G Love and The Special Sauce

With the circus in town and the usual pay tv shenanigans going on, The Entertainment Quarter was packed for a Wednesday night. The line for The Forum wasn’t exactly short, but thankfully moved swiftly as it was a darn hot evening. As we hit the air-conditioned sanctuary of inside I overheard a surprised manager say it was a sell out. I’m not sure why they were surprised, it’s not like G Love is a total unknown who’s never been here before. When he supported Jack Johnson there were rave reviews all round. A few major festivals later and the lanky lad had a solid Australian fan-base, and reason enough for a headline tour.

Whitley opened the show. A Melbournite formally of the moniker Lawrence Greenwood. I knew some of his older stuff, but had not yet heard the new incarnation. The rootsy, chilled vibe of the boy and his guitar was a nice way to ease into the night. The addition of bass and drums for a few tracks gave a glimpse of his variety, but in truth he’s a balladeer with roots/reggae twist, a voice similar to Dave Gray, and eps for only $2. Great work on all accounts.

As expected, the cheer for G Love was immense. As the gangly man appeared decked out Johnny Cash style in all black and white patent leather shoes, I was instantly smitten with his mischievous grin and amazing stage presence. He was all legs and smiles, and even when sitting he was never still. His knees led in a weird egg-beater dance move as he effortlessly switched from guitar to singing to harmonica to a combination of the three. The little pelvis thrust bunny hop was equally as amusing and hypnotic.

The Special Sauce, to be brutally honest, are one of the roughest looking groups I’ve seen in while. Thank god they’re bloody good musicians. The whole night was tight, and the most subtle of directions responded to perfectly. G Love, thankfully, had no qualms about sharing the spotlight with the lads. The biker chic bass player ripped out some phat lines, and the drummer remained steady through some serious chopping, while the New Jersey keyboardist showed why he never needs to go back (that’s a witty song reference for those that are unfamiliar).

It was a set of mostly newbies, with a few faves scattered throughout. The encore was almost as long as the show, with some Snoop Dogg and Cold Beverages keeping the crowd happy in their sweet smoky haze. It was funny to see the security scurry about trying to find the culprits as the spliffs moved faster through the crowd tan most Mexican waves I’ve seen. They were all low key though, enjoying the atmosphere and tunes created by the eccentric and engaging character on stage. G Love himself enjoyed the night as much as the crowd. Despite the usual kitsch crowd banter about other crowds being louder, dancier, whateverer, the antics were spontaneous and fun. The bourbon can playing slide guitar became a microphone playing slide guitar, became a camera from the crowd playing slide guitar. Reaches out to touch the crowd and direct conversations were a genuine return of the love. It all closed with the longest goodbye ever, the crowd’s Love of G making G Love not want to leave. Killer show.

Share this review on Facebook