'Medicine my wife, jazz my mistress’

Press, 10 November 1986, Page 9

'Medicine my wife, jazz my mistress’

When Dr Miieham Hayes was 18 he was driving a Porsche, paid for by playing jazz. At that stage he could have become a professional musician but instead he finished medical school, passed his Royal College of Physicians examinations, and w’ent into practice. Increasingly, however, what was once his hobby took over his life, and he is now better known in his native Australia as "Dr Jazz.”

He finally stopped practising medicine in 1981.

His string of jazz achievements includes

making Queensland’s first long playing record, taking part in long-running radio and television shows, and writing for newspapers.

Last year he became the first Australian invited to perform at the Guinness Jazz Festival in Ireland, the largest jazz festival in Europe. These days he is so busy performing that he termed the week-end’s flying visit to Christchurch his “first weekend off in 10 years.” He was here for one performance only, his New Zealand debut, at the Cotton Club in Manchester Street, last evening.

In between rehearsals yesterday “Dr Jazz” admitted there are people who think it immoral that a trained doctor should "waste” his time with jazz.

“But in truth, you never stop practising medicine. Every day I’m advising or fixing people up. I just don’t do it officially.” "Medicine is my true wife. Jazz is my mistress.”

Dr Hayes said he had not planned his life to revolve so much round music but that was how it had turned out.

“I was just standing there when they asked for volunteers.”