Street Musicians

Street Music from Rip Zip. This video was shot near the London Bridge tube station in November 2006.

Sometimes I really enjoy street musicians. I've heard some really good musicians on the street, in subway stations, on the sidewalk outside concert venues, in parks... all over the world. I really like bucket drummers. Every once in a while I'll throw some money in. I have plenty of recordings of street performers I've run across in my travels. I often carry a portable recorder with a stereo mic to capture the sounds of a city. Street musicians add color to the scene.

I've heard some amazing players making music on the street. I've bought a few random CDs from street musicians over the years. There are some incredible one-man-band guys out there. On the other hand, street performers can be just plain loud, awful and annoying. Have you ever had a rap guy hustle you to buy his CD even though you've never heard him?

I've never performed on the street before although there have been times in my life where I could see myself doing it. Have you ever done it? Do you have a favorite street performer?