I met Ryan, and his dog Buster, while I was walking down 6th street. He was setup in front of the historic Driskill hotel and was entertaining the crowds of people as they waited to cross the street. He has a unique voice and slips between a couple different singing styles, as well as, playing both acoustic and electric guitars.

Ryan's set includes some less popular but very well written tunes and an original dedicated to his dog, in addition to putting his mark on a few hits. Ryan is a regular on 6th street where you can catch him most Saturday nights at Brazos and 6th Street.

00:00 - "Mitch and the Birds"

04:38 - Ryan original "That Buster Dog Song"

08:02 - "You Don't Care For Me Enough To Cry"

11:41 - "Amarillo by Morning"

15:39 - "Along the Watchtower"

22:07 - "Superstition"

You can watch Ryan's full performance on YouTube! https://youtu.be/YN-LC8Gm_KM?si=EtCiCvM7-fCUyFwE

I had been poking around Deep Ellum for a few days looking for someone to record with no luck. The cashier at a pizza place told me about the Bishop Arts District that wasn't too far away, I headed that way. As soon as I turned into the district, I saw Tauvy. He was making a lot of noise for one person, I almost thought it was a full band at first. I had to park far away and was worried he be done by the time I walked back. He was more than gracious and agreed to let me record.

Tauvy is like that cool Uncle that is always the life of the party. He seems to be having a genuinely good time and it was fun to share his energy for a while. I really dig the Shure 55 microphone!

Not to take away anything from the artists already fetured but this recording was the first time I actually felt like I knew what I was doing. All the cameras were set correctly, I had all the audio adapters I needed, my timecode device was charged and useable. Enjoy as he rips some hits and gets some tips.

00:00 - Tauvy busks in front of the Bishop Exchange in the Bishop Arts District in Dallas

00:34 - "This Must Be The Place"

07:44 - "Tennessee Whiskey"

12:00 - "Dreams"

17:24 - "Won't You Won't Do For Love"

22:33 - "Grandma's Hands"

27:29 - "Friends in Low Places"

30:36 - "Contagious"

You can watch Tauvy's full performance on YouTube! https://youtu.be/H_Nfv_XSOOc?si=Ub-nZhETFgpy8Uq3

We return to the corner of 6th and Congress (04 | Craig) for some drumming by Mark. I have seen several of the paint bucket style drummers out and about but mark had a whole kit, and his dog Nana with him! She makes a special guest appearance!

By the way, his sign reads:

24 years playing beats on the streets of Austin. I am just an old Army vet who comes down here “almost” every day trying to play some music and someone to smile. This place need to remember that it was created because of the music not because of the money. So I have made this my job the last 24 years to keep the music playing and the people smiling. I hope you have a great new year Austin snd that you like the beats. I do accept tips. Thank you for your kindness.

00:00 - "Wanna Be a Baller"

2:27 - "Work It"

5:45 - "No Diggity"

9:08 - "Can't Let You Go"

You can watch Mark's full episode on YouTube! https://youtu.be/gRbomrPgiSw?si=SLnKHGU9F9HVbasl

I was headed to Montreal in early May for a UFC fight and the idea of Troubadour Collective was still a very rough idea. It was cold and raining that weekend so I headed into the Metro stations hoping to find some talent. Montreal actually has an official busking program run by the STM called Musicians in the Metro. There are several designated busking areas in the stations designated by a lyre symbol on the wall. I wasn't fortunate enough to find anyone playing in those locations but I did run across Trevor. He was playing in one of the tunnels that lead to the Bonaventure station. Trevor was cooler than a polar bears toe nails, very laid back and went with the flow. The tunnel he was in had some unique acoustics and I really liked his setup, the suitcase is a kick drum! This was only the second recording I ever did and the first outside of Austin and the United States. Enjoy y'all!

Apis Mellifera is named after the western honey bee and she bounces around the country as a self described music pollinator. I was lucky enough to catch up with her while she was in town for the Kerrville Folk Festival. While I am deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life that occurred in the region, I hope the festival comes back, I'd love to bring you some recordings from the campgrounds at the festival next year. I met Apis busking on 6th street on a Saturday night but it was unfortunately too loud for me to record her where she was setup. Me met up to record this performance from her the following evening! She was a real delight! You can also visit her online at apismelliferasings.com.

You can watch Apis' full episode on YouTube! https://youtu.be/vXJGKSvCPvw?si=aFJEi9dXCQX40IL3

00:00 - Apis Mellifera busks from downtown Austin

25:44 - "Zombie"

27:53 - Apis performs her original song "Ceasefire"

30:41 - Apis performs her original song "Hypocrite"

I was walking back to the car after recording Siim, it was almost 2 am. As I am approaching the corner of 6th and Congress I am hearing something but I can't make out what it is. It sounds like music so I cross the street to investigate. What I found was one of the coolest setup I've come across. Craig had a Hohner microphone plugged into a bluetooth adapter, with a speaker he was hauling in the trailer behind his bike. He was out playing so he didn't disturb his wife and grandson and enjoyed the music. You are in for a real treat.

You can watch Craig's full episode on YouTube! https://youtu.be/ieXkc-qGRww?si=VHp80DYcInCmCuhM

00:00 - "Soulshine"

05:00 - "Price Tag"

08:15 - "The Longer It Takes"

12:50 - "Don't Be Cruel"

17:02 - "I'm Yours"

21:07 - "Hungry Heart"

I met Siim (seem) the first night I was out recording. He was hanging out for a while when I was recording Alex, truth be told, I thought I'd upset him. He walked off in the middle of recording and I was worried I'd interrupted him and Alex. We ran into each other again a couple nights later when I was recording David Quick. Siim is a great dude, the kind of guy that's never met a stranger. We quickly got along, Siim had lots of insight into the Austin busking community and has become an invaluable resource. He is the one that hipped me to the house brand of acoustic strings at South Austin Music, and was the recipient of the first set as well. Siim killed it. I hope we get to see some more from him.

You can Watch Siim's full episode on YouTube! https://youtu.be/r2AV16qv4c4?si=LDXXu2-ajGwd0Rex

I had been out an hour or so, driving around Austin, when I saw a man walking down the drag (Guadalupe) with a guitar slung over his shoulder. I made a quick u-turn and met him in a parking lot. I asked if he was going to play that thing (the guitar) and he said he'd just broken a string but his name was Steve Stone and he played in a band call Quick and Stone on the corner of 6th and Red River, the heart of Austin's historic entertainment district. I wished him well and continued my search, hoping to catch him another time.

It was a quick drive to downtown, I decided to head down 6th street. Just as I passed Red River, I spotted a second guitar player. I walked up and introduced myself, the gentleman introduced himself as David and asked how my evening was going? I told David my story about running into Steve Stone and how excited I was to try and catch one of their performances, I tell him all about Quick and Stone. He laughs and introduces himself as David Quick of Quick and Stone. I shit you not. It's a funny world out there. I still have not had the opportunity to record the duo but was very happy to get to record David.

Another takeaway from this evening, when Steve Stone said he couldn't play because he'd just broken a string, it got me to thinking. A couple days after that encounter, I stopped by South Austin Music. I'd heard great things about their store brand of acoustic strings and wanted to have a couple sets on me in the future if needed. They would prove to be very handy. If you are in need of strings, and live in the Austin area, the guys at South Austin Music couldn't have been more helpful, and I didn't know much about strings when I walked in the door.

00:00 - David Quick busks from 6th Street in downtown Austin

02:20 - "Heart of Gold"

06:47 - "Wish You Were Here"

10:29 - An original by David Quick "Insignificant"

12:32 - "Behind Blue Eyes"

16:15 - "SImple Man"

24:46 - "It's Been a While"