Those Autumn Years

All the leaves are brown, 
And the sky is grey,
sang the Mamas and the Papas back in 1965 when we two were in our late teens.
We were more interested in Leadbelly, James Brown's I Feel Good, Wilson Picketts' In the Midnight Hour, and, speaking for myself, The Miracles with The Tracks of My Tears. 
Ah, never mind: there's music in the old dogs yet.

Flavours of Herefordshire

The rain and wind failed to dampen spirits as Karlin and I ran through our set (several times) on Saturday to a city rammed with people. Congratulations to Flavours of Herefordshire for bringing the whole thing together. Cant believe its exactly a year since Karlin and I first played in public. Time to pack and get the kit down to Church Street for our second set of the weekend.

McCartney busks Covent Garden

That was him then when, with The Beatles, he played a lunchtime gig on top of the Apple building in Savile Road. It was 1969. Forty four years on and Paul McCartney is busking in Covent Garden, something to do with a new album. The backing kit was loaded on the back of a truck.
No-one from Westminster Council or wherever to remind Sir P about the Live Music Act 2012? Take note, Abergavenny Council.

Pembrokeshire Coast Path

Busking ban for Abergavenny?

It was inevitable that a ( very helpful ) council official should eventually quote the Live Music Act 2012 and suggest a £20 licence was required for us to continue busking. The occasion was Abergavenny Food Festival and the problem was the amp that carried our back tracks for the saxophone set.
While generous stall holders kept us in free refreshments, the council official had to be persuaded to let us carry on.
Anyone else run into this problem? Is it true you can't busk with an amp? (Or simply that you must stop playing if someone complains.)

Class Act

Hot out of uni, fiddler Edward Pullin is giving it his best on the street. Drive the Cold Winter Away is a traditional English tune. Good to see some English fiddle tunes making it to the surface amongst a welter of Celtic sounds. 

Busking Kennedy

When he started out, after a hot-housing as a classical player, Nigel Kennedy was as pissed off by the exponents of classical music as they were with him. Especially after the 16-year-old cut off class to play with Stephane Grapelli at Carnegie Hall. (CBS dropped the artist who went on to make the world's best selling classical album).
And he busked.

Kennedy told The Guardian (31/8/13): "It taught me a real lesson, busking did. That if people like the music you play, they'll listen to it - and they don't give a shit whether its called classical, jazz or anything.

"And that's a good metaphor for what the real life is with music - communication with large numbers of people, rather than just the classical aficionados."
Years ago I found myself sharing a joint with him at our local bar. Wished I'd asked him more.

Bum note

I read in Michael Ondaatje's The Cat's Table how soprano saxophonist Sydney Bechet - Le Grand Bechet or 'Bash'- was once accused of blowing a bum note during a session in Paris. Bechet challenged his accuser to a duel, winged a pedestrian in the fracas that followed, and was thrown in prison before being deported.

Great gardens and street performers

It's Ludlow, Shropshire Open Gardens this Bank Holiday weekend with street performances thrown in for good measure. I'd be playing too, but for a crippling bout of  "The Old Man's Friend", pneumonia. (It used to dispatch the old and infirm in a gentle manner.) worth dropping by if you're passing.

Starting Young

I took these two young guys off the blog because they turned silent on my iPad. Seems to be an iPad problem, not their's so here they are again, offering me a quick rendition before they took to the streets.

Red Kite over Talgarth

Talgarth Mill - a delectable cafe with scary accoustics

There’s a lone red kite flying down the main street in Talgarth. Otherwise the town’s strangely empty. We’re here for Mel’s Birthday Bash and, after being sneaked in the back door of Café Melin, burst into a saxophany of Happy Birthday. Straight into Ain’t Misbehavin’, Summertime and Careless Love to a bemused audience – it’s a small space and we’re loud. Biggest applause is raised by our duet of The Rose. Strange how captivating the voice can be (even from two guys on the wrong side of 65). 

Also 'on the street': my latest book

Sunday morning and a solo busk in lovely Ludlow. Takes me a while to build up steam so when a passer by offers: “Do you want this 20p or my lucky penny?” I opt for the penny. 

Afterwards nip into Castle Bookshop to tell Stanton about my latest title, just out. He promises to order a copy. Where would we be without small, independent bookshops like these?

The Great Outdoors

The Great Outdoors: a lovely place to play

Prevented from taking to the street all this year because of two book deadlines. So it was a relief to have a practice session with my fellow sax player in our local Asda underpass. Playing outdoors is good for the soul.
Frightened a small boy with the opening blast of Amazing Grace, but charmed a young mum with Ain't Misbehavin', a slow rolling version we're developing. We're building a set that includes Summertime, Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter, Pennies From Heaven, Careless Love and our warm up, MD (short for Morally Dubious).
And it definitely sounds better outside.

Normandy piper Bill Millin

Bill Millin is the kind of guy who would have busked the streets of Glasgow.

Bill, who worked as a piper with a travelling theatre before becoming a psychiatric nurse in later life, is better known as the man who played the pipes during the Normandy beach landings on June 6, 1944.
The then 21-year-old was part of the First Special Service Brigade that landed on Sword beach under enemy fire. "I didn't notice I was being shot at. When you're young you do things you wouldn't dream of doing when you're older," he's reported to have said later.

Majorcan street music

A street performance with impromptu dancing at Soller in Majorca. The musicians (above, left) are playing the five-holed flutes or flabiol, the Majorcan bagpipe or  xeremies and the small drums or tmabori. The music is a little reminiscent of the Catalan sardana song and dance.
The guy (above, right) with his soprano sax and tiny amp played the bars along Port Soller.

Fishguard Folk

No posts for a month then two come along at the same time. Just like London buses (preferably Routemasters).
Just to add another date to the random music calendar:
Fishguard Folk Festival, Friday May 24 to 27 and featuring the likes of Miranda Sykes (of Show of Hands fame) and Rex Preston, Tyde, Kent's Green Diesel and our own Welsh borders The Village Quire (who emailed me).  Any chance of a gymanfa ganu, some street music or a walk along the famed Coast Path (right)?

Bristol's buskers

Give a man a guitar and he eats for a day. 

Not in Bristol 'tho the Council say they'll make "some central areas of Bristol busking tolerant, as a way of animating the city..."

There should be some street music at: 

May 8, Tullamore, Ireland; 

May 17, Ascona in Switzerland; 

May 24, Salisbury Arts Festival. 

(source: www.buskercentral.com)

Sing In The Spring

Our Sing In The Spring session in Hereford started with an apprehensive group of people who'd never met before and, thanks to Jess Ryan-Phillips's leadership and Peter Amidon's I will Guide Thee, kind of got things together quite quickly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNMuF4bw0Mw

Janet

Back to New Zealand

Couple of years since I posted this and, tho the images are a bit bumpy, I still quite like it. And there's nowhere I'd rather be right now than hanging out somewhere warm on South Island. . .