Diary Of A Busker Day 707 Friday March 20th 2015 Winchester (1. Opposite Vodafone, Time: 3:04-4:44pm, 2. Opposite Bellis, Time: 4:57-6:10pm).
I started with something I’ve been doing at home for a couple of days, although it’s not quite in a presentable state: the theme from the 60’s TV series Robinson Crusoe. Gary played it to me – the original theme – when I was finishing Spaceships There Are on Wednesday. He always liked it and remembered it from way back. I’d never heard it before. He said there was no other version on youtube – not a guitar one, anyway. There’s a nice piano arrangement by Ron Smallwood, which I’ve got a few things off – quite helpful.
I’ve got the really nice D, G7 section off OK – that’s the bit most people will recognise. Gary says if I learn it, I’ll get loads of money. He reckons anyone over 50 or 60 will know it. But it’s a great melody, which is the reason I’m doing it. Anyway, no donations for it!…or Windy & Warm or Tzena, but a fiver from one of three young Japanese boys during La Vie En Rose: a real surprise.
And then I was offended. Two toddlers: a boy and girl, come up. One penny each. Jesus. Would it make any difference putting that on the busking sign: ALSO, PLEASE NO 1p/2ps. IT’S AN INSULT. Or would they do it, anyway? Probably.
Chet enthusiast George Wilkinson comes by and reckons I’m playing better than ever. I said it helps having a civilised temperature: it’s 10 degrees. Blistering! He started going on about Tommy Emannuel being a CGP, so I told him the story about Claes Neeb, also a CGP, although because Chet named him a CGP only at a press conference they were both at, Claes is not considered an official one. I tried to play George a bit of Norwegian Mountain Song (very difficult) – George had never heard of Claes Neeb but then, neither had I until Claes’s friends came up to me, down at Oxfam. I told George the story of that, too, and the nice things Claes said about me. I’ve got his email framed on the wall, for goodness sake! Anyway, I’ve really got to start playing his song again – the Norwegian Mountain Song.
After a man I recognise – very well-dressed: suit, waistcoat – came up and said how he enjoyed the Robinson Crusoe theme I did earlier – looks like Gary might be right – I kept playing little bits of it after every other song.
An amusing incident, if I can call it that. When I first got to town, a tubby, bearded bloke was strumming and shouting with a mate at The Butter Cross. I can’t remember his name but he was always at the open-mic at The Railway around the time I stopped going, three years ago. The main reason I remember him is because once he introduced a song as ‘something I wrote when I was in India’, and suddenly the place, populated mainly with his student mates, erupted with uncontrollable laughter. I couldn’t work this out, so I asked someone – a student – near me and he said ‘Oh, his girlfriend’s name’s India’.
Anyway, I’m playing the Gymnopedie when these two walk past, so I stop and go into Purple Haze because I thought the juxtaposition – if that’s the word – would be quite interesting. You can’t get more tranquil than the Gymnopedie, then Purple Haze! The two chaps both laughed. Good, I’m pleased the young have a sense of humour. A bit later, a man came up to say ‘You’re wasted’, which I thought was a bit rude…I mean, I don’t look that out of it, surely(!)
The 1 and 2p pennies thing really got to me, so when it happened again, I spoke out. It was another bunch of Japanese boys – about 6 this time, and almost every one put in a penny, so I stopped playing, took one of the pennies out, held it up and said ‘This is not what I want. This is GARBAGE’. Then I picked out a pound coin and said ‘THIS is what I want’, and put it back in the bucket. While putting it back, I said ‘Yes, I like this’, and when handing back the penny to one of them, I said ‘Garbage’. So, the outcome? The kid I handed the penny back to said ‘Thank you’, and they all went off! I fear they did not understand what I said…or my complaint.
After a toilet break, I started up again…and broke the high E string: one of the only times it’s ever happened, out of the hundreds of times out here. And because I didn’t have that bit of cork to wedge between the bridge pin and the body, the bloody string kept slipping off. And then, as I was tightening it up, I’d noticed I’d got it ABOVE the tension bar and it’s supposed to be BELOW the bloody thing. It took around 10 minutes to sort it out. I hate that: sitting on the pavement, changing a string.
Back on the job, I introduce vibrato into the main melody of The Third Man – something I quite like, so that’s going to be a permanent thing, I think. I then sold a CD – one of the old ones with a proper cover – to a lady about 65 who says she’s seen me so many times but never come up before. I told her not to be so shy in future and to come up and say hello. To be so sociable, I MUST have been in a good mood…that’ll have been because of the temperature.
Earnings: £42.84p (Including 1 CD)