Just back busking again after spending time being a single dad to my now 20 year old man.Trying my hand at the Bungendore Country muster,in NSW Australia.Assigned a spot in the Heritage village square,made little money but had a great time,and plenty of encouragement to continue.True to my "Zen Punk" roots,included ,"they don't make Jews like Jesus anymore" and My own 21st generation y version of "house of the Rising Sun" ,as my country rep is miniscule,and mostly incomprehensible.
Keen now to see where else I can go to display my wares.The Market go round looks good!

Creating large floating soap bubbles has been a passtime of mine for many years. I call it "fleeting art" and I let anyone that wants to try it to give it a go. After all the years of doing it and people always asking where my tip jar was, I started putting out a fish bowl for people to donate to help pay for the bubble mix. The City of Monrovia, Ca recreation department and the Monrovia PD have now informed me that I am panhandling/soliciting. I have not been cited yet but have been shut down 2 times. If you have any ideas or suggestions they will be greatly appreciated. I will keep my fellow buskers informed on what progresses in the future. Keep entertaining and making people smile.

(WWW) Before the advent of the internet, buskers had to figure out which songs were popular enough to perform in public. Now, we can simply surf the net and and learn in a matter of seconds.Of course, sprinkling the list with an original here and there is always an option. But it all depends on the pitch and audience. Some songs are drunken sing-alongs and others are thoughtful hits. One thing most have in common is a upbeat rhythm.

Two lists we've found cover the "best" songs to play. One list has 31 recommendations and the other has a top 7.


TOP 7:

1. Friends in low places
2. Summer of '69
3. Sweet Caroline
4. 3a.m.
5. When I come around
6. Free Fallin'
7. Livin' on a Prayer

These are mostly 1990's songs that tend to go over well. However, the seasoned busker will have at least one song by the Beatles...

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It's survival of the fittest as some resort to dirty tactics in face of stiffer competition.

Outwit, outplay, outlast.
That motto from TV reality series Survivor also holds true for the buskers in Orchard Road.

The current economic downturn is certainly not music to their ears as they have seen takings drop in recent months.

If that's not enough of a worry, they also have to fend off competition from both legitimate and illegal buskers.

But more of that later. For now, the downturn is a more worrisome test of survivor skills.

Take the case of Mr Donald Wee, 51, who strums the guitar near Shaw House.

'More people are donating coins instead of $5 or $10 notes,' he lamented.

He used to earn about $100 in two hours but can net only $40 now. The former security guard went into busking four years ago when he could not find another job after he was arrested for fighting....

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"Really badly talented" buskers face being banned from the CBD as part of a bid by Melbourne's new lord mayor to clean up the city streets.

Hours after his election win, Robert Doyle said tougher rules and regulations were needed to keep the streets free of bad performers.

"I am a bit sick of really badly talented buskers, let me tell you," he told Radio 3AW.

"They actually do need to be properly licensed and regulated so that we are not just assaulted by a whole lot of different sounds every 10 metres along the footpath."

Mr Doyle also touted a Bourke Street police station and a theme park to attract more families to the CBD at night.

"I don't want the city to be a bogan magnet," he said.

"People are sick of someone warbling out of...

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