November 17, 1997 –
An all-star rendition of Lou Reed’s 1972 song Perfect Day featuring Reed, Elton John, David Bowie, Tammy Wynette, Joan Armatrading and several other stars, is released as a single in the UK, with proceeds going to the BBC’s Children In Need charity.
The effort was organized by the BBC, which put together a video for the song tagged with a message promoting their diverse music coverage: “Whatever your musical taste, it is catered for by BBC radio and television. This is only possible thanks to the unique way the BBC is paid for by you.” Released as a single, it went to #1 in the UK for three weeks and earned over £2,100,000 for the charity. Versions with just the male vocalists and just the female vocalists are included on the single.
