Thursday Island’s legend Seaman Dan will combine the traditions of Australia, America, African and Polynesia into a truly unique musical performance at this year’s Central Queensland Multicultural Fair and CQU Open Day this Sunday August 17.

The 73-year-old Torres Strait Islander will perform a one-hour spectacular of blues, hula, slow jazz and folk songs to the thousands of people expected to turnout for the Central Queensland’s family event of the year. These musical styles are all part of the Torres Strait’s rich musical culture that Seaman embraces.

As a young man, Seaman Dan worked in the maritime industries of far northern Australian and the Great Barrier Reef. He worked as a pearl and trochus shell diver and boat skipper in the Coral, Arafura and Timor Sea and his songs celebrate the maritime lifestyle and the multicultural heritage of tropical Australia.

The title of one of Seaman’s recent CDs is “Steady, steady”. Steady, steady is a local sailing term meaning to sail a pearl lugger steadily into the current so divers can work safely below. Today, after a colourful and sometimes dangerous life, Seaman likes to take things steady, steady.

But, he will stop at nothing to take to the stage at CQU Rockhampton for the 2003 CQ Multicultural Fair and CQU Open Day.

Seaman will also provide workshops and performances for schools and the Torres Strait Islander community during the weeks leading up to the Fair.

CQ Multicultural Fair is a joint initiative between CQU and ABC Capricornia, with support from The Morning Bulletin and the Rockhampton City Council.