There is a lot of the philosopher in Steven Jaymes, the• archetypal artist, the seeker, the bringer of the news, a

man seduced by the revelations that can come from a simplechord progression, the telling of what seems, on the surfacea simple tale.

His esoteric beliefs and abstract attitudes are quietlyreaffirming when everyone seems to be 'grubbing in the field'of increasingly infertile dirt. Youget the impression Jaymes isambivalent about career trajectories or glittering prizes.

Currently on a country track, this piano man is one itineranttroubadour. I tried to condense a couple of decades of hisdestinations and perambulations, but needed Google Earthto even pronounce them! What follows is random, and I'veomitted excerpts like "confronted with two shotguns and amachine gun after we drunkenly jumped in the back of afruit truckto cross a Spanish checkpoint minus papers" and the "six monthsplaying piano one-handed after smashing myarm in a hang gliding accident" ... because wedo not want kiddies trying any of this athome.

"I left NZ after 2yrs travelling with a band,and came to Australia with $145 and a one-way ticket and next day landed a job workingon the railway. l spent about a year here in Qldin 1982 prior to the Commonwealth Games.

"Those were the days of Paris ·Texas inBrisbane, and Fridays- where I'm back playingnow-had Friday night that didn't end untilthe Sunday aroo session. Then, because 1wasyoung and stupid, after developing a careerand recording an album, I took off to Europe forseveral years, returned to Sydney, then off toNashville and NY."

"While 1was in Nashville, I went to a dinnerparty with friends and they'd just finishedfilling out Green Card applications, as they hadfor the last six years-and suggested I fill one out too:' long storyshort: I got one and they didn't"

Although Nashville is the accepted Mecca for countryhopefuls, Steven found it wasn't a good fit for him, and tpemore all-embracing attitude of New York beckoned with adifferent heartland and alternate approach.

"You can play country music in New York- as long as you playit well."

"Another time I walked into a little cafe on the outskirts ofWoodstock and Donald Fagen and Steely Dan were setting up fora gig. There are legendary players living up there everywhere andit's a great scene. Levan Helm [TheBand drummer and later leadvocal]still has his famous Full Moon parties, and they just get togetherfor a gig to have fun as they don't play much. There's no pointgoing down to the village to play for $50 a gig."

With five albums to his credit and living once again inBrisbane, Steven described the remedial effect of wanderluston the song writing process.

"Letting go of a timeline lets the Universe take the wheel. Songwriting at its most satisfying is a 'flow' and that is impossiblewithin aframework of blocks and gaps from 8 to 10 et al.

"1 disengaged in favour of experimental wandering minus atimeline. Every day you make a set of plans and ordain your day bywatch and diary-remove those constraints and the world changes

colour.

"There are these amazingly talented people dotted about the globein unlikely places that Fate randomly puts in my path. When Iwas living in Weston Connecticut, (not Country and Weston-butclose) Rob Fraboni lived down the road and he said he'd like toproduce something of mine. [Producer/Audioengineerfor Bob Dylan,The Band, Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, The BeachBoys, JoeCocker,and Bonnie Raitt, and won a Grammy in 2002for his production of KeithRichard'sperformanceon the Hank Williams tribute album, Timeless]

"Rob produced 'Perfect' on Things Get Better and the ideawas sort of Lennon meets Elton with slide guitar. The Frabonimodus operandi was 'Keep taking things away until nothingbothers you about a song' He used tape and analogue, and it waswarm and organic"

"Doors open, and things happen that arewonderful. When I was hitching in Europe,people would give me a ride and begin toacquaint me with their home land and culture,and sometimes randomly drove hours out oftheir way, supposedly to show me something-but what they were really doing was looking toreconnect with something in their own past.

Steven enjoys working to Japaneseaudiences, and I queried the languagebarrier.

"There were Karaoke bars in the backstreetsof Kyoto where everyone was wearing fullwestern gear and knew all the Eagles songs byheart!

"I love the subtlety of Japanese culture -it is woven throughout their food, music,eoennohere-alioavs courieouslu understated.

Japanese students have the highest rate of learning a musicalinstrument in the world, and that makes an enormous differencein an audience. It's like if you know a bit of French and you hearsomeone speaking French you tune in trying to pick up the nuances,whereas if you have no knowledge you immediately tune out."

The previous day Steven had returned from a trip to Beijingthen Qufu. Was it a work trip for music?

"No. That is where Confucius spent the last thirty years of hislife studying and writing much of his work. It was pretty specialto sit under the same trees he planted and see his temple and tomb.

"l think it's interesting that Confucius, Socrates, Sudato(Buddha) and Plato were all contemporaries, 2,500 years ago, andwere writing the same creeds independently of each other thousandsof miles apart. That is some universal consciousness! Two and ahalf millennia ago- and we're still reading them. Imagine writing asong with that relevance. It's amazing!"

Steven [aymes' very classy album Things Get Better hasgarnered rave reviews comparing him vocally to JacksonBrowne, Mark Cohn and our own Kevin Bennett. "Yes, despitebeing produced in three different countries with three differentproducers it still hangs together pretty well 1 think." Listen totracks at www.stevenjaymes.com