Festival headliner loses close friend
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday January 7, 2010
THE Sydney Festival will not be able to confirm until today whether one of its headline acts, the soul singer Al Green, will be available for performances beginning on Saturday at the festival's free opening night party.Green is due to arrive in Sydney tomorrow after hearing that his long-time producer and good friend, Willie Mitchell, had died. The announcement came while Green (pictured) was travelling from his home in Memphis, Georgia. Green, 63, who is regarded as having one of the greatest voices in soul, is scheduled to perform at the Festival First Night in The Domain and at the State Theatre on Monday and Tuesday.It is unclear whether he will consider returning home for the funeral or postpone performances.Mitchell signed Green to his Hi label in 1969 and went on to arrange, produce and write many of Green's 1970s albums and hits such as Let's Stay Together. When the man who had by then become the Reverend Al Green turned to gospel in the late '70s and then devoted most of his time to his role as a pastor, Mitchell continued writing, arranging and producing. The pair were reunited for several albums of secular songs which brought Green back to mainstream attention.
© 2010 Sydney Morning Herald
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