FROM ST KILDA TO KINGS CROSS

TNT (UK) - 10th August 1999

In a world where the term legend is bandied about as if its going out of style, Australian singer-songwriter Paul kelly is the genuine article. The Aussie icon was recently recognised as such by being inducted into his nation's Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame and, for the last two years he has been
voted Australia's most popular male singer.

Unlike many modern-day singer-songwriters, Kelly's music doesn't involve personal
tales of woe and depression. He is one of those rare, credible songwriters. An artist who writes good poetry for solid music; a wordsmith capable of making people connect through his storytelling. "I'm not interested in expressing myself, in having therapy on stage, or confessing my
life," he laughed.

"I'm just in love with songs. All I'm trying to do is write songs. I wanna write great songs."

Kelly's beloved songs vary from tales of cricketers, the sad laments of hookers, and stories about people rebuilding their lives after falling from grace. The prolific 44-year-old's extensive catalogue of music, written over more than two decades, has seen him amass a fervent, large and loyal following in the process. Mr Joe Average on the street can relare to his work, and that is one of the
benchmarks of a truly gifted songwriter. Often, the listener assumes the songwriter has experienced the story first-hand, that the song is autobiographical. But in Kelly's case, it is just that, an assumption. "I have to say my songs are not autobiographical--I have to say it often and
I've said it many times," Kelly stresses.

"A lot of the songs will start from something in real life, some true detail, a real detail, not necessarily from my life. Once the start becoming songs they become fiction. "Like any writer, I'll grab anything thats at hand in order to write a song--bits from books, or what people say, what I overhear, what's happened to a friend, something I read about in a newspaper. All that stuff gets thrown in.

"But the very act of putting it into a song immediately makes it fiction. And if you change just one little thread, you've changed the whole thing.

"There are clues to my life in the songs, but that's not why I write them. I'm just trying to write
songs, but the very act of writing a song, makes it fiction to me." Fiction and poetry they may be, but everyone can relate to a song. There is at least one song somewhere that each one connects to a time or an event in our life, the song being a catalyst that jogs the memory. There's little doubt that most Australians during the past 20 years remember at least one Kelly song that stirs the emotions. "That's the greatest thing about songwriting, that's why we do it. Its connecting to something larger than us," says Kelly.

"A good song surprises you and you just don't know where its come from. You just get down on
your knees and say 'thanks' and hope that maybe you can catch another one." While his songs remain mostly universal--a fact that has seen him successfully tour the US a dozen times since 1987--his faith and belief in Australia shines through like a beacon, especially when it comes to the question of the country becoming a republic. "I definitely think we should be a republic. I think symbols are important, but the fact that we have a head of state who represents the monarchy is bad. We don't need it anymore," he said.

"Nothing at all against the royal family, I've always like Prince Charles....I like the Queen. I just
don't think they should have anything to do with our constitution." "All my life I have thought a republic is inevitable, but it opens up various questions," he continues.

"For example, if you directly elect the president or head of state, does that mean they have more
power than the prime minister? Is that dangerous?"

"How would you elect a head of state? Would you do it through a majority in Parliament, which is
actually not that popular because everyone hates politicians?" "The whole issue has been stalling for quite a while now, so its not a certainty yet," he adds thoughtfully.

One thing that is certain however is that when you see Kelly play, you're sure to enjoy it. Republic or not, latest figures estimate that 300,000 young Aussies live and work in England. What does Kelly put that exodus down to?

"Well , I've heard London is happening, maybe that's it," he responds cooly. "Australia's still a faraway place, even with the internet and all that, and there's a whole lot going on in Europe and the UK, so you have to go and have a look, don't you? London has come into the sunshine during the last few years hasn't it?"

"Even if we do become a republic, I think Australians will always go to London, we've got strong ties there..... history, language, our institutions, they've all been heavily influenced by the British model."

"There are a lot of homesick Aussies over there and I'm looking forward to performing for them and for the English fans."

Paul Kelly and band will be appearing at the Edinburgh Festival in The Beck's Famous Spiegeltent
on August 31, September 1,2,3 and 4. he is due to play his first London shows in more than 4 years at the Embassy on September 7 and Shepherds Bush Empire on September 11.