The Original Wailers, Fistful Of Trojans @ The Gov, Adelaide 23/11/2023

The Original Wailers were in Adelaide to bring the sound and feel of the much-loved Bob Marley music to not only the people who remember Bob Marley and The Wailers, but also to a whole new generation of young people who have discovered his music.

First on stage were Fistful of Trojans with their take on reggae/rock/ska. The band have been around since 2012 and show no signs of slowing down. The sound of the TARDIS landing opened the show before the band launched into the Doctor Who Theme, adding lyrics to the music and the singer holding a Cyberman head. Upon reflection, the theme does lend itself to reggae/ska music. A nice touch seeing as November 23 was the sixtieth anniversary of the first episode of Doctor Who being screened on TV. I spoke to the singer from the band after their set and congratulated him on it and we agreed, I was probably the only person in the room who got the connection.

The band’s fusion of reggae and ska was infectious with songs like The Things We All Do, about drinking and sex with the singer asking “is it possible to have sex after a hard night drinking?”. A cover of Green Onions closed out a very enjoyable set.

Bob Marley once said “One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain” When The Original Wailers hit the stage, it’s ALL about the music and all pain does indeed subside. Led by an original Wailer, Al Anderson, the band opened with a crowd favourite in I Shot the Sheriff. Reggae music is all about participation, not only from the band but also the audience. Singer Chet Samuel asked the crowd “Are you ready to sing Adelaide” before Stir It Up sounded out. Yes, Adelaide was ready to sing, and loudly it appeared.

Could You Be Loved had people slow dancing up the back of the room and Three Little Birds was dedicated to “all the ladies here tonight”. The sing-a-long continued with Is This Love, with a girl climbing on stage to “help” out with vocals, but was quickly asked to leave the stage.

Hammer is a song that was recorded around 1968, very early in Bob Marley’s career but not officially released until early this century. As Chet told us “This one is from the very original Wailers”, but it sounded wonderful. It was also apparent by now; the band were not afraid to extend songs with some jamming. A cover of Bunny Wailer’s Hypocrite followed, which was a very nice touch.

No Woman, No Cry gave Al Anderson, who had been hiding in the dark at the side of stage, a chance to show us just how proficient he is on guitar. He had gone almost unnoticed in the dark, inconspicuously adding his magic to the songs being played. Al performed on the original Bob Marley version of the song.

Jamming closed out the set and was basically just that, jamming, with band intro and a bass and drum duet that probably went just a bit too long.

Buffalo Soldier started the encore, but this time the jamming within the song was wonderful, with Al Anderson again showing us just how good he is on guitar. A short One Love locked out the evening.
Al Anderson and The Original Wailers are keeping Bob Marley’s legacy alive respectfully. The message in the songs played being love, not revolution.

There was a poster of Bob Marley on the wall of The Gov overlooking the stage. I am sure he was smiling.

Live Review By Geoff Jenke