12/10/2026
Singer-songwriter and elder statesman of the New Zealand music scene, Wayne Mason’s road to fame began when at sixteen he ran away from home to follow his dream of becoming a musician.
He has been writing, recording, and performing music ever since. From his school band that led to the formation of the 60s pop band The Fourmyula (and the No.1 song, Nature - yes, he is that guy); country rock stars Rockinghorse (Thru the Southern Moonlight); early 80s avant-garde rock band Two Armed Men (with Jonathan Crayford and Ross Burge) followed by country rock band The Warratahs - co-founded by Wayne and with his song Hands of My Heart becoming their first top ten hit.
Since leaving The Warratahs, he has toured in Europe, travelled miles and miles up side roads and down back roads of Aotearoa, collaborated in bands (including Too Many Chiefs and the Laura Collins Big Blues Band) playing in country halls and theatres, and continues to write, record, and perform his original material.
Wayne has a gift for evocative language that builds landscapes of the human experience - giving voice to emotions we can all relate to.
“Mason’s lyrics trace so clearly the geography of the heartland as well as the heart; the melodies themselves feel elemental, as ageless as a sou’wester, as permanent as the hills.”
- Nick Bollinger - writer, broadcaster, and critic.
Wayne is also well known as one of Aotearoa’s best boogie honky-tonk piano players - he raises the temperature with his high-energy driven style .
After All These Years…what are these shows about?
“It gives me an opportunity to trace my playing career from when I was about 14 or 15 right to the present day. Songs from bands I’ve been in, as well as new material from more recent times.
The shows are a collection of ‘me’. Music I’ve discovered from listening to artists like Johnny Clegg, Fats Domino, and John Prine - it all seeps into my own style. It’s a mix of flavours, with pop, country and folk influences.
My latest band, The Superheaters, is known for plenty of grooves, with tinges of R&B and blues - all piano based. My latest song - I Never Made It to Cuba, is a New Orleans style song. I’ve listened to a lot of musicians from the south of America and the blues and barrelhouse styles, and I’ve realised those influences changed my writing considerably.
I don't get to perform solo very often, so I'm genuinely excited for this mini tour. I'll be bringing this anthology of songs from my career, plus a handful of stories I've collected over the years.
Playing music, and listening to music creates strong memories in people’s lives. You can date-stamp things through your career from what’s happened to you as a musician. It forms the chapters of your life - which I can call upon and share with audiences - which is very special.”
- Wayne Mason
Witness a living legend - An Evening with Wayne Mason - touring the South Island this October:
The Lyric Theatre, Granity
Thursday 15 October
Barrytown Settlers Hall
Friday 16 October
The Piano, Christchurch
Saturday 17 October
