Oliver and I were sitting on the steps of the Perpignan Public Library on Tuesday afternoon drinking our orange juice when a young man with a guitar wandered along and sat down about 10 feet away and started quietly strumming. Oliver noticed that he was drinking orange juice too.
A few minutes later another man, a little older and drinking a bottle of beer, came alone and, out of nowhere, starting singing the most beautiful music at the top of his lungs.
Words cannot do justice to how good a singer he was. Neither can this low-grade recording I made with my phone, although it will give you a little idea. A motorcycle sped down the street just after I started recording; towards the end Oliver starting singing himself, and asked me if he could dance.
Comments
Sounds Romany. Go see Latcho Drom at once.
That Amazon link wonn’t trigger the clip as I hope but it does take you to the right page. For comparison to the phone recording may I recommend track 16 “Ramona”
Speaking of “most beautiful,” I wouldn’t be surprised if for a month or two French Romany music was the most popular music in the world by way of Django Reinhardt.
Busking is an even bigger Romany stereotype than stealing chickens. If UNESCO had a list of World Heritage Cliches, what you and wee Oliver were priveleged to hear, would have been one of them. And you say you’re not one for monuments!