Warren Sayer: A life in music, a little Dignity and plenty of heart

I have watched Warren Sayer perform many times, and what keeps bringing me back is more than his superb guitar playing.

He has warmth, an instinct for choosing the right song and an obvious love for what he does.

He is also a good man, and that comes through in the way he connects with people.

Then there is his sterling version of Deacon Blue’s “Dignity”. It is a personal favourite from his repertoire, and one I am always pleased to hear him play.

Sayer has been performing since the age of 16, building an extensive repertoire and becoming a familiar presence on Cape Town’s live music circuit.

His material moves across pop, rock, jazz, country and blues, with enough classic favourites to reach listeners of different ages and tastes.

Ask him what gives all that work its purpose, however, and his answer is wonderfully straightforward.

“I think it’s to make others happy. Music is very powerful, and performing for people does that.”

For Sayer, that exchange works both ways. A performance can lift the person holding the guitar just as much as those listening.

“Music has always been good to me,” he says. “Besides being able to make a living from it, it’s a healing thing for me.”

He describes arriving at a gig after a difficult day, perhaps carrying the weight of something personal, and leaving at the end of the evening feeling “amazing, fulfilled”.

There is something revealing in that answer. After years of performing, music still has the capacity to change how he feels.

Finding his own sound

His guitar heroes offer a few clues to his musical appetite: Robben Ford, Carlos Santana, Gary Moore, Larry Carlton, Steve Lukather and Mark Knopfler. It is a broad collection of players, each with a distinctive voice.

Sayer is increasingly comfortable with his own.

“I’m enjoying my own playing, my own sound, and what I’m adding to the repertoire in my own voice,” he says.

That enjoyment keeps familiar songs moving. Arrangements evolve, guitar solos change and the audience influences how he approaches each performance.

“So yes, I’m my own hero,” he adds with a laugh.

“Samba Pa Ti” is the song he identifies as his closest thing to an essential at every show. Elsewhere, there is plenty of yacht rock in the repertoire, alongside the other styles he enjoys exploring.

Versatility matters, but so does knowing when to use it.

“Reading the room is an important skill to learn when performing all the time,” he says.

Having seen him on numerous occasions, I would put that among his strengths. Technical ability gets your attention. Knowing how to bring people into a performance helps hold it.

Recognition without the chase

Sayer has little interest in fame for its own sake.

“I’ve never really chased things like fame. It’s not important to me,” he says. “Recognition is always great though!”

His ambitions are more personal and musical. A dream gig would involve performing his own songs with his favourite musician friends. An ideal songwriting encounter would begin with a coffee and Billy Joel, with the possibility of a song emerging from the conversation.

His own writing draws on the many genres he plays. Each attempt brings a different experience and often a different result. Watching other musicians perform provides inspiration, while working on lyrics or chords is something he generally prefers to do alone.

Performing, by contrast, gives him the pleasure of meeting people.

“I meet some amazing people at gigs, some really lovely people who love music just as I do,” he says.

He enjoys the conversations that follow, the way someone else’s experiences meet his own. As he puts it, their stories and his stories begin “creating a new story”.

The things that matter

Away from the stage, family sits firmly at the centre of Sayer’s life. He names his mother as the living person he most admires, and raising a family as both his greatest achievement and his favourite journey.

Asked whom he loves, he answers: “My family, lots and lots like jelly tots.”

His kayak is a treasured possession, another skiing trip is high on his wish list, and his preferred drink might be a glass of fine wine or a protein shake. His biggest fear is stepping on a snake. Untidiness is a more everyday irritation.

But his strongest convictions concern how people treat one another. He has no time for bullying, dishonesty or behaviour that belittles others.

“You are essentially your own ‘walking motto’,” he says.

The most valuable lesson he has learned is equally direct: “Learning to actually listen.”

For a musician whose work depends on responding to songs, audiences and fellow human beings, that feels particularly apt.

Retirement holds little appeal while he remains busy and happy doing what he loves. His wishes for the future extend to the people around him, too. Seeing his friends and family do well and achieve their dreams would, he says, make him extremely happy.

That is the Warren Sayer I recognise from watching him perform. A superb player who takes pleasure in the music, cares about the people in front of him and still finds room to make a familiar song his own.

And when that song is “Dignity”, I am very happy to be listening.

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