[Harp-L] why I loved busking (long post)

[David Brown <nonidesign@xxxxxxxxx>]

> I loved busking. I have played solo for spare change, or just to play for
> fun,  all over the world. It was a great way to meet people whle travelling.
> Playing blues/country harp and being from Chicago made for easy conversation
> with fans of those styles everywhere. There is a skill to busking in that
> you have to put on a show in 15 seconds, which is about how much time you
> have to draw attention from passers-by. You also have to put on a show for
> each and every song, for those who stay to watch and listen..and hopefully
> pay. My first busking experience was in my teens on Maxwell St. Market in
> Chicago, and I am very proud to be able to say that. I didn't know crap, and
> they let me know it, but I learned

and playing to please a crowd down there made that aspect of performing sooo
> much easier from then on.



> In the mid 80's I moved around a lot.  I busked in Boston's Italian North
> End on Sundays under the overpass between the North End and the market) and
> used the change to buy pizza bread and cappuccino. That overpass had great
> accoustics, but I think it's gone now. My first night in NYC I set-up
> in Washington Square Park. I ended-up playing a full gig with a band in the
> Village that night as a result of kids who stopped to listen to me and then
> brought me to the gig ( I think the band was Little Mike and the
> Tornadoes?).

In LA I played on Sundays at Venice Beach, probably the weirdest group of
buskers in one place on the planet. To give you an idea of what I am talking
about, I had to find a space far enough so that I could be heard above the
noise of the chainsaw juggler.

I decided to travel the world for almost a year in 1989. On a bus trip from
Chicago to LA for my flight to Australia I spent the night outside the bus
station in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I played with another local busker who was a
guitar player/singer. We covered songs by Hank Williams, Elvis, Cash, George
Jones, etc. We used the money to buy country-fired steak, mashed potatoes,
buttered green beans....and Lone Star beer. mmmmmm.
In Sydney Australia I busked in Kings Cross, which at the time was a real
rough place. I met a harp player there and we got into a fist fight over who
got to busk in a real prime spot. Bouncers from one of the clubs stopped the
fight. I had already won it but gave the busker the space because the
bouncers hired me to work with them instead. The harp player switched to
guitar and we would busk together during my breaks. His name is Mick and we
are close friends to this day even though we live on opposite sides of the
globe. He quit busking and now makes custom yachts for a living (a distinct
advantage when I visit)..
In rural Thailand I discovered that playing Auld Lang Syne was an instant
way to be popular in places that hadn't seen a lot of westerners. It was a
hit everywhere. I never found out why. In Bangkok I busked during the day
outside a club called the Saxophone. I'd use the money to pay for my
evenings in the club. The club was a haunt for English speakers and locals
who liked jazz and blues. I ended-up playing there with a Filipino blues
band. They couldn't speak English but the walls of the club were decorated
with album covers. I would pull down the albums, indicate the songs to the
band, and next week they would know them. We couldn't speak to each other
but we had a working band! It was funny too because I was about a foot
taller than the rest of the band.
In 1991 I was in Venice, Italy. I met and busked with a Brazilian guitarist
on the Rialto Bridge. We made so much money we changed our itineraries and
played for four days. I doubt I ever played in a more beautiful place. In
Rome I was busking in the Piazza Navonna and a man was teaching his son to
ride a bike. The father, Pietro, and I struck up a conversation while his
son practiced his new-found skill. As a result of that conversation I got a
job working at his restaurant and a place to stay for free, so I was able to
extend my stay in Rome for another two weeks. His wonderful family made the
whole of Italy a better place. I did a drawing of Billie Holiday and gave it
to him as a gift. It hung on the wall of his restaurant until the day he
retired. Now it's in his living room.
Lithuania 1995. Busking near the University I ran across two young musicians
who loved blues. They were in a Heavy Death Metal band called "Ghosturm".
They kept insisting I play with them at a "party" and although I couldn't
see how it would work I went anyway. They processed the harp through some
kind of Frankenstein effects rig. I can't even describe how it sounded. A
 moaning, evil, alien comes kinda close... I guess. And the party? It was a
huge outdoor metal fest. Thousands of people. It was the largest crowd I'd
ever played for. What a rush.

I don't busk anymore for no other reason than lack of time and opportunity.
The older I get, the less free time I have (sigh). Busking was an important
part of my development as a harp player. Like open stage jams, it helped me
understand the value of adaptability in ensemble playing and also how to
improvise. Busking was a calling card, an invitation, and an integral part
of the richness of my travels. I learned A LOT from busking including how to
please a crowd and how survive from day to day in places where I was at a
distinct disadvantage (it opened doors and kept me fed). I also learned
the universal appeal of music and the love many people have for it. Busking
initiated temporary friendships and those that lasted my life.

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