Diary Of A Busker Day 2532 Monday April 28th 2025 Winchester.
The temperature has finally got to 20 degrees and should stay like that for the foreseeable future (like hell it will). The bald bloke who always seems to be doing Your Song when I come into town is at the top spot…The Square looks pretty dead…no one at the crossroads but as I’m contemplating setting up Kai strolls by, who I have a very brief chat to. He’s also just come into town and is planning to set up there or just up the road so I head down to the arse end – why not, I haven’t been there for ages.
I revisit an old one, The Sweeney theme. I was reminded of it when I saw some clips on a TV show about 70’s TV – “we’re The Sweeney, and we ‘aven’t ‘ad our dinner…” I dug out the tab and went through it a few times and did it early on here, including the Thames TV ident.
Around half an hour in, a bloke comes by who I know – well, I know his face but can’t remember his name. It’s the bloke who very early on, in fact just after I started the diary, came by and thanked me for cheering him up with whatever I was playing. It was one of the excerpts that made it into the first Chronicle feature way back in 2011. He looks well and is pleased to see me and I say we haven’t met in years.
‘When I met you I was in a bad place, that was 2010, 2011?’
‘Yeah, it was. Just after I started doing this busking, actually.’
‘And the sun’s come out when you’re playing Here Comes The Sun!’
‘Yeah! Well, I played that just before this last one.’
‘I know, I heard you as I was coming down the road. I wanted to ask you…music makes me feel better. I mean, if I’m feeling bad I can put something on and I forget, you know? And I wanted to ask you if it’s the same with you. Does music…is it like that for you?’
‘Well, I know what you mean but for me, I think it’s more when I’m playing, and less when I’m listening to a record or whatever. I mean, when I’m out here, I have to really concentrate or I’ll fuck up, so because of that, I tend not to think about anything else, really. No matter what’s going on outside of it. I mean, some things I have to concentrate on less than others because some are easier to play but really, I have to concentrate on everything because it’s happened a lot, when my mind drifts, even for a second, the music falls apart straight away, which is really embarrassing!’
We chat for another minute then he says he’s off and asks me my name, which is good as I can now ask HIS and not be embarrassed I haven’t remembered it!
‘Marvin…and what was yours?’
‘Nick.’
‘Nick, of course! I’ll remember when I see you again.
It’s weird how we get attached to inanimate objects. A G7 capo that I’ve had for about 500 years has just gone kaput and drawn its last breath and fretting. I can’t bear to chuck it out so I’ll stick it in the draw with all the other broken guitar stuff.