Instrument: Bass Synthesiser
Occupation: Full-time Busker
Location: Market Square
Early musical influences: My mum used to play Meatloaf in the car. As a teenager, I liked The Prodigy, The Future Sound of London and Portishead.
Early busking: I became homeless for around six months when I first came to Nottingham three years ago. There were quite a few people busking here and I used to produce music at home using my laptop. I decided to buy a synth that was portable, so I could use it on the streets.
Style: It’s not normal busking music, is it? You don’t really expect to hear drum ‘n’ bass and house music from a busker.
Favourite Nottingham busker: There’s an old chap who plays a lot of classical music on a little keyboard piano – he’s really talented and a sweet guy. You can normally find him outside the church.
Xylophone Man: I heard of him when I came to Nottingham. I remember seeing his memorial stone and thinking “Ooh, that’s interesting.” It seems he was a cool guy.
Instrument: Banjo
Occupation: Coffee shop worker
Location: Lister Gate
Early musical influences: Blink 182, Good Charlotte, lots of American pop punk. When I heard Mumford and Sons I was like “Wow.” That’s how I started playing the banjo.
Early busking: I’d always seen buskers where I grew up in Southend-on-Sea. When I was about thirteen, every time I walked under the train bridge I’d see a busker and I thought “I’d love to do that.” I recently went back home and busked under that train bridge I was like, “Yes, I’ve done it.”
Favourite Nottingham busker: Desperado Brett, without a doubt. Night-time busker outside Primark with a cowboy hat.
Xylophone Man: He died before I arrived, but I saw the plaque outside H&M and it caught my eye. He sounded like a lot of fun.
Busking scene: If you’re a musician who’s short on cash, it’s a fantastic thing to do.
Negative vibes: I’ve got friends who don’t busk because they’ve heard of people taking money, spitting, trying to steal microphones and kicking amps, but because I was a charity fundraiser, I toughened up to the kind of behaviour you get. I’ve not actually experienced anything too bad yet. Things do happen, but I brush it off and keep going. It’s still worth doing.
Weirdest thing seen: I was playing Chasing Cars one day and there were about nine kids who started dancing around and getting down on the floor to the chorus, their mums standing at the back. That was a highlight.
Name: David Keye
Instrument: Piano
Occupation: Musician
Location: Stoney Street
Early busking: I had the idea to do it, the next day a friend gave me a piano for free and someone offered me a place to store it. That was less than a month ago. I’d played a lot of gigs but I’d never done busking before.
Music: I’m in a few bands 1st Blood, Injured Birds, Kundalini, I’ve done some work with Harleighblu, and I was on the White Dolemite soundtrack album. I like to play with other people – you get a real shared energy on stage, things can really take off.
Reasons: A guy stood next to me for twenty minutes not saying anything, then gave me fourteen quid and said, “It was worth every penny to have that kind of chill.” People forget that they’re flying around on a massive rock in space. I’m trying to remind people.
Xylophone Man: Can I tell you something? That wasn’t a xylophone he was playing, xylophones are made of wood. He played a glockenspiel. I was wondering if you could straighten that out? Would it ruin his image? I met him a few times and listened to his tunes, there was never a conversation – he just grinned and played his music.
Future: I’m doing recordings for a Mercury Prize winning singer at the moment, and playing with a couple of classically trained opera singers; we’re looking at maybe getting a deal with Sony. There’s all sorts going on, but I’m enjoying the busking – feels like I’m doing good work.
Name: Mogs Morgan
Instrument: Saxophone
Occupation: Full time saxophonist
Location: Outside H&M
Early musical influences: Duke Ellington, Joe Loss – I was brought up in Woodford Green and then moved to the Isle of Man and used to get taken along to concerts. I began playing saxophone at 21, I was a late starter.
Early busking: In the seventies I got stuck in Amsterdam. I went for Christmas and New Year with friends and ran out of money. I had an alto sax with me, so I went out and blew on that. I’ve also busked in Gerona, Spain and Munich. Mainly in the UK though. My favourite, just on takings, is the Isle of Man. I’ve been busking in Nottingham since 1983, that’s 31 years.
Xylophone Man: Met him a couple of times, he was just another busker. He was a loose cannon, would turn up anywhere.
Weirdest thing seen: The scariest thing was a knifing between a couple of kids, outside C&A in the eighties.
Band or busk? I like both. I’m in two bands at the moment – Rue Point and The Invisible Orchestra. In a band you’re just playing to your mates, but when you’re busking you’ve got to be as good as you can be and appeal to a wide audience. You’ve got to stop them playing with their mobile phones and make them take their ear plugs out for you.
Tribute: We had our first rehearsal last week, it came together. I just sat and listened to them all, trying to work out what I could do on me sax, and what sax I was gonna use. Edd’s on it. It’s gonna be an interesting set.
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Instrument: Acoustic guitar
Occupation: Promoter
Location: Clumber Street
Early musical influences: I got into American punk and ska bands when I was about thirteen – NOFX, Less Than Jake, Blink 182. My taste has evolved into folk and a bit of everything. I’m a promoter and am open to all kinds of music but I play mostly punky stuff.
Early busking: I’m from Essex but came to university here and a friend of mine was busking. It seemed like something to do so I contacted the council and got a permit. You’ve gotta stay on the right side of the law.
Other cities: When I was in Breadchasers we went on tour around Europe. We were in Malmo in Sweden, and went to their Market Square to do some busking and hand out fliers. Blindly playing to a whole new audience was a great experience.
Favourite Nottingham busker: I’d say Mogs. Not just because of the music, but because he’s got a lot about him, he’s an out-there character.
Reasons: Meeting nice people makes me wanna busk and it’s free practice. It’s made me a more confident person and a better performer. It prepares you for all manner of things in life.
Negative vibes: I learned from Mogs that you have to take a step back and be calm about it. I made a light-hearted comment back to someone once and I’ve never done it again. It wasn’t worth the aggravation. People think they’re hilarious by putting a penny in and laughing at me, but if a hundred people do that, then it’s a pound.
Find out who’s in The Frank Robinson Tribute Band by attending their performance at The Xylophone Man plaque on Lister Gate the afternoon of Friday 4 July, and then again in the evening at Hopkinson Gallery on Station Street.
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