Watch Courtney Barnett And Paul Kelly Absolutely Nail An Australian Classic For ‘MTV Unplugged’

Courtney Barnett recently stepped up for MTV Unplugged Melbourne, and she brought Paul Kelly along for the ride, with the pair covering a classic by Indigenous folk singer Archie Roach, ‘Charcoal Lane’.

Recorded at an intimate concert in the courtyard of Howler in Melbourne, Kelly and Barnett keep things simple in their cover with two guitars, drums and a harmonica. And then a pair of strings to add a little lushness, too.

Kelly has a long history with the track, having produced Roach’s 1990 debut album of the same name, and later recording his own version with Barnett back in 2015 for Charcoal Lane‘s 25th anniversary. This live cover is well-worth your time: it’s clear they love the song a lot.

Barnett brought out a few friends for Unplugged, later enlisting Evelyn Ida Morris on piano for her own track ‘Nameless, Faceless’, and Marlon Williams for a duet of Seeker Lover Keeper’s ‘Not Only I’. Of course, Barnett also ran through her own classics across her two albums and split EP, including ‘Depreston’, ‘Avant Gardener’ and ‘Sunday Roast’ — the whole set will debut on Sunday November 17 at 6.30pm AEDT on MTV (and online), and will also be simulcast at Federation Square.

This year, Barnett has released two songs, ‘Keep On’ and ‘Everybody Here Hates You’, following on from 2018’s acclaimed album Tell Me How You Really Feel and Lotta Sea Lice, an album with Kurt Vile.

Gang of Youths, Amy Shark, DMA’s and The Rubens have also all done MTV Unplugged Melbourne, with more performances to come. Catch Barnett and Kelly’s duet below.

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Feature image by Ben Jones photography for MTV Australia.