performed in Libya, however, the United Nations had approved this "peace concert".

When we learned some time later that the civil war had started - more pain, misery and suffering for the people of Libya ending in the capture and death of Muammar Gaddafi. I don't think anyone of us was very surprised at what developed in Libya. However, the Libyan team we had worked with, were wonderful, welcoming and highly professional and the way they were treated after the event was an absolute disgrace. Despite what we had experienced, an extraordinary moment in history – probably the only UN endorsed peace concert that ever took place in Libya under the eyes of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi - We survived it - and the music filled the air that hot balmy night in April. 

April 18, 2006

BBC NEWS Reported:

Libya has marked the 20th anniversary of the US bombing raids on Tripoli and Benghazi with a high-profile concert.

US soul singer Lionel Ritchie and Spanish tenor Jose Carreras performed in front of the bombed house of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in the capital.

About 40 people died in the attacks on 15 April 1986, including Col Gaddafi's adopted daughter, Hanna.

President Ronald Reagan ordered the strikes, accusing Libya of involvement in bombing a nightclub in Berlin. Two US soldiers and a Turkish woman were killed and least 230 people injured in the explosion.

Compensation

The BBC's Rana Jawad in Tripoli says the anniversary of the raids on Libya was marked in a surprisingly festive way.

A crowd of diplomats, businessmen and politicians was brought to their feet, with soul veteran Lionel Ritchie dominating what was called the "concert for peace".

"Hanna will be honoured tonight because of the fact that you've attached peace to her name," Ritchie told the audience.

In 2001, a German court ruled that the Libyan secret service was responsible for the Berlin attack.

Tripoli has agreed to compensate victims, but refuses to do so for the US families saying Libyans also had a right to be compensated.

Relations between Washington and Tripoli began to improve in 2003 when the Libyans renounced weapons of mass destruction. The US has now lifted most of its sanctions against Libya.