A-side "Belfast Child" Length 5:42 | Released 18 January 1989 Label A&M | |
Format 5" CD, 3" CD, cassette, 7" vinyl Genre Alternative rock, Irish folk, world | ||
"Mandela Day" is a song by the rock band Simple Minds. It was included in the single "Ballad of the Streets" EP which reached No.1 on the British charts in February 1989 and in their album Street Fighting Years. The single highlights the songs "Mandela Day", "Belfast Child", originally its A-side in the full length version, and "Biko".
Contents
"Mandela Day" was written for the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute (also known as Mandela Day), a concert held at Wembley Stadium, London, on 11 June 1988, as an expression of solidarity with the then-imprisoned Nelson Mandela, and was played live on that day (alongside cover versions of "Sun City" with Little Steven and a cover version of Peter Gabriel's "Biko" on which Gabriel himself took on lead vocals). The song is musically similar to the chorus section of their 1981 instrumental 'Seeing out the angel' from Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call.
Music video
The official music video for the song was directed by Andy Morahan.