The Full Gospel Tabernacle stands at 787 Hale Road, Memphis, Tennessee. Sunday worship kicks off at 11 a.m. and, more often than not, Service will be conducted by its rather famous pastor, soul legend Al Green. Reverend Green founded his church in 1976 with the words "O, come, let us sing unto the lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation."
When he turned up in Dublin recently with his full Memphis band, he most certainly brought that extremely joyful noise with him. For two consecutive nights in the suitably named Vicar Street, audiences/ congregations were treated to the very best of what happens when the sacred and secular collide. This was 100 per cent soul - and Al Green is as good as it gets.
And he looks extremely well on it too. Welcoming me with a smile that would knock you down, he shakes hands warmly, laughs out loud and seems in genuine danger of bursting into song at any moment - his 26 years of religion clearly agreeing with him. Backstage, as he contemplates the variety of teas on offer, he tells me that the tour has meant he missed three Sundays back at his church in Memphis. I can't help wondering how they ever manage without him.
"Oh, they're having a good time! It's not too bad seeing that we have three different ministers to minister while I'm gone. And they've all taken their week to go hurrah! hurrah! I get to have my way! But I think they'll shift the time and speak just as well as if I was there. Everything is going just great there. It's just exploding."
Born in Forrest City, Arkansas, in 1946, Green started out with various gospel outfits and achieved some early success with his group, the Soulmates. The key date, however, is 1969 and his first meeting with Memphis producer Willie Mitchell, the driving force behind a record label called simply Hi. Mitchell realised that Green's sweet and gritty voice would be perfect to work off the Memphis Horns and the Hi rhythm section. He knew immediately that they could come up with a sound of their own - perhaps even one to rival Stax or Muscle Shoals.
Success wasn't long in coming. From 1971, they came up with a run of hits such as Tired of Being Alone and Let's Stay Together and Al Green became established as one of soul music's most sophisticated talents.
As the 1970s progressed, Green, having already bought his church, began to move even closer to gospel in his approach. Most great soul singers had originally come from gospel before crossing over to mainstream pop success, but Green was now ready to go back again. As he puts it, his conscience was asking him whether all the praise he was receiving really ought to go one more worthy than himself.
And, so, in 1977 he split with Mitchell and produced his final secular record - The Belle Album - the title track of which seemed to sum up Reverend Green's position on life, love and success - It's You that I Want, but it's Him that I Need.
The Road to Damascus moment was simple enough. One night in 1979, he fell off the stage, escaped serious injury and quickly understood the episode to be a sign from God. It was time to quit the secular music scene.
For these Dublin shows, however, Green was ready to perform a mixture of the sacred and the secular. Happy to play the hits that made him famous, he would also perform some gospel numbers. Then there would be that certain uneasy moment where the Vicar Street crowd, pints in hand, and for the most part unused to southern preachers, would be invited to accept Jesus as their personal saviour etc. I warned the Reverend Green not to expect too much.
"Well, we asked the audience in Copenhagen, is there anybody here that know the Lord, and once we said that, the whole audience cheered - and there might have been 60 or 80,000 people out there! When you make that call and people respond like that, well gee, that's a plus, plus, plus!
"That's why the other night when we asked people and some of them said they didn't know Jesus Christ and would receive him, there was people all over the building saying man, come on! And, when we've done that, then it's `take me to the river, wash me down, cleanse my soul, put my feet on the ground'."
Al Green had been heading in this direction from 1973, the year in which he was "born again". By 1979, it was to be the church which was to get his full attention. His first totally gospel record, The Lord will Make a Way, was released in that year and again success continued to pursue the very blessed Reverend Green. This time, however, as Grammy after Grammy came his way, Green maintained that all credit and honour went heavenwards. And so it did.
On stage he regularly groans a "thank you Jesus" and seems, genuinely, like he just might be the most grateful man in the world.
In fairness, Al Green's attempt to save souls in Vicar Street went better than anybody ever thought it would. Nobody mocked, nobody laughed and, apart from the odd drunken "Hallelujah!", everyone reacted with what might be called polite restraint.
Maybe some had a more private response - but Reverend Green had done his duty and got full respect for it. Hard not to respect a man of the cloth who can follow a sermon with a falsetto scream and Take Me to the River.
Of course, Green himself knows exactly what's going on when he plays a secular venue. People are there to drink, dance, sing, hear the hits and generally have a ball. But, whatever about the motives of the Dublin audiences, this was an odd one even so - and probably the first occasion since the Pope was last on tour where such an enthusiastic crowd recited a prayer at the top of its voice. And that makes the Reverend very happy indeed. He will tell you, quite sincerely, that what he is about is a simple case of spreading "love and happiness".
"I know that people come for all reasons. The same way as at the church - some come to see Al, some come to see Reverend Green and some come to see Al the rock-singer - of course they do - and I'm glad. I'm honoured and blessed to be even able to be put in the ministry and I'm so thankful. I've enjoyed every moment of it and I wouldn't take a moment back of it back. I'm blessed."
With The Blind Boys of Alabama very much in mind, we talked about the curious longevity of gospel singers - many of them singing undiminished well into their 80s. Green, too, although still a relatively young man, is as good a singer now as he was 30 years ago.
Reverend Green has no doubt whatever that it's his belief in God which gives him that little something extra, something which might even explain why these were two of the best shows in Dublin for many, many years. "Oh, the belief in God gives you the race! You're the winner - because of your faith and your relationship. That's the whole energy behind what you're doing. And we always bring a little bit of the church with us."