that brave lady was my partner.....she took me by surprise by going up to talk to Steve.

It's a great song and still ahead of its time today.

Great night at the Assembly Halls.

I first saw this, stunning, depiction by Belluci at the Dulwich Gallery a couple of years ago. The lady tending Sebastian is [saint?] Irene...the beautiful lady holding the cross and cradling Sebastian's head, represents Faith. Strangely enough, i thought that Sebastian bore a resemblance to Steve (sorry, no insult intended); The line 'i know what faith is...and what it's worth' came to mind
another version well worth a look is by Mattia Pretti, not on display in England - but worth googling

just found this on wikipedia, Harley was interviewed during 2008 in a short documentary on his days busking in London. Harley spoke of the song and its meaning: "It's poetry. It means what you want it to mean. "Sebastian" is the conduit, the tubes through which I took myself on that journey to write the story. I can't say for sure, but I wouldn't have been far away from tripping when I wrote "Sebastian". LSD, certainly, created so many incidents in your life, so many images, so much madness and mayhem, as well as great tranquility if you were lucky. I can't define its meaning. It's like most poetry, it's a lovely word."[5]

At Pocklington Arts Centre, I was front row with my granddaughter Rayanne....you know her, Dave M...... Steve sang Sebastian....then afterwards, told the audience...."drugs....that's what that's about, drugs.." at this point I put my hands over Ray's ears, Steve saw, and commented.."Oh she's young, she's so young" then to Rayanne, said "Don't do drugs, don't do drugs" whilst wagging his finger at her!!

im sure most of the first 2 albums were penned whilst under the influence, what ever it was it must have been good shit!!!!

Everybody was under the influence of drugs in those days. The culture reflected it and there was a burst of creativity in music, art, fashion, etc. I remember it as being part of something very positive and exciting. The arrival of cocaine and heroin dirtied the pool somewhat, and some unsavory people entered the scene.

I remember Steve making a comment about Sebastian being a reference to St. Sebastian and that he was depicted in many artworks having been shot with arrows. I didn't know the story behind it, that he was a persecuted Christian. I saw a video where Steve said he didn't really know what Sebastian was about, that it was poetry and, as poetry, some words "taste" good, or something to that effect. I think he said that he didn't know what other songs of his meant. I suspect that they were created out of a burst of creativity similar to Bob Dylan, who said in a 2004 interview that his songs were magical, that he didn't know how he wrote them, and that he didn't feel capable of writing songs like that anymore. Lots of people go through bursts of creativity, often in their 20s and coming and going throughout their lifetimes. I am such a person, too. You can't "make" it happen and I honestly don't know the source of such creativity; maybe it's different with different people.

It's not really necessary to know what some songs are about to like them. For some reason, I thought that song was about unrequited love. Like Steve says, it means what it means to you. The song sparks strong visuals for me and like Steve also says, the words "taste" good. The melody and orchestration are compelling; I've always loved Steve's melodies. Like all of Steve's songs, the personal experience of the listener is a combination of intelligent lyrics, sometimes showing a sense of humor, his amazing melodies, the sincerity with which he sings, his charisma, theatrics, his joy and enthusiasm, his synergy with his audience, and the talent of every performer onstage. It's unique and wonderful, a sheer joy to watch.

Cheri