Austin360 blogs > ACL Festival > Archives > 2006 > September > 17 > Entry
Damian ‘Jr. Gong’ Marley (Sunday, 2:30 p.m. AMD Stage)
At about 2:40 p.m., I realized I’d already missed the beginning of Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley’s set, and I was quite frustrated. I knew I was missing what might be one of the festival’s daytime highlights.
My body certainly knew I was missing some of the set, because I could feel the throbbing reggae bass lines vibrating in my rib cage.
I’d been sulking a bit that I’d misidentified Massive Attack’s singer and the band’s great album “Mezzanine” in my hastily written review late Saturday night (it’s something pensive writers do when we make a mistake). But that familiar-sounding Marley voice, and that bass line, unconsciously lifted my spirits and pulled me toward what proved to be a soul-renewing performance.
I waded through multiple Jamaican flags, thick white clouds of smoke and a sea of dancing bodies to reach the AMD Stage just in time to witness Damian Marley’s big brother Stephen Marley emerge to sing the new song “All Right.” The Marley family performing together was a beautiful sight. The youngest member of the singing and dancing stage entourage was barely out of diapers.
Another great moment came when another one of the brothers - Julian Marley - took the mike to sing lead on father Bob Marley’s hit “Could You Be Loved.” An accelerated tempo and a dance-hall vocal delivery added a fresh spin on the classic that appeared to groove well with the audience’s joyously irie vibe.
I didn’t have the good fortune to witness Bob Marley’s appearance at Austin’s Palmer Auditorium back in the day, but I’ve heard stories from several old-school friends. Being able to see his children perform some of his songs - and several originals - under the sun-splashed fields of Zilker Park was inspirational … and possibly the next best thing to seeing Bob himself.
(photo by Ricardo Brazziell AMERICAN-STATESMAN)
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Comments
By supuu
September 21, 2006 06:23 AM | Link to this
My main reason of attending the ACL festival was to see Damian Marley. Marley brothers did not disappoint. The place was blazing, I enjoyed every minute of it.
True roots & culture, Jah Bless.