Brighton And Hove: Buskers

So you think you know Brighton...

Well you don't until you've...

Listened to the buskers.

It's no secret that Brighton is a very creative city. Everyone living here is either a DJ (Fatboy Slim has a house tucked away somewhere) a painter (check this place out, it's really cool Pheonix) a writer (Peter James and Sarah Rayner both live local) or of course, a musician. 

Buskers playing live music on the streets are almost as common as pebbles on the beach here. With one or two exceptions they are all very much well worth a listen. When out and about don't be surprised to come upon a young man with an acoustic guitar. He looks like he's just stepped out of a boy band. Or a woman, lost in her own enchanted world, playing a full-sized golden harp. You might even find upright piano just off the beach, played by an enthusiastic gentleman in a morning suit and plimsoles. They're all down here making music as much for fun, as they are to pay their way in life.

Take a stroll around the lanes, a wander through any park, or a ramble along the lawns in Hove (Actually),  you're guaranteed to hear music in one form or another. A solo flute or a double bass made from a broom handle and an upturned dustbin, may not be your cup of tea but have a listen anyway, you might change your mind.

There are no hard and fast rules on where to find buskers but I can almost guarantee you'll something somewhere. Take a trip to the Brighton Pavilion gardens.

If the sun is out it's a wonderful place to sit on the grass and hear the gentle tones of a hang drum. Or, if you prefer the beach, head to the Upsidedown House.

Here there is a plaza in which musicians and even entire bands like to play. All around are boutique shops selling weird and wonderful, often unique, items of clothing. Just mind out for the roller skaters and skateboarders, they're flipping everywhere.

As a resident of Brighton, I have several favourites. Tori Sheard, a singer-songwriter from Nottingham, and the oddly named Fukushima Dolphin, who do wonderful things with a loop box, are both well worth a listen. In my eyes they are brilliant!!!

Shopping near the Upsidedown House