Don't bother asking Maroon5 about their name. They won't tell you ? unless your name's Billy Joel.

"Well, he asked and Adam wasn't prepared to say no to Billy Joel," chuckles Mickey Madden, almost incredulous as he emphasises the Piano Man's name.

Jesse Carmichael picks up the story: "Jay-Z saw Adam at a restaurant after they'd just met that same day and said: 'Come over here, I want you to meet my friend Billy Joel'.

"Adam was like: 'It doesn't get more surreal than this in the music world'."

"Even the Easter bunny was there!" Carmichael deadpans before he and Madden erupt into the loud, easy laughter of old friends.

"There's nothing that could really prepare you for meeting your heroes," Madden explains later. "That's just always going to do our heads in." And then you realise ? despite the Grammy Awards, millions of albums sold, and global hits like 'This Love' ? they're not really that different from the 12-year-old Nirvana fans who started a band with school friend Adam Levine.

Bass guitarist Madden ? pink T-shirt, unshaven ? is in your face; keyboard player Carmichael exudes a Zen calm. Unique individuals, but clearly comfortable with each other, their roles in Maroon5, and the fact that their pal Levine soaks up the spotlight alone.

"Adam's definitely always been the same person and it does help having known him so long," reveals Madden.

"But as far as the fame's concerned we have the best of both worlds really. None of the rest of us would crave that kind of attention or scrutiny. Especially in big places where we just want to be out in the city and walk around, it can sometimes be a hassle for Adam just because there's a flow of people coming up to him all the time.

"But for us it's great," he confesses.

"We don't have to take pictures every five steps at the airport," Carmichael again steps in, as if on cue. "We get to do what he does but we don't have to deal with all that screaming."

They don't escape the rigours of touring, though. Having spent almost five years out on the road supporting their debut album 'Songs About Jane', they've now spent 23 months taking its follow-up 'Soon Before Long' around the world.

And it doesn't get any easier.

"We're pretty much always exhausted," says Madden. "That's the most categorical thing I can say about the band. We've still got the energy to do stuff, to play shows but it's like this collective tiredness we carry around with us."

But there is some respite.

"A new city will make you really excited," Carmichael tells me. "The mountains here and the clouds and the wind help lift your energy. And the crowds keep it fresh.

"Although sometimes it's definitely not fresh," he smiles.

"If you're stuck in your hotel room the whole time then you start to get a little crazy the longer you've been out. But inevitably what will happen is we'll go home for a while and then say: 'Let's go'. So the grass is always greener.

"It really is fun. It's a great life," he says gratefully. And you can't help but share his sense of regret as he almost whispers: "I can't believe this is our last show."