REMEMBER we told you a few weeks back that Live Aid founder Bob Geldof was none too pleased at Al Gore's attempt to stage a similar global musical event to highlight the effects of global warming? "Why is Gore actually organizing (the shows)? To make us aware of the greenhouse effect? Everybody has known about that problem for years," was how Sir Bob put it at the time. Gore, with all due respect of course, has responded to Geldof's complaints, and says the Live Earth concerts that will be staged around the world on July 7 will be a "wake-up call for the world."

"We will have very specific goals that will be very significant and hard-hitting. We will announce those before the concert then emphasize them heavily during the concert," the former veep (and future prez?) added.

"What Bob Geldof did with Live Aid and Live 8 was fantastic and he has followed up very diligently, as many of the others involved with Live Aid and Live 8 have. I've nothing but good things to say about them.

"These concerts would not be possible in any way without the pioneering and creativity of Geldof and those who helped him. But he said in the aftermath of those efforts how important it is to have specific goals and a continuing follow-on effort and we have designed the Live Earth concerts in just that way."

Geldof staged Live Aid in 1985 to highlight poverty in Africa, and Live 8 20 years later to mark the seminal event's 20-year anniversary.