Behind the scenes as Olivia Rodrigo, Pulp and Arctic Monkeys record charity album

Damon Albarn stands in the doorway of the Abbey Road canteen, deep in conversation with Carl Barratt of The Libertines.

Nearby, Pulp is lining up for a fresh batch of lasagna.

Around them, six children are running around, filming everything with handheld cameras.

They are all eagerly awaiting the arrival of Olivia Rodrigo.

These were the scenes in London last November, where some of the world’s biggest stars came together to record a new charity album in aid of War Child.

The tracklist, which was revealed yesterday, is a who’s who of indie rock. Wet Leg, The Last Dinner Party, Wolf Alice, Fontaines DC, Nilüfer Yanya, Cameron Winter, Ezra Collective, Foals and Young Fathers all contribute.

Over the course of one week, 23 songs were recorded. At times, five of the famous Abbey Road studios were in use, with collaborations springing up in an instant.

Blur’s Graham Coxon plays guitar with Rodrigo on the cover of Love for Magnetic Fields. Damon Albarn’s session saw Johnny Marr join on guitar, with additional vocals by Kay Tempest and Grian Chatten.

Later in the day, Jarvis Cocker returned from a bathroom break to find them all in his studio – so he had them sing the intro to Pulp’s new song, Begging For Change.

“It just showed up, so I thought, why not?” He laughs. “I’m not used to this kind of thing, but it was really good.”

The album is the spiritual successor to Help! – Recorded at the height of British pop, it features contributions from Paul Weller, Radiohead, Suede, Paul McCartney, the KLF, Portishead and The Manic Street Preachers.

This was also the only time Oasis and Blur appeared on the same record, just months after their legendary (and brutal) chart battle.

“We will put our differences aside for the sake of the cause,” Noel Gallagher said at the time. “This is the only time you’ll see us agree on anything.”

The record sold 70,000 copies in its first week, raising nearly £1.25 million to help children in war-torn areas, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In 2025, fundraising becomes even more urgent. According to Warchild, 520 million children worldwide – nearly one in five – are affected by war, with simultaneous crises in Ukraine, Sudan and Gaza.

This number is higher than at any time since World War II, at the same time that governments around the world are cutting international aid.

“Right now, it seems like there are a lot of bad things going on, and a lot of people feel helpless,” Coker says.

“They’re watching the news and they don’t know what to do. So I hope people enjoy this album, and also know that they’re trying to make a positive change.”

The first song released Thursday is a new song by Arctic Monkeys called Opening Night.

A sparse and sinister song, it finds Alex Turner singing about political slogans and “supercomputer crusades” before a beautifully orchestrated chorus that delivers a message of hope in dark times.

Drummer Matt Helders tells the BBC that the song dates back two years, but it was never finished.

Getting the call from Warchild was the motivation they needed to complete the song, with lyrics that sounded like a call to arms.

“With charity recordings, it’s often tempting to do an interesting cover or collaboration, but we enjoy making records and being in the studio, so it’s been fun working on something we’ve written,” he says.

Adding to the fun was the film crew of children, aged between eight and ten, who documented the progress of the entire recording.

They were accompanied by BAFTA award-winning director Jonathan Glazer (Sexy Beast, Under The Skin, The Zone Of Interest), who wanted to bring music to young people that would help them.

“They were given the freedom to roam, which really changed the atmosphere,” says Helders.

“The studios can be a very harsh, clinical environment sometimes. But they were walking around and bumping into things. It made it fun.”

Coker wasn’t so sure.

“I hate for anyone to watch me sing in the studio, because I’m a self-conscious person and having someone point a camera at me doesn’t help with that,” he says.

“And while I was singing there, I think they were getting a little bored, so they were like lying on the floor and filming the ceiling.”

Ultimately, he found the presence of children liberating. Something about their complete disinterest allowed him to abandon the idea that a studio recording should capture the “perfect, final version” of the song.

As a result, Pulp’s contribution to Help 2 – Begging For Change – has a loose live band feel that really captures the album’s spontaneity and sense of community.

In fact, a young camera crew was able to record it.

“It’s interesting, you know, because kids are always told: ‘Shut up, because I’m trying to think,’ or ‘Shh, your dad’s drunk,'” he says.

“So when they have the opportunity to make noise, they will. So what we tried to do in our song is to make them scream, and they did that very well.”

You won’t be able to hear this song until Help 2 is released on March 6. Thanks to record companies and pressing plants donating their services for free, the album will be cheaper than standard albums – a double vinyl costs around £26 – and Warchild will get all the profits.

“We found that this project lit a fire in the creative community,” says Rich Clark, the charity’s head of music. “A lot of people wanted to participate.”

We’re told that the 23 songs on the album weren’t the only product of the week-long recording sessions.

“A large number of tracks, about 10 or so, came from when people heard about the project. So actually, there were some difficult decisions for the team about what made it on the record.”

But Olivia Rodrigo’s song — about the purity of love — was always intended as the closing track.

“It’s a really beautiful cover,” Clark says.

“The record really takes you on a journey, with some powerful themes about struggle, but Olivia leaves you with a track about the redemptive power of love, which is a truly moving final note.”