Black Voices

Issue date: 11/29/06 Section: News

What you know about that", read the text message from my father after sending him a message that read, "I'm at an Al Green Concert!" Well, what do we know about that?

Sitting on the balcony of the Galen Center, I was surrounded by USC students who were probably born in the '80's too. We were all on our feet as Al Green sang to the beat of Love and Happiness. Al's timeless tunes rang through the stands of the Galen Center making it hard for anyone in the stadium to stay seated.

The Concert proved that, after shifting his career to ministry in the early '80's, Al Green can still put on a show. The stage production was spectacular, but it was the non-stop energy of the show that really had people talking.

"The show was electrifying. I was there for two hours, but I never noticed the time because Al kept the show going, non-stop," Senior Brianne Sanford said. Sanford, a Public Policy, Planning and Development major, was surprised at the transformation of the Galen Center from a volleyball to a concert layout.

The nearly $147 million dollar arena was a sight to see even though the construction was not complete. The center is expected to have digital advertisement screens surrounding the inner perimeter of the arena, which will facilitate state-of-the-art billboard display.

Eduvie Umukoro had the opportunity, as an architectural student, to see the Galen Center throughout its various developmental stages.

"The Galen Center is a miniture Staple Center," Umukoro said.

Even though he feels that the Galen Center, which had about a $70 million budget, cost more than it's worth he still feels that the venue is a sight to see. The dining tables arranged on the floor of the arena added a touch of class to the event. It seems that this elegance was expected of an Al Green concert as the style of dress ranged from business casual to black tie attire without an enforced dress code. If there were two words to describe Al Green and his music it would be 'classy' and 'timeless'.

What do I know about that? How could I possibly know about Al Green? It is not surprising that, in the black community, young people know a little something about Al Green, the Chi-Lites, and Bill Withers. Al Green's vinyl turned many times on our parent's record player, but it is the longevity of the music that accounts for the youth's recollection of every lyric in Tired of Being Alone. Young and old alike belted out these lyrics and many more in unison with Al and his band. This extravagant display of durability has yet to present itself in the music of today and only time will reveal its presence.


"Which artist will-like Al Green-be able to fill the Galen Center over 37 years after the release of his or her debut album?" Umukoro said. "37 years after his debut album we are still singing his lyrics. [That night] you saw black people, white people, and people of all economic backgrounds. It was one of those good feeling moments."

It's hard to believe that 36 years from now people will hear the first three notes of Laffy Taffy and react the way our mothers do when they hear the first bar of Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On.

Yet, regardless of music's predicted future, Al Green proved that he and his music are enduring entities that have survived well into my generation and so I do "know about that!"

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