March of the Buskers @Manchester Lane, Melbourne(06/03/2007)

Tue 13th Mar, 2007 in Gig Reviews

Busking is a worldwide phenomenon that has been around since ancient times. Just like back then, busking comes in many shapes and forms including street theatre, puppeteers, magicians, comedians, acrobats, jugglers, artists and musicians.



Melbourne is no stranger to buskers; we host both home grown and international acts in many places around town from Southgate to St Kilda Beach to the city centre of Bourke Street Mall. And if you are of the misconception that buskers are for the unemployed and out and out, then think again. Busking is a lucrative career for those who are professionals in the field. And besides that, it’s an occupation that is engaged in purely for the joy of doing it. Paul McCartney, Bon Jovi, Sting... These are just some of the famous people who have been out busking – not before they became famous, but during it. And bands such as the Violent Femmes were actually noticed while out busking and were given the opportunity to be the opening act for a Pretenders’ concert. Bob Dylan is another notable artist who started out as a busker as is Jeff Buckley who used to play at a coffee house in New York called ‘Sin-é’, and in 1993 made a live four-track EP entitled Live at Sin-e which was released by Columbia Records.



So in honour of all the buskers who have made a career out of doing what they love, Jessica Page of Jessica Page and the Page Boys (a young Melbourne musician with a catalogue of music industry awards and a recently released EP entitled Under My Skin) has put together a show that she hopes to be a regular ongoing attraction.
‘The March of the Buskers’ had its debut showing at Manchester Lane, much to the delight of an appreciative audience. The night was MC’ed by Benjamin Hutton, a seasoned Melbourne magician who entertains passers-by with his entertaining shows. He introduced the first of the buskers – Eric the Red & Miss Polly Waffle – who, as their name suggests, were an eye-catching opener with their bright circus costumes and choreographed humour. The next presentation was a near naked superman as energetic and full of life as his daring costume would allow, which didn’t leave much to the imagination mind you! He did, however, have a very sexy bellybutton and did a fine job of heckling the hecklers. Max is a full-time performer down at Southgate and says he wouldn’t want any other job. When travelling the world, he can take his work with him and he makes a fantastic living from doing something he loves.



The Jessica Page duo was up next. Her emotive and sensitive acoustic indie/folk/country was endearing and it was easy to see why she has a string of industry awards under her belt. She said that busking is how she supports herself and her music; busking for her became a career a few years ago and she hasn’t looked back.



The highlight of the night for me was Wiley J. This American comedic performer has the most amazing soulful voice. It’s so smooth it melts in your ears as his cheeky and bubbly personality kept the audience in the palm of his hand. He is a poet, singer, guitarist and he will be performing at this year’s international comedy festival in Melbourne. He is also the lead vocalist for Melbourne based Grand Wazoo which is a 16 piece band that performs Motown classics. While busking isn’t his main occupation, it’s something he does purely for the enjoyment.