After an incredibly hectic (but fun) 2009, the Sydney Festival organisers took a step back for their third Festival First Night: going for quality, not quantity – getting rid of the Fuzzy stage, spreading out the stages at Martin Place, and giving the City of Sydney a night it won’t soon forget.
For me, the majority of the night was spent in the Domain, awaiting the arrival of the Reverend Al Green, who had come to Australia for the first time (and most likely the last), and as he himself pointed out repeatedly throughout the show – “how come I only got an hour?” I’m sure he knew the answer to that question, but he certainly milked it, and the sexual references (and roses) flew left right and centre. “I came to get min! I can’t get mine in an hour! To get it done right, you’ve got to do it slowly… and I came to get it done! TESTIFY!”
Preceding the main act was a beautiful Welcome to Country ceremony, in which smoke drifted through the trees of the Domain – a beautiful sight to say the least. The Indigenous supergroup The Black Arm Band were next. Their show Hidden Republic features a line-up of 25 songwriters and musicians including Jimmy Little, Archie Roach, Ruby Hunter and Dan Sultan, accompanied by a full orchestra. Unfortunately, where I was sitting, the sound just seemed to get lost completely – so I couldn’t really appreciate the show as much as I would have liked to. And really, I just wanted to see Al Green.
But before we all knew it, the Reverend himself appeared before the overcrowded Domain audience, launching straight into “Let’s Get Married”. The set which followed included “Lay It Down” (his latest single), “Love and Happiness” (with B Boy Dancers?), “Tired of Being Alone”. “I’m Hooked On You” and of course, “Let’s Stay Together”. He even threw in a medley which included standards such as “My Girl” and “Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch”. All of which were delivered with passion and beauty in his voice, that made you whisper to your friend… “yep, he’s still got it”.
With a set such as this, I think it’s safe to say that Al Green did indeed get it done in an hour. I certainly left nice and satisfied – indeed I would have loved more, and I would have loved a rose from the man himself even more than that… but for a free event, to see an artist of this calibre, an artist I never thought I’d get to see, for 10 minutes or 10 hours… you’re not going to hear any complaints from me. And with this just being the first night of the festival, I can’t wait to see what the rest of it has to offer!
