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Truly a legend in his own lifetime.

Below are two tribute links to him and there are many more -
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/ ... s-champion

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-01/ ... /101286410


I remember seeing him open for Leonard at the Hill Winery, Geelong, Victoria, Australia in 2013.
Here's some words from three of us Aussies at that concert about him and Leonard -

ME - https://www.leonardcohenforum.com/viewt ... 48#p341974
LC said:

It’s a great honour to share the stage with Adalita and Archie Roach, great singers, really deserve their place. Archie wrote a book called the Children Came Home that I just read backstage, a great book, you ought to look into it, it’s pretty wonderful.

BM - https://www.leonardcohenforum.com/viewt ... 15#p342016

Adalita (former lead singer of Geelong band Magic Dirt) and Archie Roach warmed up the audience. I don’t know Adalita, always been more folk than rock inclined, but she reminded me of a young Patti Smith. Archie Roach’s set included quite a few songs from ‘Charcoal Road’ and his latest album ‘Into the Bloodstream’. He is an amazing performer who was inducted into the NIMA (National Indigenous Music Awards) Hall of Fame earlier this year, won Album of the Year at the 2013 Deadly Awards and was honoured with the Lifetime Contribution Award for Healing the Stolen Generations. His song ‘Took the Children Away’ is an Australian classic. I was happy Leonard gave him a plug, he certainly deserves it.

Andrew - https://www.leonardcohenforum.com/viewt ... 48#p341955

He also paid respectful homage to one of his support singers (Archie Roach) regarding a children’s book that Archie has written and which Leonard not only said he read before the show, but also urged us to get a copy of – a lovely gesture, I thought.

And I'm forever the optimist; It's Not Too Late, so sing it out loud Archie, this song and these words will always apply - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iuePsowQkU
It's from his excellent album that I have called Let Love Rule.

RIP Archie.

Thank you for sharing this. I had not previously known of Archie Roach -- I may have heard his name, but that is all. It sounds like he was a wonderful and inspirational person -- some of his songs certainly shed much light on very tragic events. I hope he finally found peace and freedom from his pain.

Knowing not enough about Australia and its history, I did not realise that it shares with Canada the same appalling injustices against its Indigenous peoples and their children as Archie wrote about in the book to which Leonard referred (I looked up the book -- not quite the title Leonard used -- and learned that it was also a song). It is an issue which has been prominent in my local area very recently, with a visit by a major world figure who came here to apologise...

Hi Lisa,
Yes, I saw that man in the wheelchair in Canada on TV here....

Archie Roach had a longstanding friendship with a man who was instrumental (pardon the pun) in helping him near the start of his music career. He is another Aussie national icon, Paul Kelly who also opened for Leonard at the Brisbane Concert, Queensland, Australia in 2009 - https://www.leonardcohenforum.com/viewt ... 30#p340582

Thanks, Bev -- in one day, I've learned about two Aussie folk-music icons!

Paul Kelly was also at my first local concert of the endless tour in 2009, at Leconfield Winery on 26th January.
This is not from that concert, but Paul has made very complementary remarks regarding his interaction with Leonard.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY6er8Gvhoo

Enjoy!

Alan

I hadn't seen that video before, thanks Alan.

I also saw Archie open for Leonard in 2013 at the Bimbadgen Estate Winery, Hunter Valley, near Newcastle, NSW -
https://www.leonardcohenforum.com/viewt ... 15#p341702

The second support slot was filled by Archie Roach, who had the crowd in the palm of his hand throughout his set without even needing to get out of his seat. Roach's personal history and humility saturate every song he plays in a way that puts a smile on your face and a tear in your eye, as did his tribute to late wife Ruby Hunter. Stories were told and old favourites like 'Walking Into Doors', 'Beggar Man' and 'A Child Was Born Here' were met with wild cheers from the crowd.