There were a few familiar faces waiting backstage to say hello to James Taylor after the 77-year-old singer-songwriter’s shows at the Santa Barbara Bowl this week.
On the first night, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stopped by. The Duchess of Sussex, who’s a big yacht rock fan, posted a photo of Taylor signing a copy of his children’s book, “Sweet Baby James,” for her. Harry chatted with JT briefly and mentioned that his wife likes to play his music while she’s cooking. Markle, who had been to see Beyoncé perform a few nights before, told the “Fire and Rain” singer she had wanted him to perform at her wedding, but it wasn’t allowed. (Jeez, no wonder Harry and Meghan are on the outs with the royal family.)
On Taylor’s second night in Santa Barbara, the singer was greeted backstage by “There’s Something About Mary” actress Cameron Diaz and her husband, Good Charlotte rocker Benji Madden, and singer Charlie Puth, who, like JT’s son Henry, attended Berklee College of Music.
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Benji Madden (left), Cameron Diaz (second from left) and Charlie Puth (third from left) with James Taylor (fourth from left).Caroline Taylor
Taylor’s tour is headed east and will eventually arrive in the Berkshires for shows at Tanglewood on July 3 and 4 and in Boston at the MGM Music Hall on Aug. 26 and 27. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer is also working on a jukebox musical based on his songs. The project, with the working title of “Fire and Rain,” is being developed with Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Tracy Letts, and Tony Award-winning director David Cromer.
In an interview in March, Taylor said the show was still taking shape, but would likely be loosely autobiographical. “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” based on the story of Taylor’s longtime friend, was a Broadway hit and earned two Tony Awards in 2014. Taylor wrote the song “Fire and Rain” when he was 21 years old and detoxing from an addiction to heroin at the Austen Riggs Center in Stockbridge. The song was his second album, 1970’s “Sweet Baby James,” which went on to sell more than 3.5 million copies worldwide.
Mark Shanahan can be reached at mark.shanahan@globe.com. Follow him @MarkAShanahan.