Tips and advice Wanted for Busking

[pete_canter]

[No message]

 

[Col9]

Wow who would have thought one of the Salvation army's faves would have been Take Five. They are far cooler than they seem :laugh:

Anyway good luck tomorrow Taz, Mind you, you'll be great no need for any luck save for the weather.

Col.

P.S. 19yrs ago I went busking on a bay window roof, a friendand I with guitars we couldn't play and we only knew one note and one line of "Mother" by Danzig. Guess which line it was? :whistle: a passing drunk threw a pound coin at us to shut up lol.

 

[ch_boogie]

Hmm Col that was my parents house whilst they were away on holiday!!!! I remember , it was bad!!

Taz hope the rain stays away and just have a good time as Col said before my sister and a friend played their cello's for a couple of hours and made quite abit busking in Bedford. Can't wait to hear how you get on!!!

 

[Taz]

Thanks for all the good wishes guys and galls, I don't think Rugby was quite prepared for this...

I had been keeping a keen eye on the weather this morning, windy but dry and quite sunny, not too bad. I had decided that I needed an image so I opted for a black pair of trousers and a black shirt with the compulsory black shades and a black hat (naturally). I loaded my gear into the car, checking it one last time as I went. I then got into the car and drove the four miles into town. I parked as close to the centre as I could. As I started to unload my stuff I suddenly realised exactly how bl*^dy terrified I was. My hands were shaking uncontrollably and my mouth was as dry as Ghandi's flip flop! How could this be, I've played in the front of several bands, gigging in pubs and clubs, without as much as a tremble! So why should this be so different?
I gave myself a swift pep talk, and decided not to turn around and go home. So, I bit the bullet, and set up in a spot I had previously chosen. It was a fairly wide pedestrian street. I inserted the cd and pressed play.
Wow... The sound that reverberated from the opposite buildings gave me a great perspective of my tone. I was pleasantly surprised. To my ears, the sax sounded warm, rich and very very smooth....nice. Fairly soon, my nerves appeared to just fade away.
A lady of about 70, approached me whilst I was playing "Georgia on my mind" in her hand were a few coins, as she lent forward to throw them into my case, she whispered,"Thank you, you have reminded me of when I used to go dancing with my late husband." I think that the emotion that welled up inside of me was transmitted to all in the way I played the rest of the tune! (Boy was I glad I was wearing sun glasses.)
I was very surprised to see several people stop and listen, some were tapping their feet and even singing along! Most people just walked on past as if I wasn't even there, others looked as they walked, the occasional flick of the wrist as another handful of small change rattled into my case! Two teenage girls linked their hands together and danced a waltz, boy did I feel good.
I had been told by the local authority that I would have to change my location after about half an hour, so when I made my backing tracks, I made ten tracks lasting around thirty minutes. As soon as they ran out I would have to move on. Well I repeated the process twice more in different places, thoroughly enjoying myself in the process.
When the last echos of Baker Street had died away, I packed away my gear and made my weary way home. I was absolutely worn out, I hadn't realised how much energy I had used.
When I got home I emptied the cash that I had collected onto the table to count it. 8)
Had it all be worth it? Well from a personal sense of satisfaction, the old lady had made my day, after her comments nothing else seemed to mater, I had reminded her of happy times, she had made me realise that I have an ability to make people smile. Who needs cash? I felt on top of the world.
Financially was it worth it?
You do the maths. Ninety minutes playing, for fifty six pounds and forty pence! That's almost forty pounds an hour!

Now the advice bit. If you have ever thought about dressing up and taking your beloved sax into your nearest town centre, stop thinking about it and do it. I had the best time ever had I'm still "buzzing" now!

 

[old_git]

Glad it went well, Taz and congratulations on proving yet again that music brings back memories.

Unfortunately you failed the drive by shooting film test and Her Majesty's Inland Revenue have been informed of your vast increase in wealth.

 

[phil_edwards]

Great story Taz, well done. No stopping now, eh?

Phil

 

[helena]

excellent news - I haev been thinking about how you got on.....so where next?

Which pieces were the most well received?

well done

Helen

 

[Taz]

Thanks for grassing me up OG, HMIR have been in touch with MI5 who sent out 007 so now I'm facing a visit to HMPS.... 🙁
Helen, I was thinking about heading over to your neck of the woods and having a go in Northampton town centre.
My set list consisted of:
Summertime, And I love her, Eight days a week, Georgia on my mind, How wonderful you are, All my loving, Nothing at all, Wonderful world, Choo Choo Ch' boogie and Baker Street. I produced the backing tracks myself and made sure that they were all in suitable keys for me to play on the tenor.

 

[Col9]

Glad to hear it went well. It must be nice to know you improved somebody's day by playing.

Ghandi's flip flop :laugh: :laugh: Nice thought :x

If you go to Northampton you may be in direct competition with the old cat woman (No not some leather clad godess from batman) . She has a little Casio organ and just lets it play its demo tune over and over. Still her hearts in the right place. Not seen her for a while though.

Col.

 

[Taz]

helenA wrote:

Which pieces were the most well received?

Maybe if I had been concentrating, I would have answered your post properly, sorry.
I was quite surprised how well all the tunes went down. There always appeared to be someone somewhere just standing watching. (They were probably thinking "My Hamster could do better than that!") :laugh:

 

[artisticlicence]

Thats brilliant Taz - Ive often wondered if busking was financially viable - obviously it is! just think if you had played for a few more hours!

Hope you dont mind me asking but what happens (or is supposed to happen!) about licence/royalties etc?

 

[Taz]

artisticlicence wrote:

Hope you don't mind me asking but what happens (or is supposed to happen!) about licence/royalties etc?

I think that because I'm using tracks that I've created from Band in a box, they are far enough removed from the original piece. (They only bear a slight resemblance to the original) I also leave off the melody line allowing it to be played live by myself. I hope I'm right in thinking that because this is all my own work (Almost, obviously the idea for the tune was someone else,) then I don't have to pay any royalties. I hope that if someone knows the rules on this then they will post them here?

 

[Smiffy]

Taz Blinking well done mate, Your story certainly inspires me to do that one day

At the moment I'm better off playing in a field miles from anyone, being stoned to death is not funny, well only in Life of Brian

"Make people smile " that is the real reward, along with the money 😉

Well done

 

[Taz]

Cheers Smiffy
Some things in life are bad, They can really make you mad, Other things just make you swear and curse, When you're chewing life's gristle, Don't grumble, Give a whistle And this'll help things turn out for the best.
And... :laugh:
I really enjoyed myself, but my nerves were terrible before I started, I think a visit from the People's Front of Judea may have put me somewhat at rest (Oops I seem to have slipped into my favourite film) I'm a very naughty boy!
From your many posts, it would appear that you should be playing to an audience very soon. Keep up the posts.

 

[PaulyT]

Hi Pete,
Well done - really pleased for you! Is this going to be a regular Friday afternoon gig?
All the Best,
Paul

 

[suethesax]

Sounds like you had a great time and so did your audience. Well done and where's my 20%? 😉

 

[Taz]

Ah yes Sue... I'm....er.....well......er....the thing is........oh yes, the cheque's in the post :laugh:
Pauly, I don't think it would take Rugby long to get thoroughly p*^%ed off with the same ten tunes, so it'll be an occasional gig until I've got more tracks sorted.

 

[dooce]

Brave man Pete - well done. Are you ready to tackle Daventry yet? There's a nice spot outside Waitrose where a guy was doing very well busking a bit of la accordion francaise on Saturday. Stratford and Warwick could be worth a go - loads of tourists this time of year. Just got back from a week in Paris and the buskers there were mopping us trippers up like Hoovers - some really good 4-piece bands doing trad/New Orleans jazz with a steady downpour of euros clinking into the instrument cases......

 

[Taz]

I've just had an email back from Dav council. You need written permission from the land owner. Sounds weird, apparently, different areas are owned by different businesses. There are about four different people to contact and you need to keep the letter with you. I wouldn't mind but the businesses are not local. One of them is in Belfast!
I think I'll give Dav a miss.
Northampton on the other hand, are much more welcoming, requiring you to fill in a few forms, and then permission is granted so I've applied for the form.
Warwick and Stratford a both good ideas though, I'll give them ago..... I supose you'll be wanting commission?..................:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

 

[Smiffy]

Taz wrote:
Cheers Smiffy
Some things in life are bad, They can really make you mad, Other things just make you swear and curse, When you're chewing life's gristle, Don't grumble, Give a whistle And this'll help things turn out for the best.
And... :laugh:
I really enjoyed myself, but my nerves were terrible before I started, I think a visit from the People's Front of Judea may have put me somewhat at rest (Oops I seem to have slipped into my favourite film) I'm a very naughty boy!
From your many posts, it would appear that you should be playing to an audience very soon. Keep up the posts.

I get the shakes and sweats before I practice on my own never mind in public, Still on day I'll get there with my bike running for a fast get-away