The Chocolate Song

Look who's digging the Professor World Band!

I don't often play weekdays in the Public Gardens but I did today because this weekend may be a bit wet. Today was nice and sunny and there were lots of people enjoying the park and listening to my music. I was taking a break and this guy came up to chat with me because he really enjoyed the show. He says to me, "I'm a songwriter too. You may have heard of me. I'm Kris Kristofferson."
Wow!!!!  He's even more famous than the Professor World Band!! His partner took this photo and sent it to me. So Kris; Thanks so much for stopping by to say hello and for remembering to send this photo. It means a lot to me that you took the time to do that. Next time bring your guitar!

By the way, Kris Kristofferson gets some credit for the biggest tip I ever got. I was playing in Skagen, up at the tip of Denmark. This guy came up and requested "Me and Bobby Mcgee", written  by Kris. I had actually played it earlier in the day but I aim to please so I played it again. This guy listened for a while, then started crying and pulls a bill out of hiss wallet, puts it in the case and walks away. It turned out to be a 1000 kronor note, worth about $250 at that time! My Swiss girlfriend Sonja was playing bucket bass with me at the time so we split the tip and went out to celebrate together.

The Peace Wave Generator and Boston Marathon Terror Attack

It’s been a very intense and tragic week for Boston. There are difficult days ahead but at least in times like these we see that people do stick together and help each other out. I was very lucky. I passed by the finish line much earlier to check out the  busy scene there before setting up to play in the Public Gardens. It was a fairly sunny day but there was a bit of a breeze that made it actually a bit chilly. It’s great weather for playing one man band though because I move around a lot and stay warm. I was having a good day and lots of kids and their parents stopped by to join the band. I remember last year’s Boston Marathon was hot and humid and much more difficult to play.

I was taking a break and talking to the father of one of my biggest little fans when I heard a couple of distant rumbles; a bit like thunder. Although it wasn’t the weather for thunder, nobody seemed to react as if anything was amiss. Perhaps it was just distant enough so as not to be alarming. In any case, just before three I was getting ready to start the show when all the emergency vehicles started  passing by with sirens blazing and people came rushing through the park, many of them trying to get through on their cell phones. I asked someone what was up and they told me there were two explosions and many people hurt.  I decided it was time to pack up for the day.

I was lucky. None of my direct friends were physically injured but this is a small enough city and we are all connected. At least several of the victims have no doubt stopped to watch my show and possibly even joined the band for a song or two.

You can’t undo what’s already been done but now that the perpetrators of  this terrible crime are either dead or in custody, the healing can begin.

I was out in the Public Gardens with the Professor World Band this past weekend and we got a tremendous reception. It seems that the Peace Wave Generator is very much appreciated in times like these.

I continue to work on my show and to put my heart and soul into making it even better.  I am attracting many more new fans who continue to come out and help generate  Peace Waves on my weekly appearances in the Public Gardens. I am very thankful to them.

I am also thankful to Thomas Cooper, www.sutophotos.com, who sent me this photo he took of me in the Public Gardens shortly before the Boston Marathon. I’m thinking of using it for my next postcard.

Send me more photos please!

Thanks to Barry Sugarman ( www.barrysugarman.org) for this latest batch of photos of me and a young fan  in Porter Square

Here I am playing my hang drum in the Burger King passage of Cancun center. That's Henrietta up there in front of my cymbals. She was very popular in Mexico! Photo is courtesy of Rodolfo Chan

Back from Mexico!

It looks like I booked my return a bit too early! I missed the big snowstorm but the weather's been pretty miserable since I got back. To think that this time last week I was lying on the beach and swimming in the Gulf of Mexico!
Ah well, I don't mind the cold that much and here in Boston I can always busk in the T. The trip to Mexico was a success. I arrived safely with all my gear, without having to pay any extra to the airlines for extra baggage. Busking in Mexico was fun but not the most profitable. I managed to cover most of my expenses but I wanted to save some time to travel around the area and see the sights. My hostel was right in the center of Cancun and a real bargain at just ten dollars a night! I played several times at the nearby Mercado 28 and in the Parque de Palapas. The town of Playa del Carmen was less than an hour away. They have a very nice long walking zone with lots of tourists but I got stopped by the police there. You need to get a permit and it's not that easy and costly there to obtain.
I also played in a local school . I made three shows for three different classes and they all loved it. A teacher took some great photos for me on my cell phone. Unfortunately I lost the phone a couple of days before coming back and along with it, all my Mexico pictures. I'm hoping to get a teacher from the school to email me some photos and I will post them when they arrive. A couple of other folks have sent me photos of me playing and perhaps I'll get a few more. So it goes. I had a great trip and the memories are still fresh in my head. Since it worked out well I am ready to start thinking of future trips, perhaps back to Europe to visit old friends. I'll keep you posted!

Here I am playing my Hang drum band down in the Red Line at Porter Square.