Tag: Community Piano

Not A Christmas Song (Thankfully)

by Ebb Then Flood

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Over Christmas music yet? Well, may I give some respite from the sheer awfulness of most of it – here is a prime cut from my album of the year, Devendra Banhart’s ‘Ma’.

A  typical offbeat piece of Venezuelan/American Banhart’s warm songcraft, enhanced by a surreal video. Enjoy! If it’s not your cup of tea ,it could be worse (‘Little Drummer Boy’ anyone…?).

(By the way, the recent photo features a community piano in a central London shopping mall . Some outstanding young talent created amazing sounds for free –  I love community pianos for their surprise element!

Link to the DB song below:

 

Real Good, For Free

by Ebb Then Flood

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“He was playing real good, for free”

     – Joni Mitchell, ‘For Free’.

The busker in the Joni song played the clarinet, and the songwriter expressed her admiration of the player’s skills.

Not just that he played for free, or maybe a few coins thrown into a hat – but that he was truly free to express himself, and not trapped by the machinery of the music business that she was in.

The guy in the photo, playing a community piano in Atlanta a couple of years ago when I was there, was like that. Melodies played for himself, mainly.

I’d seen someone else doing the same thing earlier that day – see Butterfly Piano Man. Never come across the concept of the community piano before, and adored it!

Both gentlemen gave me random, life-affirming moments as they played – real good, for free.