busker – Busk Break

Aaron Basskin performs “What To Do”

Recorded in the same session as his cover of “If I Only Had a Brain”, local busker Aaron Basskin performs his original tune “What To Do” in front of the Iron sculpture on downtown Asheville, NC.

Most of the time, the buskers I meet aren’t aware of the Busk Break project, but as it turns out, Basskin was. He’d seen one of the several videos documenting local jazz band and busking scene favorite Big Nasty, and was highly impressed.

“Those guys are so cool,” he explained with a smile. Although Basskin was mostly playing covers, it wasn’t too hard to talk him into playing an original for his second contribution to the Busk Break series. Continue reading Aaron Basskin performs “What To Do”

Aaron Basskin covers “If I Only Had a Brain”

Local busker Aaron Basskin performs his version of a song almost everyone in the English-speaking world can at least hum along to: “If I Only Had a Brain” by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg, written for the 1939 film version of The Wizard of Oz. Continue reading

Anna Trevor performs the first movement of Sonata in G minor by Henry Eccles

New Hampshire-based cellist Anna Trevor gave me a wry smile before putting the bow to the strings of her cello. I was trying to convince her to perform an original tune, but although she assured me that she had written several songs on guitar, she hadn’t worked them all out on the cello. So I switched gears, and asked her if there was a song she simply loved to play on the cello. That’s where the smile came from.

“There’s definitely a very sad classical tune that I really enjoy playing,” she said. Continue reading Anna Trevor performs the first movement of Sonata in G minor by Henry Eccles

Doc may have strained his voice, but not his harmonica

At first listen you might not think much of this ditty by the Walhalla, SC,-based busker known simply as Doc. It’s certainly a well-performed tune, and clearly there’s passion behind this original composition, but something is obviously missing. That something is lyrics, and to appreciate the song in context, it helps to realize that Doc was bone tired from performing, and had completely strained his voice the previous day. He could barely talk, in fact, and was nursing herbal tea between songs in an attempt to soothe his vocal chords. Continue reading

Knoxville’s Bill Page sings about trading places

For quite some time, Bill Page was one of a very small number of busking musicians on the streets of Knoxville, TN. It’s not a town that has traditionally been known as a busking hotspot, but over the last few years this has been changing, and Page is at least part of the reason why. Some of it is his music, to be sure, but just as importantly, it’s because of his defiance of anti-busking policies by the Knoxville police.

Back in the summer of 2010, Page was issued a citation for obstructing a 10-foot sidewalk with his performance. According to Page, the initial interaction with the police was more them telling him to move along, and him refusing to because busking isn’t illegal in Knoxville. The police said it was, and when it turns out they were wrong, Page says they “went fishing” for something to cite him with. Continue reading Knoxville’s Bill Page sings about trading places

Erin Brown performs “Killer Bee”

Asheville’s Bele Chere festival is a swarming, sprawling mass of sights and sounds, and it’s easy for busking musicians to get drowned out in the chaos. But that didn’t stop Durham-based singer-songwriter Erin Brown from giving it her best.

Here, she performs her original tune “Killer Bee” at the corner of College St. and Lexington Ave. to a small crowd of festival goers. Continue reading Erin Brown performs “Killer Bee”

Jackson Porter improvs on the ukulele

Sitting alone in front of the BB&T Building near Pack Square, his large backpack casually flopped to one side, Jackson Porter was quietly playing to himself when I met him. He wasn’t exactly busking, as he didn’t have a hat out or anything, but he wasn’t no-busking either. He told me he was taking some time off from school, and had been backpacking and hiking around, doing sections of the Appalachian Trail among other adventures. He’d only been playing the ukulele for a short time, but found that his guitar experience transferred pretty well.

Here, Porter improvs a little ditty, which he called “Living on the Streets.” Continue reading Jackson Porter improvs on the ukulele

Mike Gray covers “Everybody Ought To Treat A Stranger Right” on his Go-Box

It’s a rare enough thing to harness one’s passion and dedication long enough to master any musical instrument. But to create a musical instrument, develop techniques for playing it, and then become a master of that instrument … it’s practically the stuff of musical legend. But for Austin-based musician Mike Gray, it was just something to do with a broken guitar.

Here, Gray performs the Blind Willie Johnson tune “Everybody Ought to Treat a Stranger Right” near the Grove Arcade earlier this year. Continue reading Mike Gray covers “Everybody Ought To Treat A Stranger Right” on his Go-Box

Logan Mason performs “Carved Shaped Heart”

He’s more introspective and earnest-seeming, and far less bombastic than most of the street performers in Asheville, but that’s to Logan Mason’s advantage. His songs seem intensely personal, and his downcast-eyes style of performance makes him seem like an unlikely musician to be playing to strangers for tips. He’s almost the definition of unassuming, wearing a plain white T-shirt and a “Bass Pro Shops” cap that I’m fairly certain isn’t some ironic hipster statement.

When I asked why I hadn’t seen him play before, Mason told me that he’d only just moved to town a few months ago from Jackson, MS. “I just kind of ended up here,” he told me with a shrug. Continue reading Logan Mason performs “Carved Shaped Heart”

Logan Mason performs “Love Shall Fill”

There aren’t a lot of quiet, introspective buskers on the streets of Asheville, NC. And for obvious reasons. When you are competing with the rumble of engines, the sounds of construction, the incessant nattering of small talk from passersby and even the sound-diluting downtown wind, it’s hard for a quiet song to compete. And if your song is actually about something truly interesting, or even beautiful, it’s a rare person who will stop in their tracks and listen. Loud performers with simple, belting songs tend to attract the most attention, and the lion’s share of the tips.

But there’s something to be said for contrast, and in a town filled with performers who are more than content to be the center of attention, it’s a quiet performer like Logan Mason who really stands out. Continue reading Logan Mason performs “Love Shall Fill”