SONGS ON THE BUSKING YEARS ALBUM

 The ‘Busking Years’ Album
by
Steven Tripp and Friends

              

Off  The Street        

The Rat Race      

Better Keep Rocking        

The Local Pub Nightclub                      

The Big Smoke City                

The Safety Catch      

Slaves To Love      

The Bad Old Boys        

Is it Real             

The Blood of Jesus      

Never Gonna Do it       

The Tipi Song              

Actions Speak Louder Than  Words    

The Trail of Broken Hearts

                                  

These first draft demo recordings and lyrics are for musicians, singers and others to familiarize with the material in my recorded catalogue which amounts to three unsigned albums. The sound quality of these early recordings is the best that could be achieved at the time and it may explain the reason the entire catalogue has to be re-recorded.  Some of the lead vocals on the albums are from recent busking shows and other events I performed at.  All lyrical content in this song list are copyright to myself and musical collaborators are mentioned where applicable if their contributions were included in any recorded version.  All persons who believe they have a valid claim to copyright can contact the email address attached to this document.

        

The hay day of my busking career was a thrill a minute joyride through the extravagant and hedonistic years of the nineteen eighties.  The streets of Kings Cross in Sydney were alive with busking activity which spilled into the ‘New Bohemian’ cafés and nightclubs of my red light district playground. 

My personal theme song is ‘Off The Street’ and it makes me feel like Jack Keroak’s bastard son every time I sing it. The ‘Rat Race’ describes my fast lane existence in the urban jungle as I vowed to beat the odds and be first at the finishing line. The period where this struggling Busker worked as a Stage Roadie for bands who were playing at the old ‘Manzil Room’ is celebrated in ‘Better Keep Rocking’. The late night bars and clubs that came after the Manzil Room were my favourite hangouts and they provided the inspiration for ‘The Local Pub Nightclub’. ‘The Big Smoke City’ is a warts and all celebration of the metropolis with a distinctive Cabaret flavour. ‘The Safety Catch’ compares love to a loaded gun that can blow up in your face at any time. ‘Slaves To Love’ sends out a seasoned bachelors warning to the fairer sex to approach with caution. ‘The Bad Old Boys’  is an anthem for the all singing, all dancing larrikins of the world. ‘Is it real?’  is for those who have ever stopped to ponder the sheer magnitude of their own existence.  ‘The Blood of Jesus’ offers a street level commentary on alcohol abuse with a subtle message of moderation. ‘Never Gonna Do it’ has a private chuckle at the promises we all make in love.  The ‘Tipi Song’ was composed in Nimbin on the Northern Rivers of New South Wales when the busking trail and the hippy trail crossed paths, with boys on one side and girls on the other.

Battered by the soul destroying turmoils of on again, off again relationships‘Actions Speak Louder Than Words’ is soulful lament spiced with regret and longing.  ‘The Trail of Broken Hearts’ ends the album with an, easy gouing country ballad dedicated to the many loves our wandering street entertainers encountered on their journey through the ‘Busking Years’.

                                                                                                                     Steven Tripp