Stand by me ...

@owlwings (43915)
Cambridge, England
June 4, 2009 10:29am CST
At some time in our lives everyone needs someone to stand by us ... to give a little encouragement or a helping hand or to help us stand up for our rights. This video is one of the most heartwarming I have seen in a while. Please spend some time and enjoy it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us-TVg40ExM How much notice do you usually take of street performers and buskers? Do you pause to listen to them for more than a few moments ever? Do you ever find that they put a little colour and meaning into your day?
7 people like this
16 responses
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
4 Jun 09
You said it. We all need a little propping up now and then. Thanks for the video it was awesome.
2 people like this
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
4 Jun 09
That was awesome, Owl! Loved it. Yes, if I see a street performer, I do stop and watch. We don't have many of them around here but every now and again you'll come across someone playing guitar or singing. It's nice.
@derek_a (10874)
5 Jun 09
A great video. Yes, as an ex-musician myself, I often stand and listen to street buskers here in the UK. Sometimes the talent amazes me and I wonder why they are not playing paying gigs. But of course I realize then that they prefer to do what they are doing, where they are doing it. - Derek
1 person likes this
@derek_a (10874)
16 Jul 09
Oh yes, I remember talking to a street busker from the city and he told me that he earned more than just a good living wage. Those coins, he said, soon mount up. - Derek
@elemental69 (1561)
• Ireland
7 Jun 09
That was such a cool video. I watched it twice... My daughter loved it too! It was great the way it was made. :-)
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
16 Jun 09
The more I watch it, the more I admire the people who put it together (and the performers, of course). It's earthy and real ... and yet highly contrived ... a masterpiece of video and something that touches the heart as well. I'm glad your daughter liked it too ... please share it around!
@p1kef1sh (45681)
16 Jul 09
I think that is positively inspirational - I loved the chap with the white beard in New Orleans. I have to be honest, years of commuting round London rather left me with the feeling that most buskers were a one tune pain to be endured. There have been some, especially in Covent Garden, who have been on a higher plane, but to be honest, I don't tarry long. Perhaps I should!
1 person likes this
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
16 Jul 09
My favourite, too, was the old blind gentleman with the Father Christmas beard. It is not only a very careful selection of good musicians but also a video which must have taken many hours of painstaking editing and mixing - very little of which is evident on the surface. I think it is a real masterpiece because it keeps the freshness and depth of each person's contribution and yet comes together as a whole. There are not many buskers who have the musical skills to be both good solo performers and to be able to play with and enhance another's performance as is demonstrated here. There are not many film makers who could take this idea (and particular song) and bring it off without losing the immediacy and freshness of a good street performer. I'm not a film maker but believe that it is a little gem of production and becomes increasingly outstanding the more I watch it!
@sconibear (8016)
• United States
4 Jun 09
WOW!!!! Very, very, very, very, very, very COOL!!! thanks for sharing that. and to answer your questions.......yes.
2 people like this
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
7 Jun 09
I have seen this video before and thing it's very heartwarming. In my usual travels, I don't see this very often. But, when I go "downtown" (either Washington DC or Baltimore) I come across many street musicians. They usually are a very pleasant interruption to our daily lives and we almost always take the time to listen to them.
1 person likes this
@James72 (26790)
• Australia
4 Jun 09
Brilliant! It just goes to show you how much talent there is in this world and if only these people had access to the right connections to go further! I've seen some amazing street performers in the past and I've stopped many a time to watch them perform. Yes, they can add a spring in my step more times than not too! Thanks for sharing this video, I enjoyed it immensely!
1 person likes this
@qwerty19 (321)
• Philippines
5 Jun 09
hehehehe!... me too!..;)
• Philippines
5 Jun 09
thank you for sharing this.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
5 Jun 09
No, I haven't experienced seen a street performer and I think I could not stand by for them as in our country there are many impostor. I can't explain but I haven't seen any street performers. Maybe during Fiesta or festival.
1 person likes this
@dawnald (85129)
• Shingle Springs, California
15 Jun 09
Sometimes I pause for longer than a few minutes. If I really like the performance and I don't have some place I urgently need to be. This guy is not bad at all!
@dogsnme (1264)
• United States
5 Jun 09
Thanks for sharing. I loved it. I saved it to my favorites.
1 person likes this
@qwerty19 (321)
• Philippines
5 Jun 09
hehehe,.,. me too.:)
15 Jul 09
Firstly, thanks for sharing that link, not only is that one of my favourite songs but the performances in the video made it a must watch. Unfortunately these days we rarely get buskers in the town I live. Not sure whether there has been a clamp down on them or the people where I live are tight with their cash. But a few years back there was an abundance of buskers and some of them were so brilliant that I often lost track of time listening to them play. Quite often a busker would be able to turn my mood from bad to good just by performing a song naturally rather than being over produced.
1 person likes this
@Sandra1952 (6047)
• Spain
4 Jun 09
I have seen some excellent buskers. We now live in Spain, and in Alicante Old Town, in the square by the church, there are some lovely restaurants, where you can enjoy a fabulous lunch for about 8 euros. As you eat, a variety of buskers come along - magicians, guitarists, accordion players, singers - you name it, we get it. They are all good - some better than others - and we usually finish up giving more to the buskers than we pay for our lunch. And yes, they make a good day even better. Whenever we have visitors, we always take them there.
1 person likes this
@hiddenwing (3719)
• China
20 Jul 09
I would like to watch it a lot! There was something wrong with my internet conncetion! I just couldn't open the link! How expecting!
@qwerty19 (321)
• Philippines
5 Jun 09
hmmmmmmmmmmmmm,.. nice dicussion!.. thanks God Bless!..