Check out our fantastic gallery of photos from this show here

For me, Michael Franti & Spearhead entirely define what great music is all about. It’s about the combination of soul, outlook, rhythm, and in this case, bringing the intensity to a whole other level by expressing your opinions and beliefs. Michael Franti is such a poignant and politically charged writer who has the special ability of being able to blend elements of reggae, funk, hip-hop, soul, jazz, folk, and rock into one hell of a style of music.

DJ Nick Toth happens to be one of Sydney’s leading hip-hop DJ’s, and as the first support for Michael Franti, he did not fail to disappoint. His impressive style ranged from hip-hop to breaks, funk, and reggae, and he also fused electro, disco, with turntable sting which eventually got his sit-down crowd up and rocking.

It was obvious why The Winnie Coopers have been chosen to tour Australia with Michael Franti and Spearhead. The Gold Coast band, took their name from the ultimate first crush on ‘80s TV show The Wonder Years, are a genuinely gifted distinctive band who have successfully combined Aussie hip-hop with reggae to create an in-depth and intensely energizing performance. The five piece were reminiscent of a geeky bowling team, dressed in matching stripy short sleeve button up shirts, and addressed the crowd with mischievously romantic lyrics. The Winnie Coopers were great with crowd involvement, and hence why they were the perfect warm up for Michael Franti. It was just too bad that lead singer MC Educator aka Charlie Thomson’s vocal range was limited, with his deep “ooh’s” sounding more like groans…

Breathtaking Jamaican beauty Cherine Anderson was next to take over the stage, as soon as I noticed the political references combined with her astounding vocal range, I knew she was going to be perfect on-stage match for Franti. Cherine had the whole audience in awe with her powerful diva style voice united with authentic reggae beats. As she danced all around the stage in an oh-so sexy and alluring way, she declared she wanted to teach and “Aussie” boy to dance like a Jamaican. True to her word, Cherine grabbed an eager twenty-something out of the crowd and did quite a dirty dance with (or more like on) him. He was definitely having the time of his life, and it probably made his year.

When Michael Franti & Spearhead came out to join Cherine Anderson, the audience was absolutely delighted. The first song he played from the All Rebel Rockers album was Rude Boys Back in Town, and as I looked around I did not see one person without an impressed smile on their face. Everyone was bopping to the familiar reggae beats, and it was when he sung “I jump across to Byron, Alice Springs (which are the actual lyrics), and down to Brisbane (replaced the real lyrics ‘Cape Town’) where I be doing my thing”, was when Franti received the loudest cheer from the crowd.

The tempo in the songs Time To Go Home and Stay Human (All The Freaky People) were changed to so many different levels it sometimes made the tracks unrecognisable, but it was still intensely pleasurable to witness how diverse their music compared to their live performance really is. In the middle of Stay Human, it was Bob Marley meets Santana as guitarist Dave Shul took over the stage with an appropriately lengthy guitar solo. By this stage the whole audience was in a trance like state, simply and utterly enthralled by the magic of the music.

Michael Franti & Spearhead played most of their more well known and favourable songs, including Never Too Late, Hey World, Sometimes, and of course, Everyone Deserves Music. The lyrics of the unfamiliar songs were still so clever, meaningful, and hook-filled that Michael could express all his beliefs, allowing us to listen to him through his heart as well as his mind. Every time he requested the audience to join him by jumping around or clapping to the beat, there was not one person who didn’t participate. It was evident when Michael was really feeling the music at a precise moment, as he would turn his microphone around to face the audience for us to take part. The feeling of becoming even more involved was heightened when both Michael and Cherine took turns of filming the audience with their digital camera. It felt as though it was us who were putting on the show for them, the whole audience felt like they were such a big part of the whole performance.

Michael dedicated I Got Love For You to a 21 year old Brisbane girl who recently had a stroke, and was currently in hospital recovering. They began the song at an extremely slow pace (unlike the recording on the CD), which brought tears to many of the eyes surrounding me. It was such a powerful moment, and when it felt like the moment could not get any stronger, Michael swapped his acoustic guitar to an electric one, and continued the song in an upbeat happier mood. It was as if he went from respecting life to celebrating it, and it was amazing to see how much the audience appreciated the varied levels in his music.

After leaving the stage, and returning to the mesmerised crowd chanting “I got love for you”, Michael had a small costume change (out of his sweat soaked shirt and into one of the ‘Soundsystem’ merchandise shirts) and they appropriately played Soundsystem ,which once again revoked the happy, bopping mood from the crowd. There more guitar solos from Dave Shul, beautifully involving moments during I Know I’m Not Alone, and even some bongo action from drummer Manas Itiene. No one wanted the show to end, and it kept on going and going, which was nothing short of satisfying.

The final song played was Say Hey (I love you), it was a incredible finale as the tempo was sped up higher and higher, with Zig-zag aka Raliegh J. Neal flaunting his talents on the key boards. To top things off, they added in some lyrics from the Mungo Jerry classic In The Sumer Time. When the song was finished and told everyone to add him on Facebook, yelled “power to the peaceful!”, Bob Marley’s Could You Be Loved came on, and Michael came down from the stage and took his time to give handshakes, high-fives, hugs and kisses to a few lucky people in the front rows (I happen to be one of those lucky people who got a hug and a kiss – probably the highlight of my life!)

Michael Franti owns the stage when he performs, and it is obvious to his audience how much he loves and appreciates music. He looked quite happy as he rhythmically danced all over the stage, moving his hips as if he was making love to the music. The sincerity and feeling that radiates from Franti & Spearhead is beautiful, and I actually felt as I walked out of the Tivoli feeling immensely satisfied and elated that Michael Franti shared my emotion entirely.