Tom Jones’s first attempt at busking began ominously as a crowd gathered around a set of speakers and a lone microphone set up on the South Bank of the Thames near the Royal Festival Hall. “It’s Tom Jones, isn’t it?” one woman asked. “I’ve never liked him since he had his nose done. He had a sensible Welsh nose in the old days.”

Skateboarders and BMX bikers gathered nonplussed at a nearby underpass. Sir Tom would be using the graffiti-covered skating area if it rained, they were told. “That would be a bit awkward,” one BMX rider said. “We’d have to ride around him.”

But any doubt that the 68-year-old singer could still thrill a crowd was dispelled the moment he stepped up to the microphone. “Can you hear me all right?” he asked. The crowd, which had swelled to about 400, cheered and raised their arms, not in celebration, but to capture the moment on their mobile telephones.
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I have been thinking a lot about doing a little busking, just for fun. I used to play in bar bands and the like years ago and still play a bit now and then. I wonder if this is something that could quench my thirst for playing music, telling stories, and just plain showing off.

I would love to hear stories of other ancient buskers especially just starting out.

I'm 60 by the way.

(ASPEN) Let us take a Summer stroll up to Aspen and see how the buskers are faring.In this sleepy little hamlet high above the madding crowds lies four downtown city blocks and the high-end shopping district. Within the red bricked lanes are planters, evergreens, grass, trees, and benches. Classic streetlamps light the way and no cars are allowed. The style was influenced by Boulder and it's mall on Pearl Street.

In Aspen (or "Hollyweed" as the locals call it), you can find many buskers plying their art. Why, you may even run into a "moobie star" out shopping at any given time. The famous four ski lifts long quiet, people are finding Colorado in the Summertime rather interesting, fun, and something out of the ordinary.

A Busker Central News reporter busked Aspen a while back. "As...

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(FISHERMANS WHARF) It looks like the Amazing Johnathan is returning to his roots and taking a break from his Las Vegas show. Years ago, the former street performer had his show at the Golden Nugget...or was it Fitzgeralds? Circus Circus? Anyway, I forget where John Szeles's show was but he's heading where it all began.

The insult comic, the Amazing Johnathan, has built his show over the years into a solid, if not down right weird, Las Vegas show that probably has more jokes per minute than any current show running. It also drops more F-bombs than Pesci in "Casino". With a 3-act structure, the former busker has shown others the way to create and perform Vegas-style.

I believe Carrot Top, like Sinbad, first started performing on the streets of Westwood in L.A. It's seems like a while...

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(KEY WEST) It's been brewing since last year when regulations for street-performing were brought up in City Hall. Now, a tourist was recently bitten on the face by a performer's lemur which has triggered a new law requiring entertainers to have a minimum of $300,000 of liability insurance.

The law was designed to bring street entertainers in line with other groups, such as taxis, pedicabs and street food vendors, all of whom are required to have similar liability policies.

Restrictions where you can perform were placed on Duval Street but not past Petronia. The first two blocks of Whitehead and other "pitch" restrictions also go into effect. The yearly permit was raised from $100 to $150 and if there's is a festival going on, no performing is allowed. Performer's insurance is available on the...

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