If ever there was a first class flight aboard a first class festival, One Love was the airline and Pato Alvarez the pilot.
Everything about One Love is magical as if woven together like a fine feathered korowai of aroha. The kai was fit for a king, while the atmosphere was orchestrated to look organically put together, but it ran like a finely tuned watch from first act on Saturday morning to the final show on Sunday night.
The true colours of the One Love korowai was for me the line-up of excellent bands, masterly chosen by Alvarez himself. You had to be the cream of the global reggae crop to make it on to his main stage and many who may have thought themselves a shoe in were left standing and watching from the crowd.
After two sun soaked days and 20 groups later, in my opinion the master put the pick of the crop on as the very first act on the first day, a relatively unknown band called Common Unity, and that is saying something given the last band was UB40.
I first saw UB40 in Sacramento California in the mid 80s and back then they were fresh and funky and full of Uncle Bob's soul. They still are, even though they are more UB60 than 40 — but for me the new face of the One Love Festival was and will again, be Common Unity.