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Robert Plant
Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters take to the Byron Bay Bluesfest stage and fill the tent with glorious sound – sound that transports me back to my youth and the heady days of Led Zeppelin, and then delivers me into a future of world music, country, and electronica.
If there is a single problem with the annual Easter-weekend Bluesfest music festival in Byron Bay, it is deciding what to miss out on!
It is hard not have “music envy”. Every year that I attend, there are headliners that I have to forfeit. Or there are the days or years that I don’t go at all – and then when the line-up is announced, I have to quell my envy of all those lucky listeners who are there.
The list of people I’ve missed is long, but the acts I’ve enjoyed – the big names and the lesser-known – have left me sated every year that I’ve attended (see: Ursula’s Weekly Wanders: Bluesfest Byron Bay). This year, I sacrificed seeing Lionel Richie because I was too busy enjoying a favourite of mine: Michael Franti and Spearhead.
You really have to pick and choose – but, in the end, it’s all great music!
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Juanes
I might not have recognised his name or music before Bluesfest this year, but Juan Estebán Aristizábal Vásquez, known as Juanes, is one of the two biggest pop stars out of Colombia – the other being Shakira.
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Michael Franti Filming Juanes
Clearly he has fans outside the Spanish-speaking community. Michael Franti, a performer I’ve loved since first hearing him on late-night radio in the early 90s, attended Juanes’ set and filmed one of the songs on his phone …
Michael Franti in the Audience
… before turning to chat with others in the VIP area.
Robert Plant
That voice! It still sends chills up and down my spine. Robert Plant is one of those performers I couldn’t bear to miss: I attended a Led Zeppelin concert in Vancouver back in the 1970’s and a Jimmy Page & Robert Plant concert in Sydney some 25 years later.
Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters
Although he and his Sensational Space Shifters played fewer of my Led Zeppelin favourites than they did when I last saw them at Bluesfest in 2013 (see: Singing the Blues), Plant’s presence has lost none of it’s commanding swagger. I could learn to love his new material almost as much.
Jackson Browne
We last saw Jackson Browne playing his countless old hits – and his new music – at Bluesfest 2016 (see: From Buskers to Big Bands). Once again the tent was packed.
Sound Man
Unable to get anywhere near the stage, I contented myself watching the sound engineers at work while listening to the familiar tunes.
Seal
Bluesfest constantly stretches boundaries: the English soul and R&B singer and songwriter Seal is not someone I associate with “the Blues”.
Seal
With lilting, lyrical melodies, lushly orchestrated harmonies, and a charismatic stage presence: …
“Kiss From A Rose”
… Seal transported me – and the rest of the audience – away.
Melissa Etheridge
Legendary rocker Melissa Etheridge exuded energy from one end of her set to the other. We enjoyed her as much as when we saw her at Bluesfest in 2016 (see: From Buskers to Big Bands).
Sheryl Crow
This year, this was the performer I was waiting for! Sheryl Crow’s music was a huge part of my middle-adulthood; …
Sheryl Crow
… I can’t tell you how many hours Tuesday Night Music Club played on repeat on my bedroom CD player!
Sheryl Crow
Once described by Rolling Stone as relishing the role of a “grizzled road warrior”, Crow performed her extensive repertoire with ease and a down-to-earth simplicity.
Sheryl Crow
I love that she’s wearing a Debbie Harry “Blondie” shirt – a tribute to another brilliant female singer.
Chic
The disco-funk ensemble Nile Rodgers & Chic was an absolute crowd pleaser: the tent was one big disco party, packed with smiling people of all ages dancing and singing along to hits from the 70s like Le Freak and Good Times.
Michael Franti
It was getting late on the last festival day when Michael Franti and Spearhead took to the stage.
Michael Franti and J Bowman
Carl Young – Spearhead
Michael Franti in the Crowd
It’s not long before Michael is off the stage and working his way through the packed audience.
In the Crowd
It has to be a bit of a logistics nightmare! A few minders tried/ to stay close to Michael in the packed tent.
Photos of Michael Franti
The audience grab their smart phones and take advantage of the photo ops – all while singing along and jumping on cue.
Michael Franti and Lukas Nelson
On his last number, Franti always gets his support team, and any children in the audience, out on stage to join in the happy music. Lukas Nelson (POTR) added to the mix.
We might have missed out on Lionel Richie and a few other big names, but our ears and hearts were full of joyous music.
We left the festival grounds smiling and dancing – and with next years tickets already in hand.
Until then,
Keep dancing!
Pictures: 29March-2April2018
[…] international visitors. Some are big names that take me back to my youth (see, for example: Bring on the Big Names; The Soundtrack of my Youth; Musical Name-Dropping; The Sound of Sunshine); others are more […]