Good cause, bad idea

Besides all the excitement surrounding the celebration of Mardi Gras and the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, there is another event that has gotten much buzz on the Internet. This month commemorates the 25th anniversary of the original recording of “We Are the World,” the hit single from the celebrity charity collaboration, USA for Africa.  In honor of this, a newly recorded version, “We Are the World 25 for Haiti,” which will donate all the proceeds from downloading the song on iTunes to Haiti relief funds, was released a few days ago.
Similar to the original “We Are the World” that was written to gather support for famine in Africa, the 2010 version supports an altruistic cause, features the voices of dozens of celebrities and was produced by Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie.  However, in the wake of Michael Jackson’s death, “We Are the World 25 for Haiti” has an even more somber undertone than the original.  Although it has many of the magical ingredients that were sprinkled into the single recorded in 1985, one thing that has yet to be proven is whether or not the new recording will be as successful.    
Many people seem to think the remake pales in comparison.  In an interview with MTV News, Jay-Z said “I know the plight and everything that’s going on in Haiti. I applaud the efforts…but ‘We are the World’ is untouchable like ‘Thriller’ is untouchable. Some things are just untouchable.”  
I think the question really boils down to whether or not Jones and Richie’s newest installment of inspirational pop music has the capacity to touch the public’s heart the way the the  1985 version (that went multi-platinum and won three Grammys) did.  
In part I agree with Jay-Z. “We Are the World” is untouchable, but not the way that “Thriller” is.  What makes “We Are the World” untouchable was that it was a moment in time in which Bob Dylan, Tito Jackson and Dan Aykroyd were all gathered together in Kenny Rogers’ studio to record an inspirational song for Africa.  That will never happen again.  There is no way to recreate the essence of that event.  No matter how much hard work was put into making “We Are the World 25 for Haiti” up to date, hip or able to resonate with the public, it will never have the impact that the original did because it isn’t an original idea. We all know that remakes are never as good as the original, it always fails.  Remember Clear Pepsi?  
I must say it is cool that celebrities are working together to collect donations for Haiti, I just wish that they would’ve found a more creative way that didn’t taint something pure like “We Are the World.”