Jane Mays

Imagine two unassuming individuals. Well, one anyway. A woman, 30ish, youthful, graceful, beautiful and an overall charming angel. The other, an aging 50-something... bald, clutzy, nervous and an unwittingly funny guy. Both are wandering through the lobby of The Crown Plaza Hotel in a hot and steamy downtown Tulsa. A beaded, skull-cap-like-shvitz has formed on the 50 something's chrome dome. The gracious and patient charmer, known as Jane Mays, assures him that it's all going to be fine. We'll find the bell captain and he'll have a cart of some kind. It'll be fine. Baldy hoists another conga from out of the van. He cannot believe how incredibly heavy it is. Like granite. There MUST be something else in this case. He obsessively insists on carrying everything himself. He doesn't want her to hurt herself. He can't stand the thought. He is often heard saying: "I got it.. Let me!" The odd couple weave their way through the masses of people. It is D-Fest. South-By-Southwest, Tulsa style. There are hundreds and hundreds in the hotel. Thousands outside. Like some kind of human bee colony, the swarm seems to have formed in the lobby all at once. The duo are slated to start in an hour. Still no sign of any bell captain or cart or anything with wheels. Then, without warning, Jane (the sane one) points and yells in a stage whisper, "there... Over THERE!!!". The controlling old cocker leaps forward like he's been goosed by a low voltage cattle prod. Forgetting about the 60 lb. conga on his back, he's held in place like a poodle tethered to a steel girder. At this point, Jane is wondering how the hell she got to Oklahoma. She recalls playing gigs in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Austin and on tour with PYN in Taiwan. House of Blues, Antone's and Hard Rock Cafe in Tapei. Now, schlepping a slightly dysfunctional brass plated 1953 luggage cart, with a mostly dysfunctional mate, to the first ever Yoga Conference within the 2nd Annual D-Fest. The two will (in affect) be the ONLY live music among the yoga workshops. It's a fairly recent phoenomena. Beginning in San Francisco and moving quickly as fads do, across the country and then (you guessed it) oddly enough to Oklahoma?!! What the hell? Music and Yoga together. Sure, why not. Actually, incredibly powerful. Jane Mays' haunting melodies along with lyrics that fit people's inner experience, and luxurious piano with minimalistic beats. Very cool. They find themselves in unusual places to say the least. Like the time where just off stage right was chicken, a goat, a snake and a turtle. All in cages, of course. They were at the Pauls Valley Quilting and Arts Festival. In a barn for crying out loud! Right on. A little strange, but no stranger than Massage Fest or Rubapalooza or whatever the hell they called it in Norman. This you had to see to believe. Fabulous! Live music for 20 tables of the South Central Association of Massage Therapists. Simultaneous massages as the band plays to a a dark, silent room of relaxation. Eerily cool. A big hit. Huge. A "transformative experience" as described by the listeners. So, strange? Yes. Strange. Speaking of strange, Jane looks at her unlikely hubby. Billy's a gamer. He's been a performer as a musician, a singer and a stage actor most all his life. He's often been called on to be the concious partner. A true believer of the mission. Connected to the beat. The coach. The one with the finger on the psychic pulse. With Jane, he is her biggest fan. He also is confidant. He tells her the truth. When that doesn't work, he tells her the truth anyway. They found each other through various mutual friends and discovered a magical connection. They both love music and each other (not necessarily in that order.) As a drum stand bangs his shin in a painful and obviously unforgiving way, she comforts him. "Can't I carry anything, Sweety?" She knows better. Oh hell no. He's got it. No problem. As the pain subsides and he feels the black cotton t-shirt (great color choice for summer) sticking to his sweat painted back, he recalls the modern-day Everly Brothers act he's been involved with for a decade or so.... or his mind meanders to his character Wild Bald Billy in the Yippee Yi Yo Show. Together, Jane and Billy are the house band and ensemble characters in the long running children's show. Jane plays the sweet and lovely Harmony Jane. Billy plays a bit of a dweeb. Type casting? Yeah, that's right. Type casting. Found live several times a year in the Oklahoma City area, and on Cox On Demand, the show is collaboration (created by long-time theatre/television vets, Kari Hirst-Starkey and Eric Starkey) work that is both inspiring and gratifying all at the same time. Kids go nuts. Sold out shows. 6 and 7 year olds rush the stage. It's a gas. They once signed a diaper. They like spontaneous. The Jane Mays band stays busy. Meanwhile, back at the lobby... 2 minutes to showtime. It's a small room. Serene dark. A dozen yoga students. Al