The Sound Of The Suburbs

There is nothing new in selling songs via the megastore, local record shop or even the internet, but performing a song live for the benefit of an exclusive audience on a doorstep is a tad unusual.
Before you think I'm harking back to a by-gone age of troubadours and street characters, allow me to introduce Sean 'Almost A Legend' O'Neill, who is a self-styled wandering minstrel bringing his songs live and direct to the doorsteps of sleepy and subdued suburbs.
Sean formerly worked as a photographer, pioneering a self-styled mobile studio method of working which was to prepare him for the rather more demanding role of knocking on doors with a guitar slung across one shoulder and a bagful of CDs on the other. He has only been writing songs for the last 18 months, and this Janaury he packed in the day job in a chocolate factory in favour of a full-time stint as a wandering minstrel.
Hot Press lensman Cathal Dawson and myself shadow Sean for an afternoon to capture his wandering minstreling in action around the dozy estates of Stillorgan. We meet in Stillorgan Shopping Centre for a quick coffee and a photoshoot.
Allen Park is today s port of call. Sean doesn't have a set salesman-like spiel, but a brief and flexible introduction along the lines of: "Hello! I'm a Wandering Minstrel! I'm promoting my own CD and I gave up the day-job in January. I'd love to play you a song live and unplugged on your doorstep, and if you like it you can give me a pound and if you really like it you can buy a CD!" The most common reaction is a mixture of bafflement and pleasant surprise, followed by a politely muttered excuse along the lines of "I'm looking after the baby", or "I'm very busy at the moment."
Predictably, Sean strikes gold when Cathal and myself are half-way down the street and way out of sight. The small doorstep audience kindly agrees to a few photographs as Sean performs 'Like An Old 45'. Three children look on enraptured, while their beaming mother, delighted with this alternative diversion, tips Sean a pound before we go on our merry minstrelling way.
A beautiful cherry blossom tree in full bloom provides an unmissable photo-opportunity. The housekeeper is busy tending a street-side flower bed when Sean politely interrupts him for a tune. After initial reluctance, the kind old man is fascinated by this request. "If I had had even half of your confidence I would have been made!" he remarks. Sean tries to gently cajole him into getting out the violin from his house (Sean also dabbled in violin making for a few years) but the man who introduces himself as Brendan kindly declines and chooses to listen intently.
After serenading Allen Park from under a cherry blossom tree, Sean 'Creating His Own Legend' O'Neill stumbles across a bunch of workmen clearing a garden who are eager for a short musical interlude. 'Looking For A Woman (But Not Looking Too Hard)' clearly strikes a chord and provokes a smile from the weary workers. They all chip in a few quid and Sean gives them a CD, encouraging them to tape the album for one another.
It s been a wonderful afternoon, although possibly not the most profitable from Sean's point of view but that s what you get when you have a photographer and journo in tow. We're ruminating on the afternoon's activity over coffee, and I ask Sean if he ever gets disillusioned to the point of wanting to pack it all in and return to the day job.
"No, never. Sure, it might get really boring at times. Row after row of empty houses can get very boring. But I don't see it as salesmanship, and when people decline I just go about my way. The way I think about it is, why should I spend a fortune on promotion of my music when I can bring it directly to people's doorsteps? It's not about selling music, but connecting with people through music.
"I remember someone asking me what I wanted from life, and I thought that I wanted to be a peacemaker. I see it sometimes as a way of challenging people's conformity. But I don't believe in labelling people as hippies or straights or any of that nonsense. For me, songs are the strongest medium of reaching people, and I want to meet everyone in the world!"
I hope that someday soon you'll have the pleasure of meeting Sean because he definitely wants to meet you! Shine on.
Sean 'Almost A Legend' O'Neill's song collection Losers And Sinners is available from Freebird Records, Burgh Quay, Dublin 1 priced only #9.99, or from a doorstep near you!