September 2003
Sam Lindo, the busking blues man |
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| Sam Lindo : Busking outside the
Broadmarsh |
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Blues man - Sam Lindo
- has been busking around Nottingham city centre for the past two
years.
Interview by Joe Sinclair |
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| SEE ALSO
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Notts people:
Window
cleaner , Hendrix Dead Boy
Fruit
trader, Tony Gordon
Pub
landlord, Pete Beletzan
Blues
man, Sam Lindo
Mr
Gay Nottingham
Miss
Nottingham
Ms
Lesbian Nottingham
Ebony
Gilbert, actress
Rachel
Grant, actress
Andrea
Lowe, actress
Micaiah
Dring, actress
Michael
Dawson, footballer
Chris
Cooke, director
Samantha
Thompson, student
Kate
Rowley-Jones, actress
Carl
Froch, boxer |
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| FACTS |
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Sam moved to Nottingham in 1967 from Jamaica
Sam has been busking in Nottingham city centre for the past
two years
His single - Love Reality- is in Fopp and HMV and he's working
on an album
He is looking for a bass player to join him
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I was born in the West Indies, Jamaica, but
my parents came here from the early 50s. I was left with my grandparents.
In 1967 I came here to join my parents and family in Nottingham.
We lived in the Sherwood area.
I got married and went to London for a while and lived there,
then I came back here and IÂ’ve lived here for about five or six
years now. I started doing music again, you know.
If I can play music, make somebody feel good, put a smile
on somebodyÂ’s face, I feel worth my while [laughs].
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| Sam Lindo, busker |
IÂ’ve been doing the blues down here almost
two years now. This is one of my favourite spots. People seem to like
what IÂ’m doing and look forward to hearing me come in or whatever.
Any strange requests? Oh yeah definitely,
all the time. All sorts really. Let me seeÂ… Postman Pat. But
normally just anything from Jimi Hendrix, Elvis Presley, Oasis and
so forth.
We get people dancing, people drunk. ItÂ’s quite cool actually.
I got my first guitar from my Dad
when I was 14. Over the years IÂ’ve been playing the guitar and
also the keyboard. ThatÂ’s my main interest really. ItÂ’s
music, you know.
In the early days I tried to run a
few bands but I found it very stressful [laughs] so I sort of went
solo.
IÂ’m trying to get some backing musicians. I met a very
good drummer last week, sounds very good. So IÂ’m now looking
for a bass player. I feel we could go places, you know.
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| Sam Lindo, "between 40 and 60",
Top Valley, Nottingham |
IÂ’m working on an album. I took a single
off it which IÂ’ve just brought out. If I may take the opportunity
to say, itÂ’s available at the moment in HMV [laughs] and Fopp,
up the road from here. Love's Realities itÂ’s called, but itÂ’s
under my name, Sam Lindo.
Nottingham certainly has changed. For instance years ago was
all traffic all along here. Now people can walk about, do their shopping,
and can sit and relax, you know... enjoy what IÂ’m doing.
The thing that concerns me, when I first came here I found
people were very respectful. Especially young people respected the
elders, you know, very courteous, very pleasant, but that seems to
have gone down the drain now, you know.
I used to like the spirit of the English people. I think they
have a lot to offer to the world in mannerism, in courteousness, things
like that, that I did really appreciate when I first came here. I
learned a lot from that. And I think itÂ’s a great language, English
is.
The respect seems to have gone. Although I mustnÂ’t complain.
I hope to see it get back to that level of respect and honour and
good behaviour, good attitude.
ItÂ’s a shame that this city has come to be known as one
that is violent. I do hope that that will be rectified soon. People
just need to respect one another.
WeÂ’re all here to live and let live. When I do play my
music I do hope that itÂ’s contributing something.
I try to play the music that makes people feel good. Because
I think music is a wonderful creation, you know, of God. I think itÂ’s
just as important as food or clothing. ItÂ’s a spiritual thing
which was made for the hearing. WeÂ’re made with five senses.
Your eyes are made to see and I think your ears are made for music.
You all come on down and hear what I can do [laughs]. IÂ’m
here most of the time during the day. Normally Friday night and Saturday
night IÂ’m up by Long Road entertaining the people. |
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