| Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel Appeal | |
| Type: | Compilation Album |
| Artist: | Various Artists |
| Cover: | Nobodys Child Romanian Angel Appeal cover.jpg |
| Released: | 23 July 1990 |
| Recorded: | 1976−90 |
| Genre: | Rock |
| Length: | 1:03:48 |
| Label: | Warner Bros. |
| Compiler: | George Harrison |
Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel Appeal is a charity album released in July 1990 to benefit Romanian orphans, under the auspices of the Romanian Angel Appeal Foundation. It was compiled by English rock musician George Harrison in response to concerns raised by his wife Olivia Harrison, who had visited Romania and witnessed the suffering in the country's abandoned state orphanages following the fall of Communism.[1] The release was preceded by a single, "Nobody's Child", recorded by Harrison's band the Traveling Wilburys.[2] Other artists who donated songs to the album include Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Eric Clapton, Duane Eddy, Van Morrison, Guns N' Roses, Ringo Starr, Ric Ocasek and Elton John. Many of the recordings were previously unreleased.[3]
The Romanian Angel Appeal marked a rare foray into the media spotlight by Olivia Harrison, who created the foundation with support from the other wives of the former Beatles – Barbara Bach, Yoko Ono and Linda McCartney. She and her husband promoted the project in the UK with appearances on the television talk show Wogan and in the one-hour Radio 1 documentary Nobody's Child.[4] The album was released by Harrison's record company, Warner Bros. Records, on 23 July 1990. It was preceded by a launch at London's Hyde Park Hotel on 22 July, attended by the Harrisons, and Bach and Starr. The video for the "Nobody's Child" single included animated scenes and footage of the Romanian orphanages.
George Harrison's involvement in the project reprised his role in assisting refugees of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, when he staged an all-star benefit concert and oversaw the release of an associated album and documentary film.[5] [6] Aside from the title track, his presence on Nobody's Child was reflected in the recordings submitted by Simon, Clapton and Eddy.
Harrison said in compiling Nobody's Child he was conscious of not making it his album by dominating the content. He said that his request for a live track from Bruce Springsteen went unanswered, and his approach to Michael Jackson became confused in the acrimony taking place between Jackson and Paul McCartney over the ownership of the Beatles' Northern Songs catalogue. Selections by Stevie Winwood and Queen arrived too late for inclusion on the album.
Side one
Side two