Paul Kelly Now Has His Own Lane In Adelaide
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Melbourne has AC/DC Lane, Brisbane has a bridge named after the Go-Betweens. Now Adelaide is celebrating the music community once again — specifically, Paul Kelly — with a special landmark.
The beloved songsmith is immortalized with Paul Kelly Lane, which runs from Flinders Street to Pirie Street, behind the Adelaide Town Hall.
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The project features a commemorative plaque, several artworks that light up and spotlights lyrics from Kelly’s deep catalog, which includes songs referencing places in the South Australia capital.
“I’m honored to be a part of this musical laneway project and I’m glad the lane is so close to the Adelaide Town Hall where I’ve had an association for over 50 years, from playing trumpet at school speech nights, attending concerts and, later on, doing my own shows,” he told guests last week at the formal unveiling.
Kelly, who was born and raised in the Adelaide suburb of Norwood, is no stranger to praise for his works and his advocacy on Indigenous issues.
He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2017 for “distinguished service to the performing arts and to the promotion of the national identity through contributions as a singer, songwriter and musician.”
The prolific singer, songwriter and author (his autobiography How to Make Gravy was published in 2010) was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1997, alongside Graeme Bell and the Bee Gees, who have their very own lane in Redcliffe, north of Brisbane.
And during the 2011 APRA Awards, Kelly was honored with the Ted Albert Award for outstanding services to Australian music, one of the highest accolades in the Australian music business.
Adelaide is the first, and only, designated UNESCO City of Music in Australia.
Boasting a population of 1.3 million, Adelaide last week hosted the annual Indie-Con gathering of the domestic independent music industry, and the 2022 AIR Awards, and now has four “City of Music” laneways, the others recognizing Sia Furler, Cold Chisel and No Fixed Address.
“Paul Kelly is one of our city’s greatest musicians and it is incredible to celebrate his extraordinary contribution to Adelaide’s musical heritage with the naming of this laneway,” says Adelaide Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor. “Paul’s songs and stories speak to the Australian identity and are loved across generations and so it is fitting for him to be recognized.”
Verschoor has said the late artists Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter will also be remembered with a permanent spot.
