Mike Golay says his goal, musically, is "to not lose money just driving to gigs."
Which is pretty typical of a working musician. Golay, who lives in Westbrook, travels all over the state and the country, as well as Canada, performing his music on solo acoustic guitar. He doesn't sing, he lets his guitar do the talking.
Golay, 36, has a day job at a media company, on top of all his writing, recording and performing.
His latest album was "Across the Bridge," which you can find out more about at www.mikegolay.com. His next local gig will be from 8 to 11 p.m. Tuesday at the Top of the East Lounge, Eastland Hotel, 157 High St., Portland. 775-5411.
Q.: You seem to play a lot of coffee houses. Are coffee houses making a comeback?
A.: I'm not sure they've ever really gone away, but yes, I do think the traditional coffee house thing, with live music and readings and such, has enjoyed a resurgence all over the country.
People love to come in and get really amped on caffeine at 10 p.m. and hear people who are really amped on caffeine sing songs about their failed love lives. It's relaxing for everyone, don't you think? Plus, we get to celebrate our dependence on legal-for-all liquid refreshment together.o
Q.: What do you like about playing coffee houses and cafes? Do you have a favorite?
A.: I enjoy playing larger rooms, but there is something really nice about playing a more intimate space. I think for listeners it's great because it makes the performer more accessible to the audience (just leave the eggs at home).
Coffee houses also attract a range of folks. I've made a number of friends and fans in town just playing these small gigs. Some people are just stopping in, some stay for a set, some stay all night.
The vibe at most houses is pretty laid back, so I might feel more comfortable trying out new stuff that maybe I'm not quite ready to record but that I want to perform in a lower-pressure situation. In terms of local spots, I had a lot of fun at Youngo's, and Acoustic Coffee is a great scene.
One of my favorite places to play is Jammin' Java, outside of D.C. I'm really looking forward to playing a few places in Montreal at the end of the month. I'm at Shaika Cafe one night, and I'm at the Yellow Door, the oldest continuously run coffee shop and performance space in the city, the next. Joni Mitchell and Bruce Cockburn, to name a few, played early gigs there. It's hallowed ground.
Acoustic players like myself owe a lot to the 'fene and purveyors of the 'fene. So thank you, you roasters and resultant addicts everywhere.
Q.: How would you describe your music?
A.: I get that question a lot and I've yet to come up with a tidy answer. I'm a solo acoustic fingerstyle guitarist. I play guitar, on my lonesome, with my fingers.
The kind of music that I play typically ends up in the folk bin at the record store, provided there's a folk bin, or a store, for that matter. I've listened to and have been influenced by all kinds of music, including jazz, Celtic, funk, pop, rock, reggae, ska, classical, folk, world . . . you name it.
I think all of these genres inform my approach. But at the end of the day, I just try to write the tunes that are in my head, and play them with my fingers. On guitar. I don't sing. That's usually question number two. Quick answer, there. You don't want to hear me sing. It's not going to happen.
Q.: How did you get started performing?
A.: My parents met and lived in a small town in Kansas in the '60s. They would occasionally go to a supper/night club in town. It was always a big deal. Lighted dance floor, the whole nine.
The owner would let my parents bring me in for dinner, they'd come with a few friends, they'd leave me in the booth with those friends, and they'd dance a little. They needed to get out, bless them. I recall a lot of polyester. Different times, those (or were they?).
At any rate, there was a piano player on a small stage, playing music. There was a drum kit as well, but no drummer. I kept staring at the drums all night and finally my parents asked the piano player if I could come up and play. He humored us. I was 3. It's all his fault. I've been playing music in some form or another ever since.
I did take a break in the early '90s from performing, which was actually quite a good thing for me. I came back to music, and guitar, about six years ago.
Q.: Who are your favorite guitar player/singers?
A.: So many that it's tough to list. I have to mention Al Petteway, who plays on and co-produced my new record. I feel very fortunate to call he and his wife, Amy White, friends. Other acoustic guitarists whose work I admire include Don Ross, Pierre Bensusan, Adrian Legg, Ed Gerhard and the late Michael Hedges, among many, many others.
In terms of jazz players, I love John Scofield and Bill Frisell's stuff. Thelonius Monk and Charles Mingus' music have made big impacts. Probably my biggest musical influence has been Miles Davis. Miles is still magic to me.
I've listened to a lot of Celtic and traditional music, as well as loads of classical, pop and punk. I'm a big fan of Aaron Copland and Elvis Costello. And The Clash. It all figures in. I try to have big ears.
Q.: How do you write music? Just sit down and strum? Or do the words come first?
A.: Most of my music comes out of experience whether it's chronicling an event, celebrating a relationship, or examining a new view and more and more frequently it's a result of travel.
My new record is sort of a document of the past three years of my life and many of the tunes (18 in all) were written in disparate parts of country and the world. Much of the music came together on a trip to the south of France, but the genesis for the pieces was generally something that happened that I wanted to remember, so I wrote tunes around those experiences in these different places.
I try to tell the stories behind the tunes, because I don't sing again, you don't want to hear that when I play live. It's sort of in the folk tradition to tell these little tales, and it also gives the fingers a break, and provides time for staff to run the espresso machines and ring folks up at the register. Those things are noisy buggers.
Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at: rrouthier@pressherald.com
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