Through a hundred interviews and decades of observation, Baker's busking chronicle, Down on the Corner, reveals how the distance between Grammy-winning stages and subway platforms may be shorter than we imagine, connected by an authenticity that can't be manufactured.
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Today, the Spotlight shines On Cary Baker, author of Down on the Corner: Adventures in Busking and Street Music.
The music you hear on street corners and subway platforms has its untold history, and at age 16, Cary Baker followed a slide guitar's haunting melody through Chicago’s Maxwell Street Market to find himself face-to-face with bluesman Blind Arvella Gray. That chance encounter sparked a lifelong obsession.
Cary's book, Down on the Corner, traces the heritage of street music across 100 years, from blues legends in the 1920s to modern-day buskers armed with QR codes. He's spoken with everyone from Lucinda Williams to Billy Bragg about their days playing for tips, revealing how many music careers began with nothing but an open guitar case.
The streets have always been America's most democratic stage, where doo-wop harmonies, folk ballads, and raw blues first reached public ears. Cary's book captures this vital tradition in all its gritty, authentic glory.
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[00:01:46] The Origins of Cary's Interest in Street Musicians
[00:08:14] Evolution in Perspective on Busking
[00:11:17] Taxonomy and Historical Roots of Street Musicians
[00:14:00] The Economics of Street Performance
[00:17:16] Chicago Blues and Street Performance Connection
[00:19:44] Doo-Wop's Street Corner Foundations
[00:21:08] Club Careers vs. Returning to Busk
[00:23:06] Global Dimensions of Street Performance
[00:25:46] Documentation and Preservation of Ephemeral Art
[00:32:05] Playing for Change and Modern Busking Documentation
[00:34:25] Street Music as Antithesis to Polished Production
[00:37:42] Risks and Rewards of the Street Musician's Life
[00:41:21] City Support vs. Hostility Toward Buskers
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Visit Cary Baker at https://www.carybaker.com
- Purchase Down on the Corner: Adventures in Busking and Street Music from Jawbone Press → http://jawbonepress.com/down-on-the-corner
Bookshop → https://bookshop.org/p/books/down-on-the-corner-adventures-in-busking-street-music/21354165
Powell’s → https://www.powells.com/book/down-on-the-corner-9781916829107
Barnes & Noble → https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/down-on-the-corner-cary-baker/1145518135
or Amazon → https://www.amazon.com/Down-Corner-Adventures-Busking-Street/dp/1916829104?sr=8-1
For extensive show notes, links, and podcast information, go to https://www.spotlightonpodcast.com
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