Charles Bradley’s face is amazing, capable of conveying the deepest range of human emotion imaginable, without once changing. Look – there he is in pain, and again, in absolute devout joy. If he cries, you’re not sure if it’s because he’s remembering a dark period or if he’s ecstatic to be alive and wants us all to know.
But before that face – and that voice – took to the stage at the Concorde we were treated to three instrumentals from The Extraordinaires, a five-piece made up of Bradley’s extended ‘family’ (who all call him Poppa C). Then on he burst, dressed in a jeweled white suit and matching vest.
From the get-go, things didn’t run seamlessly. Two songs in, during ‘The World (Is Going Up In Flames)’ the microphone fed back, and Bradley halted proceedings. “If I make a mistake, I’m not the type of guy to cover it up,” he offered, before restarting. It was a noble gesture, as sound issues were not his responsibility, but nevertheless the problem persisted. Various band members approached him to try and console him, but Bradley seemed genuinely crestfallen.
However, to focus on such issues – still evident by the encore – would miss the main point of tonight’s show, the self-proclaimed “screaming eagle of soul” and its scream. When Charles Bradley let rip, perhaps in a moment of confession or excitement, the effect was immense. There’s probably no sound system in Europe that can cater for his bombast. Certainly his band’s combined backing vocals were a great foundation, but everyone knew this show was about one man, and one man only.
By the time a Theremin was brought onstage for ‘Confusion’, Bradley was onto his third costume of the night and busting out robotic dances. The troubles of earlier in the evening seemed to have fanned his flames, and the switch from negative to positive energy was virtually audible. ‘Hurricane’ brought to mind the thrust of pioneers like The Meters, while ‘All I’m Asking’ provoked some frankly explicit dancing from the singer (but with the same face, of course).
Put simply, there’s no one else on the circuit offering this version of redemption as soulfully as Charles Bradley. At the close of ‘Why Is It So Hard?’, introduced as “my life story”, he jumped the barrier to weave his way out through the crowd, hugging and kissing anyone who wanted to offer thanks. In all seriousness, this gesture stretched out to around half an hour – with 75% of the crowd getting a hug from the sweaty, beaming legend as he made his way through to his merch stall. As countless camera phones flashed and popped, you were left with the image of Charles Bradley’s face in the centre of a whirlwind, crying with joy, emotion busting on through.
Concorde2, Thursday 10th October 2013
Words by Jake Kennedy
