Currently back in Australia from his Parisian base for a few selected dates, WA blues, roots and world music legend Steve Tallis is promoting Memory Ghost his epic triple album which features 66 songs recorded live with the dedication and passion he’s known for. Australian Musician editor Greg Phillips caught up with Steve for a chat
There are few Australian artists who have walked such a distinct and uncompromising musical path as Steve Tallis. For more than six decades, the Perth-born, now Paris-based guitarist, singer and songwriter has carved a career defined not by trends or convenience, but by spirit, a restless, searching creativity that refuses to fade. Now, with the release of his ambitious, epic triple album Memory Ghost, Tallis stands as both witness and participant in a lifetime devoted to music, memory, and the ghosts that inhabit both.
“This album is about the journey of my life, the people I’ve loved, the places I’ve been, and the memories that have shaped me,” he explains. “It’s a reflection of everything I’ve learned and everything I’ve lost.”
Memory Ghost is a sprawling, deeply personal work, three albums’ worth of songs and almost 4 hours of listening, that travel across the terrain of blues, folk, African rhythms, chant, and spiritual incantation. As always with Tallis, genre is merely a language, not a boundary. “I’ve never believed in fences,” he says. “Music is universal. I’ve been influenced by Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf as much as by African drumming and Sufi trance. It’s all part of the same energy.”
The project began, he says, almost by accident. “I didn’t plan to make a triple album. I just kept writing and recording, and it felt wrong to leave anything out. These songs belong together, they’re fragments of the same dream.”
Tallis recorded Memory Ghost largely at Poons Head Studio in Fremantle with Rob Grant as engineer, working intuitively and letting the music guide him. “I try not to control the process too much,” he says. “You have to trust your instinct. When I write, it’s like opening a door and letting the spirits in. Some days they visit, some days they don’t. But when they do, you better be ready.”
Adding to the international flavour of the project, the percussion / loops for the album were recorded and added in Brazil (CD#1), the spoken word tracks were recorded in Paris. The recordings on Disc 2 with his band Snakes of Desire were all live first takes laid down at Poons Head and some recorded tracks remain unreleased due to the capacity of a compact disc. The 3rd CD, also recorded at Poons Head, features some live tracks plus some unreleased songs from Steve’s previous solo album – Where Many Rivers Meet.
That sense of channeling, of being a conduit rather than a craftsman has long been central to Tallis’s approach. Since his earliest days on the Perth scene in the early sixties, through years spent in Europe and collaborations across continents, he has sought something elemental in his music: connection, truth, ritual. “For me, playing live is a sacred act,” he says. “It’s like a ceremony. When it works, there’s no separation between the audience and the performer. We’re all in the same circle.”
“I only record when I am 100% ready mentally, physically and spiritually,” he continues. “A few songs were written in the studio. Some songs the band never heard before – that’s the way I work – all in a circle in the same room. I like spillage into all the microphones – drums etc.”
Steve Tallis recorded Memory Ghost entirely in mono (as he did with Where Many Rivers Meet, his last solo studio album), not as a statement but simply because he prefers the sound. “I only listened to music in mono at home, and I like mono. I find stereo overrated,” he explains. For Tallis, mono delivers a consistent listening experience, whether at home, in the car, or moving around a room, unlike stereo, which demands you sit perfectly between speakers, “and who does that?” he asks. After years of releasing stereo albums despite his preference, he decided with Memory Ghost to commit fully. The recording process mirrors that ethos: one-take performances, and mixes crafted with meticulous care alongside trusted engineers. “It’s all about the music for me,” he says.
Steve Tallis’s Memory Ghost album features the distinctive sounds of guitars he’s cherished since 1969: a six-string Martin D-18, a 1969 12-string Guild jumbo, and his trusty 1961 Gibson SG Les Paul Standard, another guitar purchase from ’69. The Martin was an unexpected find in a music store called Zenith, while the Guild 12-string was purchased on a whim in Perth, inspired by his admiration for artists like Leadbelly and Blind Willie Johnson. He uses heavy gauge strings and a strumming technique that emphasises drones rather than fingerpicking, giving the album its signature tonal texture. The SG he acquired from “the guitarist that was in my band at the time … who had gone to Vietnam and come back and needed some money.”
The album’s title, Memory Ghost, was inspired by his fascination with the concept of unforgettable memories, “a memory that you can’t forget” and he felt it perfectly complemented a complex, evocative cover artwork by French artist Frederic Voisin. The title track itself appears only on the third disc and is performed solo rather than with the band.
Though Memory Ghost looks inward, it’s not a sombre record. There’s fire and groove, darkness and light, and a clear sense of Tallis still exploring, still pushing at musical edges. “I don’t believe in nostalgia,” he insists. “The past is part of me, but I’m always moving forward. Each song teaches me something new. Every performance is a new beginning.”
That forward motion will sees Steve back on the road, with some remaining Australian to play and then European tour dates planned through 2025. “I still love performing,” he says. “It’s what I was born to do. Every time I go onstage, I’m reminded that music is a gift, something bigger than ego or ambition. It’s energy, it’s life.”
Over the years, Tallis has become something of a cult figure, revered by musicians, cherished by loyal fans, and admired for his authenticity. Yet he remains humble, almost bemused, by the idea of legacy. “I never set out to be famous,” he says. “I just wanted to make honest music. If people connect with it, that’s beautiful. But the most important thing is to stay true to yourself.”
That truth has sometimes come at a cost. “The industry can be brutal,” he admits, “ But I have never thought about giving up music – the only time I stopped playing in all the years since 1962 was during COVID. I was given 6 months to live in 1976 – drug abuse and alcoholism – I changed my life- took me 5 years to get healthy and now I am the healthiest I’ve ever been in my life.”
Listening to Memory Ghost, you hear that commitment in every note, from the primal chants and haunting drones to the intricate guitar lines that have long defined his sound. His voice, weathered but resolute, carries stories of love, loss, and redemption. “I’m not interested in perfection,” he says. “I’m interested in emotion. I want people to feel something real.”
When asked what the title Memory Ghost means to him, Tallis pauses. “Memories are like ghosts, they live inside you,” he says quietly. “Some are kind, some are cruel, but they all shape who you are. This album is my way of honouring them.”
As he takes these songs on the road, Tallis seems both reflective and invigorated. “It feels like I’m coming full circle,” he says. “I’ve been doing this my whole life, and I’m still learning. That’s the beauty of music, it never ends. You just keep following the sound.”
Despite the intensity of his work, there’s warmth and humour in his conversation. He laughs easily, especially when recalling the eccentricities of touring life. “I’ve played in front of ten people and ten thousand,” he says. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is the connection. If one person walks away changed, that’s enough.”
In an era obsessed with streaming metrics and short attention spans, a triple album might seem defiant, or even reckless. But Tallis is unapologetic. “I don’t make music for algorithms,” he says. “I make music for the soul. If that means three albums, so be it. This is who I am.”
It’s a statement that sums up his entire career … fearless, spiritual, and profoundly human. Whether he’s performing in a packed festival tent or alone with his guitar in the quiet hours before dawn, Steve Tallis remains a true original, a musician’s musician, driven not by fame but by the endless need to create.
“Music saved my life more than once,” he says. “It’s my medicine, my teacher, my lover, my curse, and my blessing. As long as I can breathe, I’ll keep playing. Because that’s what I was put here to do.”
Steve Tallis’ triple album, Memory Ghost, is out now.
For dates and details, visit stevetallis.com.
Remaining 2025 Australian dates:
SAT 8 NOV
November 8 @ 2:20 pm – 3:00 pm
BLUES AT BRIDGETOWN – GEEGALUP MARQUEE
Blues at Bridgetown , Australia
With “The Snakes of Desire” Ben Vanderwal (Drums), Adam Ventoura (Bass)
SUN 9 NOV
November 9 @ 11:20 am – 12:00 pm
BLUES AT BRIDGETOWN – GEEGALUP MARQUEE
Blues at Bridgetown , Australia
With “The Snakes of Desire” Ben Vanderwal (Drums), Adam Ventoura (Bass)
THU 13 NOV
November 13 @ 8:20 am – 10:45 pm
GEORGE LANE ST KILDA (MELBOURNE)
George Lane 1 George Lane, St Kilda, Australia
Solo – Exclusive Melbourne show – limited tickets