All entries filed under Farmers Markets

This was my second Campus Square (old name) Farmers’ Market of the season, a bonus from the single shots of past years and the swing-and-miss of last year. I’m glad Deb gave me an extra one, since I’m a local guy living a block away. The day started out cloudy but eventually turned to sun.

We were under new Covid protocols since there were 150 new cases of the virus on campus in the last two weeks. I masked up and set up for a 11:15 start for a two hour set. Students were milling around so there was at least some movement, unlike the June gig. Crazy Joe and his peanut butter got his tune early on.

There were a bunch of students sitting at a few tables up front and I started some chatter, refering to days at Lehigh as an Arts-Engineer, which brought a rise from the kids. There were a few in the group. About 20 minutes in, my friend Amy Forsyth showed up, and I found out that these were her students in design. That explained why they were hanging out with sketch pads. They stuck around doodling away, and it was good to have Amy’s ears in the audience.

I played well and, as usual, the vendors appreciated the sound. I did take the mask off to sing. A friend Lisa A. dropped by towards the end, a big fan of July, so I did it up for her, gave her the CD compilation that it was on. I makes a difference to have friendly ears in the crowd.

I actually got a few $1 tips from the students, though I did shame the art students into donating. (Amy insisted) They simply do not make the connection of why the tip mandolin case is there. One student said that they never carry money with them – they have cards now But, I still find that hard to believe. Still, I was glad to make it out with $30 or so.

A good day for play.

Sometimes there’s not much to say about my gigs other than “Thank god for the opportunity to sit and play for two hours.”

I had actually counted on having the day off from a run of gigs over the last 5 days. I  was also glad that I wouldn’t be playing in the rain. Well, thanks to social media, I found that I had this Saucon Valley FM gig misplaced in my book as being next Sunday. Phew….

The hurricane Henri is skirting up the coast east of here and the weather wasn’t awful; only a few sprinkles during the set and I was covered with a pop-up tent. Half the vendors didn’t show up so things were really slow (except for the dog-walkers coming to visit the puppy biscuit stand in front of me). I dragged out my bag of instruments but never opened it since there were very few kids in tow today. Just as well.

I banged out my repertoire, found a few holes in my memory on some tunes, played some of the Beatles tunes that I had worked out during the end of my pandemic series, worked out on the mandolin – rusty… – and played to the big void in the middle of the market, glad to add some vibes for the vendors as they endured this slow day. I only got about $20 in tips but glad that folks made an effort to trek over my corner of the market.

I’m glad to be busy and that I’m putting $$ in the bank in case things get locked down again. I’m beat though.

At least I got a couple of days notice for this one. Still, it was touch and go getting there in time. I found out that I had to do a set at Donegan School at 10:30 am to wrap up the residency, which was just when I should be leaving for CT. I was able to switch things with Touchstone Theater to do my set with Names to the Animals at 10 am to start off the showcase (it was great) and then pack up and take off for Madison.

I got to town with a half hour to spare and set up under the big ole tree facing the pathway and started at 3 pm. Per usual, the first hour or so was playing to Madison’s gentry walking by with there artisanal veggies and sea food with nary a glance (or tip). Although my first tip was from a gentleman who through in a $2 bill. I laughed and lost my place in the song.

Eventually, some kids with moms, grandmoms and a few dads stopped by and we dug into the bag of instruments and connected. It seemed that there were fewer folks in town this time; perhaps vacations out of town. It was nice to strike up conversations with various folks, including a couple of women who were starting to play uke.

It was a long trip back through Friday evening traffic but I got home about 10 pm. I have Saturday morning off. Decent tips, and, surprisingly, I still enjoy getting out of Bethlehem for this monthly excursion. Perhaps that’s why I do it.

I was all warmed up for this one, having played a couple of gigs the day before, I set up in my usual spot with my small PA and up and running on time at 9:30. There were few folks out this Sunday, but the usual assortment of dog owners brought out the hounds for a little sniff or two. (There is a organic dog treat stand off to my right that gathers a regular crowd…)

I really like the opportunity to stretch my adult chops, pull out some tunes I’ve put up on FB recently (some Beatles stuff) and work on lyrics, tone, etc. just for kicks. Just play to the field.

Eventually a couple of kids, moms and dads stop by and we dig into the bag o’ instruments. The Clatterpillar is a new favorite. One young boy saw me across the field and zoned in on me, as I did him. A big ole grin hit his face. He was young enough to be pre-verbal but delighted in handing out shakers to others. Incredible connection.

A young mom brought her one-year old up in a carrier and plopped her right down in front. This little girl was amazing. She picked up a shaker and a small tamborine and started right in on the music, often using both hands (!!!) and occasionally vocalizing some joy. She was quite the audience to play to, and folks picked up on her fun.

Part of the success of this gig is not necessarily the tips (though appreciated) but how the older folk watch and enjoy the kids getting involved. I end up giving out several Peanut Butter CD’s to the parents, just to get the music in their ears.

It really is a three-ring circus, and I have the best seat. I played well, got paid and headed out for a music jam in Lancaster. Busy weekend.

It’s been a long time coming. I returned to one of my regular farmers’ markets and one that requires a somewhat foolish loyalty on my schedule. I used to live in this coastal town in Madison so it is an effort to remember my days raising a family in New England during the 2000’s, leaving the stability of my life in the Lehigh Valley and re-settling in a new environment. It’s not without some bittersweet memories, though.

It seems that no matter what time I leave for CT, I manage to pick up enough traffic on the way to always make it possible to arrive with ten minutes to spare. Yup, it happened today. Friday’s on I-95.

I like to set up in the flow of the market as shoppers walk by: picking up flowers, fish and fresh greens. Usually, the clientele walks right by and I get very little in tips – amazing considering the wealth of this demographic. Today was a bit friendlier though, as seems to be the case with the re-opening of our society.

As kids and families walked past, I engaged them with my bag of instruments and it works marvelously. I’ve changed my model a little in that I’ll give the folks one of my kids’ CDs gratis, mostly because I have a ton of them that will never sell, and also because I want to add the legacy of their family experience. Often, the folks are moved to throw some cash into the mando case, too.

As the afternoon moves on, I turn my chair around to face the beautiful open green and play to the families that have now begun to gather on blankets in the open, bringing out snacks, eating pizza from the market’s vendor. The folks often meet up with other young families, bring out grandparents and socialize. It’s an interesting two-part gig for me.

The kids gather in front of me, dive into the instruments, puppets and scarves and they give me a chance to work with the kids on an individual basis. I also get to see some of the kids grow over the several seasons that I’ve performed there. I still marvel that the parents send the kids up with a dollar for mando-case, and my snide inner self says silently, “Ah, yes. Teaching them the value of underpaying the artists in your community.” Even so, I felt glad that I pulled in more $5’s s this year and a general increase in tips.

I feel the appreciation of the vendors, as well. One kind woman from the vegetable stand threw in a tip and a thanks, and the cheese lady across the way gave me a chunk o’ cheese at the end of the day.

The day was made complete by a social visit to my friends Ron and Susan up in Northford for a little picking party later that evening. I haven’t seen these good friends in a long time, and my soul soaked up the love we share. I decided to head home afterwards, thinking the traffic would be smooth sailing, but not so. Lots of time for podcasts. Still, even though I’m whipped today, it was worth the trip.

 

This opportunity cropped up with only a few days notice, a return to my neighborhood farmers’ market a block from my place up on the Lehigh lower campus. I was glad to get the call from Deb. This farmers’ market is sponsored by Lehigh so there’s a nice check involved and I know some of the vendors from other sites.

It’s pretty sparse this year, with few students on campus and fewer vendors than before. The site is different and I was glad that Deb moved the musician’s tent down into the middle of the square, among the vendors and with nearby electricity. I set up my small system around 11 am and set out into a two hour set.

I appreciate the chance to exercise my rather expanded repertoire, so I was able to pull out some of the tunes I’ve done during my Kitchen Sessions, put them in play in public for the first time. It felt good.

As usual, the vendors and the market manager were really appreciative of the music, especially since there’s not a lot of traffic this year. It was interesting to see some of the students turn their ears to the music as they drifted by. They figured something’s going on here, still not quite sure what….

 

One of my local farmers’ markets kicked off their Saturday series of markets and I was asked to help with the festivities. The area has been refurbished and some old and new vendors were there. It was a beautiful day, as well.

I found a nice central area to work from, among the various vendors and I got started at 9:30 am. The place was quite active, and I believe that it was because of the lifting of the Covid protocols, the great weather and a lot of cabin fever. The energy was evident.

I started working with some of the kids that stopped by, playing with instruments from the open bag of shakers. As usual, a nice variety of toddlers, as well as some preteens as well. The interaction was rich and the vendors surrounding me picked up on it, as well. (I got some hurrahs from some as I was packing up to go home.

 

I was pulling in $5 tips along with the usual $1 ones, and I had a record haul of around $90, with a few CD sales thrown in. Great conversations along the way with a jazz drummer, a fellow TA artist who wants to do a video shoot from my kitchen, and numerous interactions with kids.

A great day in the park.

Early Sunday morning at the SVFM

Well, well, well. Three gigs within a week! Amazing.

I really appreciate this two hour Sunday morning gig at this Hellertown farmers’ market. I get to play songs I want to play and some I need to play, and I get to gauge what I need to work on. As usual, I had the mental gaps in the lyrics to tunes I should know, I flubbed the melodies to others and I realize how much this lack of live performances shapes my chops. But, it seems my guitar playing is staying sharp.

It was in the mid-40’s this morning, but no wind and I was dressed for the occasion. I didn’t have the dry hands I had last week, so it turned out to be a good day for playing. Not a lot of folks out, and certainly not as many kids/families these days. I did a couple of Jerry Jeff songs – Little Bird and Bojangles – and they came off well with all the respect that they deserve. He is on my Mount Rushmore of songwriters and FB was awash with stories and tales of his rapscallion ways.

I was able to engage with some folks including a young girl Melody who apparently is a gifted musician, though she was quite shy with me. Another woman, Marie, parked herself right down nearby and it was nice to have someone within earshot to play with and for. She picked up a tambourine and proceeded to do “interpretive” tambouring, as I call it. It was a pleasure to make conversation with her.

I enjoy the repartee with the vendors, and I know they enjoy what I bring to the event. The orchard ladies gave me some apples, the mushroom man some fresh shrooms (I worked up Feat’s It’s So Easy to Slip for him this week, the biscuit lady wants me to include her biscuits with the peanut butter man and the pepper jelly lady in my next visit, so I know they are listening.

The time goes quickly and the weather was remarkably good for a late October Sunday. I came away energized.

 

How exciting! Another gig!

I do welcome these farmers’ market gigs. They give me two hours to work on my material, refresh myself with the tunes that I put up on FB the week before and play for the public.

It was in the 40’s when I began after the first frost of the season the night before. I was a little concerned but I found the chill less onerous than the dryness of my hands. My picks were falling off my fingers and I had a tough time with my flat pick. I asked Angela if she had any moistener and she went out and bought some from one of the vendors and laid it on me. It worked and she gave me the jar. That was wonderful. And, it worked.

Things warmed up fairly quickly and, by the end, I was in the sunshine doing fine. The vendors appreciate what I do – the peanut butter man was dancing while I played I Like Peanut Butter and the veggie lady next to me was chatting with me during the two hours. She also picked out two fine tomatoes and gave them to me as a tip at the end. It’s the little things.

Various folks stopped by to chat (masked) and it was nice to connect with them. Lots of dogs on leashes, dog folk talking with each other. The vendors say business is way off, but still it does the heart good to see people out talking with each other, being normal.

I had new strings on for the occasion and I played well. I picked up tomatoes, mushrooms, peanut butter, sweet potatoes and many masked smiles today, along with a check and some grateful tips. A good way to spend a Sunday morning. I have my last one next week.

 

It was a cloudy day but temps in the upper 60’s. Good enough. Chatting with the vendors, there’s fewer folks coming to the market the last couple of weeks, though I thought it was wonderful to see folks out at all. Still, not enough to make a living for these folks.

I set up under the pop-up tent with my sound system and launched in. Having done three hours on Friday, this was a relative breeze and I was certainly warmed up. It was a good chance to lay out some of the newer tunes I had put up on FB in the last week: Simple Gifts, Goodtime Charlie, Deep River Blues, and they all sounded strong.

Several families stopped by and I opened up my bag so that the kids could play tambourines, clatterpillars and maracas. I’m feeling better about these opportunities, with the kids distanced, masked and with parents at hand. We had some very nice interactions, and these make the gig meaningful.

One woman gave me a bouquet of flowers out of the blue and the mushroom man tossed a big handful of extra ‘shrooms in the bag. It was a very nice gig, but not much on the horizon for a while.

Not many posts on this site these days, since I’ve kind of used my blog to catalogue my professional life as a performer. But a nice gig fell into my lap on Wednesday for a Friday Farmers’ Market gig. I jumped on it.

There is a small farmers’ market on the Greenway in South Bethlehem, only a few blocks from my home. I signed up for three hours from 2:30 to 5:30 pm and headed down to the site with my sound system in hand if I needed it. Turns out that acoustic was just fine. The site was the nice park extension/amphitheater next to Touchstone Theater and was an elegant place to play. I brought my bag of instruments in case some kids passed by, but found it unnecessary. Few kids and few families. Lots of jogging Lehigh students though which kept my visual scroll amused for the day.

Small vendors were spaced out along the Greenway with an ice cream stand across from me and a home bakery Bread! to my left and Jennie’s a little further down the path. There was a slow flow of folks stopping by, but an interesting assortment of local folks, walkers, joggers, bevies of blond Lehigh women, and occasional curious folks out for a stroll on a nice, autumn day. Very pleasant.

The ice cream lady and the bakery woman were a fine audience. In fact, the Bread! lady commented that she had brought her kids to see me at Musikfest through the years (not an uncommon comment), and her young daughter had done I Like Peanut Butter for Show and Tell a long time ago. She was kind enough to give me a breakfast pastry (which I just finished off) as a tip. I had to pay for my cup of chocolate ice cream, though. (I didn’t mind supporting her business)

I had three hours to fill so I jumped right in. I did pretty well though I struggle with some lyrics that I really should know by now (I Wanna Be a Dog), so there was some rust, but, for the most part, the playing was really solid and I had plenty of material. I’ve been woodshedding with my daily FB posts but some songs have disappeared over the horizon since I don’t have gigs like this to play the songs regularly. Still, it felt really good to be playing in public again. The three hours didn’t exactly fly, but I found myself at the end in good shape, my voice a tad ragged but my fingers, mind and spirit in good shape. Can’t ask for more.

I have the Saucon Valley FM on Sunday – only a two hour gig – so that will seem like a walk in the park.  I really miss my frequent FM gigs this summer. They really kept my chops and my repertoire strong.

This was the first farmers’ market gig for this summer. The Saucon Valley folks started up music a week ago, so I was able to start this Sunday. It was a relatively hot morning but pleasant as I set up at the far end of the library lawn. Vendors were spaced out, as things are these days. Masks were mandatory by all and folks rolled on through to get their veges, fruit and other supplies.

Today, I decided to set up my small PA since my usual up-close routine wasn’t going to work. I’m comfortable these days playing through it, and it’s not overbearing at all. It’s fun playing guitar through an amp.

As I went through my repertoire, a few folk gave me thumbs up and others tossed a buck or two in the mandolin case. Still, not a big moneymakers so I’m glad the market pays me up front. The organizers and a few vendors appreciated the affect. And, as usual, I got to exercise my songs, practice guitar and try to connect as best I can.

One small family cruised through the fruit stand next to me, and while the mom was shopping, one small boy stood there transfixed by the live music situation. So, of course, I played right to him. It was cool. As the mom gather her brood to go home, I offered her my Peanut Butter CD, thinking they would enjoy the music later. I was frankly surprised when she refused and surprised that I took offence myself. Upon reflection, times are quite different now, and I can she how she wouldn’t take any chances by accepting from me. Still, it made me think how society has changed in the last few months, with little social connection and trust.

Still, I was glad to be out playing in the community, outside of my apartment and making a difference in a small way.

There’s a change in the weather coming and I was lucky that this afternoon, there was only a misting rain with temps in the mid 60’s. A strong front will be coming in later tonight so I’m glad I got this gig in beforehand. Due to the rain, there were few folks at the market and none settled into the wet chairs. So, it was me and the vendors, and I do know they listen. Deb, the market manager, had a good time and I felt like I was auditioning for more gigs next season. (My beef with this market is the few gigs I get in my own neighborhood. I would think that “locally resourced” would be a plus.)

I played strong. I love the acoustics of this square; it is a large brick box, and, with my small vocal/guitar amp, I sound pretty big. As usual, my 000-15 roared and made for an enjoyable two hours of tunes. I’m glad that I take on these low-pay, multi-hour gigs for the season, and I could feel the difference today. My repertoire is in good shape, my playing is firm and my vocals strong.

I’m going to miss these farmers’ markets over the winter. I’m a better musician for the work.

This was the last farmers’ market here (one left at Campus Square at the end of the month) and it was a little slow, as expected, and a grayish 60 degrees. Not so bad. I set up under a pop-up in the middle of the market and plowed right in. With few kids early on, I get to play my adult stuff, and songs I need some work on. I get a good view of the market in action, especially how the vendors find time to chat and support each other during the morning. As kids and families stop by, I aim right at the kids. It’s particularly fun to engage them eye to eye, often beneath the radar of the parents. They immediately tune in.

The two hours pass quickly and I enjoy chatting with folks who stop by. As I packed up, the vendor next to me said, “You’re done so soon?” I said that I signed up for two hours and that, actually, what I do is pretty intense. She agreed. It takes quite some effort for me to gauge the scene, figure out what to play next and deliver the lyrics with meaning and play guitar or mandolin to the best of my ability. I try to play my instruments as if they were plugged in to an amp, mindful of the totality of the sound.

After several months of farmers’ markets, I’m glad that my repertoire is toned and strong, most of my songs are fit and my chops are in good shape. I guess this why I do these low profile, low pay and no amplification gigs. And I get to work with the kids and all the challenges that they bring to a live gig. Live Art!

It’s a good thing.

I felt the burden of five hours of performing and nine hours of travel over the last two days when I set up and started to play at 9:30 am on Saturday morning. Even though it is only a couple of miles from home (not CT as the day before), the major Celtic Classic was in town and it took all of my local driving smarts to avoid the festival, the joggers’ road race, and general traffic mayhem to find my way to the Rose Garden. Regardless, I got there in time, set up my chairs, bag, mando/tip case, my mandolin and guitar and started on time.

My strings were dead (and extremely hard to tune) from all my recent gigs and my voice was shot but I was up and running. Even though I play straight through for two hours, the time passes quickly, with various friendly faces passing through, kids, grandmoms and parents stopping by to engage with the music and a quite wonderful and temperate fall morning in PA.

I realized at the end that this was the last Rose Garden Farmers’ Market for the season. I chatted with Mary, the market manager, as I finished packing up, and she shared her appreciation for my work. The vendors all comment on how the music adds to the atmosphere (something that is not immediately apparent to me) and energizes the scene.

I took some time to change my dead strings for Saturday night’s showcase in NJ, and then headed to my friend/vendor who saves me some tomatoes to take home. Today, I copped some peppers, some sunflowers from the flower vendor and some goat cheese from the Flint Hill folks. These are the things that keep me grounded in my community.

It was another long haul up to my old home town of Madison to play on the Madison Green for this farmers’ market. It’s an upscale market which presents its own challenges and a few rewards. I enjoy the challenges.

Folks come early to buy the fish market’s scallops, etc. and form a line waiting for the 3 pm start. I sometimes point my chair right at the line of clientele (since there are no kids at this point) and play some pretty good acoustic music for them. Absolutely none of them even approach my tip case. There is no recognition of my art.

So, I turn my chair to the empty village green, spread out my bag of instruments and troll for kids and families. I mix stuff I want to play (adult) and respond when kids, parents and grandparents get the idea that we will play together. Over the course of the three (3!!!) hours, I am able to connect on this micro-level with kids and their folks. It really is pretty intense work, but I’m good at it. For the last hour, young families gather on the green, the dads talk with the dads, the moms talk with the moms and I deal with their kids. If folks are engaged within my radius, there are some very precious moments. And that’s what I work for.

This is a particularly parsimonious community. I really struggle to make some tips. (Yes, I get paid $100 for the gig) But I gauge my engagement with the tips. It’s a sign that people value my craft.

I often am glad that the parents put a dollar in their kids hands to put in the mando case. That’s part of the acknowledgement. Today, I reflected on the fact that they give the kids a dollar. What value does that imply, not only for the kid but for the parent. I’ve entertained your kids while you socialize with your friends. That’s pretty big bang for your buck.

Very few of the upwardly mobile dads care and are busy taking a meeting with their buds. Especially when I asked for folks to retrieve my instruments, scarves and puppets that are now scattered about the green. This is Connecticut Culture and it’s what drove me insane during my ten years up here.

I frankly enjoy the trip up and back in my car. I have time to ingest full CD’s, my old radio shows and some leftist podcasts that keep my mind engaged. I guess that’s why I do this.

My gig at my local farmers’ market finally rolled around on Thursday, four months into the season. I’ve had a beef with this market for a couple of years. I used to play here every six weeks or so, and felt that it was my contribution to my neighborhood. I also thought that I was providing quality and a personal aspect to this event. I am locally sources, to say the least. But. the powers that be have decided that a wide diversity of players is what they want, and I can’t dispute that. But, the quality has been quite spotty though there have been pleasant surprises.

As usual, they booked me for a children’s day and there were none to be seen. So that gave me the opportunity to bang out my good stuff. I like the arena – an acoustic village square with buildings on three sides. I am able, with my small guitar/vocal amp, to fill the space while not being too loud to disrupt the business chatter with the vendors and their clients. Not everyone has these sensibilities.

A couple of acquaintances stopped by to listen and that made me sharped my playing. Curiously, when I began, a group of Lehigh coeds were eating lunch at a table up front. Amazingly I was able to divert some of their attention to my music (and chat) to the point that one girl bought my Troubadour CD! That made my day.

It was a nice day with a hint of a passing shower but it felt good to be playing once again only a block from home. I still felt like I was auditioning for the market manager though, trying to prove to her that I should play here regularly. It remains a battle to remain relevant.

It was starting to get hot as I headed out to Macungie for the LV Fiber Fest, an interesting gathering of woollies, spinners and knitters who celebrate the weaving arts. The folks who book me appreciate my folk approach and hire me with glee annually. Since I had a morning gig, they said it was fine to do a 2 pm – 4 pm set in the park. It was during the waning hours of the weekend festival, so I was glad that could play for them, and they were gracious in letting me play late in the festivities.

I set up in the shade near one of the pavilions under a big old tree, with picnic tables and vendors nearby. Folks would stop by to eat ice cream sundries, sit for a spell as the spouses shopped or as a curiosity. One elder couple set up for the duration – folks who are familiar to me from Musikfest gigs, et al. So I was able to play for them and we had a very nice conversational chat and music exchange. This really made for a enjoyable afternoon for me.

Things were relatively sparse when I played, with women drifting by with bags of yarn, and, as in other similar gigs, I was there for the vendors, as well. A few kids engaged with me with a mom and gave me a chance to work my kids’ material. But, as the day drew to a close, I was feeling fatigue and some hand spasms from the long day.

I was whipped by the end of the day and a Rita’s Gelatti helped heal me for the ride home. I made some good money this weekend, especially in Trenton, but it is hard work. I have Monday off.

I signed up for four hours of music today with the Saucon Valley Farmers’ Market in the morning and the LV Fiber Festival in Macungie in the mid-afternoon. Both were two-hour sets of informal music for the passing crowd and a good way to recover from the less-than-satisfying gig in Trenton the day before. I was still bushed from that gig but headed out to Hellertown around 9 am.

Another beautiful day with temperatures headed to the upper 80’s. I set up in the middle of the market today, with vendors on all sides for a change and started in. With few kids at this hour I was able to work on my adult stuff, pound the guitar and hit the ground running. It felt good. A few kids stopped by for a song or two, but, over all, it was a light traffic day. Still, there are lots of familiar faces who walk by, a couple of fan-kids and fan-adults who are delighted that I play at this farmers’ market.

One elder woman stops by who lives nearby and always buys a CD, kids’ or not. We’ve started a conversation about her stalking me, and we chuckled about that today. She claims she didn’t know I was playing today. That’s the beauty of playing locally. The vendors also appreciate the music throughout the gig and that’s pretty cool, too.

I packed up around 11:30 and had about a hour to recuperate before heading to Macungie.

I had a good day on Saturday with the Rose Garden FM and a nice pickin’ party in the late afternoon. I woke up to another spectacular day, cool temps overnight, clear weather for my Saucon Valley FM at 9:30 in the morning. Again I set up early, changed the rest of my strings and settled in. Kids and families rolled up pretty quickly so I had to launch in with the kids stuff early, with little time to let my strings adjust. But, the bag emptied out early and the kids were engaged while the parents chatted with their friends while we played.

One family had a bunch of requests that helped me round out my set: I’m Gonna Tell, Jimalong Josie, Tropical Vacation and some others that I don’t normally perform. That was a great exercise and always a way to find out which songs the kids gravitate to, outside of the “hits”. There were some pretty funny exchanges with the adults over the set, and that helps me stay in the game. As the kids moved on, I had a chance to lean into my more folk-rock material and let the few kids left wail on tambourines, et al.

Lately, I’ve been selling CDs and getting some good $1 tips from families, a few vendors and the occasional older woman who appreciates what I do with the kids.

The mushroom man.

I packed up, put stuff in the car and cruised the market. Picked up some shrooms and a shallot from the mushroom man who wants more Little Feat (he used to produce rock concerts toward Philly), a fresh biscuit and a can of mead for later tonight.

It was another good session at the market.