One winter when Livingston Taylor was riding in a single-engine airplane from Houlton to Massachusetts, the heating system in the airplane broke. The temperature was well below zero, and Taylor and his friends huddled together to try to keep warm.

Today if you ask Taylor how he feels about Maine, he’s likely to dismiss the airplane incident and say,”We were some cold cowboys, but I love the great state of Maine. Is there anything more beautiful than the coast of Maine in winter? It’s as pretty a sight as there is.”

Taylor, who attended summer camp in Bar Harbor when he was in his early teens and has spent time skiing at Sugarloaf, will make another journey to Maine to perform a solo concert on July 27 at the Maine Center for the Arts.

Since the release of his 1989 album “Life is Good,” which won the 1989 Boston Music Award for “Best Folk/Acoustic Album,” Taylor has been on the touring circuit performing 100 concerts a year. Despite the close popular association with his brother James, Taylor has gathered a following of his own fans who like the mellow folk sounds of his music and the upbeat message of his lyrics. Nevertheless, questions about his relationship with James are ever-present.

“I’m very fond of my brother James,” said Taylor who considers his older brother a great source of musical inspiration. “He’s really a wonderful man and I couldn’t overstate the quality of human being James Taylor is.”

Although the brothers have not always gotten along well, they sing the duet “City Lights” on the “Life is Good” album. “We had a great deal of fun,” said Taylor. “It’s taken us many years to be able to do this.”

In addition to writing his own music, Taylor has written commercial jingles. He was unwilling to reveal much information about this aspect of his career, however, because he never wants there to be confusion between Livingston Taylor, the musician, and the products he promotes.

“I’m a tunesmith for a living,” he said. “Writing jingles is not something that relates to my life. I do it independently and anonymously from what I do on stage.”

A musician’s life is the only life for Taylor who can indeed boast that life is good.

“I love being 40. I like having an American Express card … these are the best years of life.”

Livingston Taylor and John Prine will perform on a double bill 8 p.m. July 27 at the Maine Center for the Arts. For tickets, call 581-1755.