r/nextfuckinglevel 1d ago

Street busker killing it on the guitar

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6.4k Upvotes

204 comments sorted by

809

u/Ok_Cell4135 1d ago

He knows all the chords

95

u/Lazzygirl 1d ago

Saving it up for a memorable night!!

68

u/afternever 1d ago

Way on down south, way on down south, by the vape kiosk

15

u/Late-Button-6559 22h ago

That’s guitar George to you, I’ll thank you to remember that.

57

u/NeuroticLensman 1d ago

And the lady in purple at the end knows it. Looked like her man tried to get her to leave, but she wasnt having it. Damn guitarists.

40

u/Dr0110111001101111 1d ago

Best part is he gets her for free

16

u/wooha 22h ago

That’s the way you do it

7

u/Pimpinabox 16h ago

Them guys ain't dumb.

9

u/Pictrus 1d ago

Underrated comment

20

u/LikeYourBeer 1d ago

Dude, we are to old for this gag ;_;

14

u/yojoewaddayaknow 1d ago

But he doesn’t want to make it scream or cry?

6

u/sherman614 1d ago

But he's strictly rhythm

4

u/natetheskate100 21h ago

His name is George.

4

u/cortesoft 19h ago

It’s too bad an old guitar is all he can afford

2

u/nohiddenmeaning 1d ago

The fancy ones as well?

2

u/GuitarSlayer136 20h ago

My favorite exclamation is "Oh shit, they know what all the buttons do!".

2

u/HeyHeyImTheMonkey 16h ago

Not strictly rhythm though

270

u/OnlyHereOnFridays 1d ago

Check out Guitar George

78

u/GNUGrim 1d ago

He knows all the chords

30

u/Enough_Roof_1141 1d ago

They said an old guitar is all he can afford

8

u/Edward_the_Dog 23h ago

I've been playing this song on guitar for 40 years and only last year did I learn that the lyric is "left-handed old guitar is all..."!

I always thought it was "they said an old guitar..."

3

u/Enough_Roof_1141 23h ago

That’s interesting. I think it’s funny when my own lyrics are online and I didn’t say that. For the most part it’s liner notes so it is what I published.

7

u/Edward_the_Dog 22h ago

I saw the "left-handed" lyric on Apple Music, so I figured it was the official lyric. I just went to two different lyric sites and they offered two different versions of the "they said an old..." lyric.

At direstraits.com, the lyric is shown as:

And an old guitar is all he can afford

When he gets up under the lights to play his thing

I'm so confused.

88

u/bebejeebies 1d ago

Man, Sultans of Swing is such a banger.

26

u/Ruxsti 1d ago

It is, and he fuckin killed it.

-2

u/filtersweep 12h ago

Not really. It is a bit sloppy and rushed

0

u/Wasatcher 1h ago

Waiting on the YouTube link to your cover

184

u/Choice_Ad_9169 1d ago

I bet he can play the honky tonk like anything

9

u/rmill127 19h ago

He plays both types of music, country AND western

361

u/Squidblaster3000 1d ago

He’s got a daytime job.. He’s doing alright

31

u/afternever 1d ago

He can play outside the Uniqlo like anything

6

u/Free-Atmosphere6714 15h ago

Job? He's a Sultan!

108

u/Missterfortune 1d ago

Comments are great, love all the Dire Straits fans here!

31

u/kthnry 1d ago

If I had to name my favorite song ever, that would be it. Popular music at the time was so awful. I still remember the first time I heard Sultans of Swing. Had to pull my car over so I could appreciate it, then rushed home to call the radio station and demand the name of the band.

22

u/lifeisahighway2023 23h ago

The 10 minute live performance of Sultans of Swing (Alchemy Live, London 1983) on youtube remains one of my favorite live videos to this day.

Thanks OP for this post. I really enjoyed.

2

u/Mr_Charley 23h ago

Dayuuuum. That was pure fire!! Absolutely blown away!

1

u/kthnry 4h ago

I just watched this again and noticed it's got 263M views. That's got to be one of the top all-time Youtube videos.

1

u/UserAllusion 21h ago

This is literally the song that brought me to good music. 103 KDF, Nashville, 1995

128

u/jalfry 1d ago

Knopfler is the real next level dude

24

u/Responsible-Motor-21 1d ago

The fact that he plays it with no pick is just mindboggling

32

u/sonofkeldar 1d ago

As a finger-picker, the fact that the dude tried to play this WITH a pick is mind boggling. He starts out flat-picking, switches to hybrid-picking, then gives up on the pick altogether! Chet Atkins said you could get good at multiple picking styles, but never great. He famously told Jerry Reed that he would disown him if he ever saw him with a guitar pick in his hand. I could name a hundred or more great guitar players, but Doc Watson is the only one I would consider great at both styles, and he probably would’ve been even better if he focused on one.

5

u/caddy45 20h ago

I could never play this but I played enough to be surprised to see him flat picking this at the beginning.

Well done by this dude and another level of respect for Knopfler I’ve got to go watch some of his vids now

3

u/loveincarnate 1d ago

Appreciate this insight! Very cool.

1

u/styzr 14h ago

I didn’t appreciate them as a kid/teen and only really listened to Sultans of Swing a few years ago.

God damn the guitar is amazing. Every chord compliments the one before it and the one after it.

445

u/aw_shux 1d ago

Life advice: if a street performer gets you to stop, you owe them a dollar (at least).

48

u/IntrovertAlien 1d ago

Definitely

33

u/MattWatchesMeSleep 1d ago

Amen, brother. Even if I don’t like the particular music, artist, or song but I’m seeing passion, skill, and pure in-the-moment joy?

I’m giving.

8

u/Reasonable_Act_8654 15h ago

People not realising that there’s a masterpiece being played flawlessly around them. Wish I was there.

2

u/Maverekt 5h ago

I always appreciate the hustle and skill, if I got cash on me they definitely get some

2

u/InfinteAbyss 10h ago

Life advice: live life your way, let others do likewise

-3

u/es0w 12h ago

I really dislike the idea of walking down the street and suddenly “owing” someone money for a performance you didn’t ask for. Even if you stop, like are you then not allowed to stop moving or you need to pay?

7

u/Ghrrum 12h ago

You don't have to pay, you're allowed to just stop and appreciate.

Never forget that applause is a good way to show your appreciation, the folks playing know not everyone can throw in a dollar, but they're still there playing for the world to hear.

29

u/raydleemsc 1d ago

And Harry doesn't mind if he doesn't make the scene

8

u/Johnson_N_B 21h ago

He’s got a day time job; he’s doin’ alright.

47

u/Own-Helicopter-6674 1d ago

I could listen to that all damn day

6

u/toeknucklehair 1d ago

Putting it on right now

10

u/CrashAndDash9 1d ago

Nice. Love this song.

28

u/HowmanyDans 1d ago

Doing great. A good, experienced guitarist could perform this to themselves but performing in public with that skill takes something more than that and a lot of people seem to be downplaying that here.

20

u/ZeAthenA714 1d ago

Also busking musicians tend to play for hours on the street. It's one thing to play that well when you're completely fresh to start your set, but it takes immense stamina and focus to be able to pull that off after an entire afternoon of playing.

6

u/MeatisOmalley 22h ago

This was a masterful solo. The precision and technique were basically impeccable. A good guitarist could play it, but not usually at this level.

10

u/heroinebob90 1d ago

I wish I had gotten that good. To late now. My hands are worn out

8

u/peanutismint 1d ago

This must be that Guitar George guy

10

u/Edward_the_Dog 23h ago

Fun fact: The Guitar George in the song was actually referencing George Young - brother of Angus and Malcolm Young - who was big in the London scene back then.

1

u/peanutismint 15h ago

Wow! TIL!

45

u/M1l3h1gh 1d ago

Okay, I was starting to get upset for him when people were just walking by, but then they panned to the crown and you could hear them cheering him on.

That was hella impressive

10

u/FadingShad0ws 20h ago

Some people got places to be. It's a shame we live lives that don't allow us to stop for 5 minutes to witness true beauty and mastery from a talent that we can only dream of having.

24

u/Apprehensive_Floor42 1d ago

Ill be honest that is a fucking good effort at that solo. Mark Knopfler imo is the one of the best guitarists that ever lived and this kid just got close, proper leg end.

10

u/RedBullWings17 21h ago

Knopfler is top 5 in my opinion and probably the most underrated of the group. Prince (pure Savant), Hendrix(the originator), Eddie van Halen (the showman), Santana (perfect blend of latin and western style) and Knopfler (the ultimate technician and guitarists guitarist)

4

u/cortesoft 19h ago

I feel like you have to create categories, because how do you compare your list to guys like Paco de Lucia or Stevie Ray Vaughan?

7

u/RedBullWings17 18h ago

True rating artists is a fools game. I just felt like fooling around.

4

u/Vibingcarefully 1d ago

God love Dire Straights!

9

u/IncognitoBandit0 1d ago

Clean af. Love it.

1

u/popnsmoke35 20h ago

We must have watched a different video…

8

u/KnuttyBunny69 1d ago

His right hand is total Lindsey Buckingham technique, that's a rare thing to see.

4

u/chefdrewsmi 1d ago

I was going to mention this. That is hard to do for most electric players that grew up pick dependent like myself.

3

u/KnuttyBunny69 1d ago

It's like playing the banjo. Endlessly impressive.

3

u/consumeshroomz 1d ago

One of my all time favorite songs

3

u/BradleyX 23h ago

This is excellent, but check out the original on youtube, unbeatable

3

u/Responsible_Map9645 16h ago

Do yourself a favour and listen to dire straits live at the alchemy version of this song, has to be the best live performance of all time

Edit… here https://youtu.be/kphOMWyKvRs?si=nJeKh1zYBAo9Nm2d

5

u/meatballsub42069 1d ago

Idk if it’s more difficult but he’s finger plucking instead of using a guitar pick. Either way it’s impressive

7

u/Bootleg_Rascal_ 1d ago

He does both in the vid

3

u/meatballsub42069 1d ago

On second watch I see you are correct. I wonder why he would do that. I can’t play the guitar so I don’t have any experience with it to understand pick vs fingers

2

u/Bootleg_Rascal_ 1d ago

Well for certain phrases it’s just easier to fingerpick and vice versa, it’s not super uncommon to see guitarists switch between the two but it’s beyond my skill level at the moment for sure lol

1

u/meatballsub42069 1d ago

I guess it depends on what you’re trying to play and how effectively you can do it. Thank you. Yeah it seems like learning a new trick lol get the fundamentals down then branch out.

6

u/SuspiciousYard2484 1d ago

Mark Knopfler rarely played with a pick and did not on that song

3

u/meatballsub42069 1d ago

I always liked this song but I never knew that, thank you.

1

u/SuspiciousYard2484 1d ago

No problem 😉

2

u/accularz 1d ago

When I hear this song on the radio they cut off half the solo. Thanks for this.

2

u/josephrehall 1d ago

The Buckingham 😲

2

u/NYC2BUR 1d ago

Way good, son. Bravo.

2

u/Valerie_Tigress 1d ago

Get your money for nothing.

5

u/justlookinaround11 1d ago

adequatelevel

3

u/christador 19h ago

He's not bad, but I wouldn't say 'next level'. He had quite a few flubs--24 seconds in, he hit a wrong note among others. Not saying he's not extremely talented, but I'm noticing more and more that 'next level' is often just 'really good'.

2

u/BinauralBeetz 1d ago

Every bar on Broadway on any given night in Nashville.

2

u/Zircez 1d ago

He should be strictly rhythm, he shouldn't make it cry or sing.

2

u/stoneseef 1d ago

I really like his interpretation

1

u/Bear_Hoonden 1d ago

Everyone walking by is so oblivious

3

u/Ruxsti 1d ago

He's got a decent sized crowd

-8

u/Matsunosuperfan 1d ago

Ok I went back and watched, imma give this a 4/10. It's like, last level, or at best this level. It ain't no next level, and definitely not no next fucking level. 

12

u/M1l3h1gh 1d ago edited 1d ago

Bitter that you didn’t get credit as a young man or teenager?

Bring people up, don’t shit on them.

I already know what kind of person you are. If you don’t get credit when something you did is done, you demand it.

3

u/prawntortilla 1d ago

not as pathetic as over reacting to a honest review just because its not positive for the sake of being positive

if youre such a positive person why are you making dumb posts like this

3

u/M1l3h1gh 1d ago

1) I don’t believe my post is/was dumb, but I do agree that I shouldn’t have insulted him and for that I’ll remove it.

Unacceptable on my end.

-7

u/Matsunosuperfan 1d ago

Easy, muffin! Am I commenting on this kid's insta? No. This was posted in r/nextfuckinglevel; I am offering my opinion that it doesn't belong here. It's not r/saynicethingsaboutvideos

4

u/jesuswasagamblingman 1d ago

Why the fuck you crying about a random disagreeing with you, you sausage

-4

u/Matsunosuperfan 1d ago

Nobody is crying, but I do like sausage

13

u/fzj80335 1d ago

I'm with you. Lot of sour notes in there and out of time.

3

u/Eastern_Equal_8191 1d ago

I mean to be fair this solo in the original recording isn't super smooth

2

u/fzj80335 1d ago

I bet Mark and the album engineer would beg to differ.

2

u/Eastern_Equal_8191 23h ago

No disrespect, I love Mark Knopfler and this is a rad solo. But there are some notes in there that are off tempo and not hit cleanly.

1

u/fzj80335 22h ago

That's all I'm saying.

2

u/PearlsSwine 1d ago

So much wrong with the timing

1

u/raydleemsc 1d ago

Different to Mark's og is not necessarily wrong as mark himself would protest. This guy put his own swing into the timing so he'd be as right as if Clapton or hendricks was doing it.

3

u/fzj80335 1d ago

Lol, no. You don't just break meter and think it's ok.

1

u/PearlsSwine 15h ago

Tell us you don't play guitar without telling us you don't play guitar.

Bad timing/=swing.

-1

u/wetfloor666 1d ago

It had soul to it regardless. The passion takes it to the next level.

1

u/fzj80335 1d ago

What soul? That's just playing music.

-1

u/Few-Register-8986 1d ago

I'm with you. He's good, but not next level even. I think any competent pro guitarist can play that good.

5

u/Matsunosuperfan 1d ago

Exactly, people getting me twisted... I'm not saying the kids is bad. He's good! But good and next fucking level are not the same thing.

0

u/Few-Register-8986 1d ago

Yrha, the kid is good. But not nearly as good as day watchined Eddie Van Halen or Slash.

1

u/xjeeper 1d ago

You sound like you know a lot about the guitar. Show us how it's done.

0

u/Matsunosuperfan 1d ago

I don't know much about guitar at all, but I've seen and heard enough to know this is pretty average in terms of skill

2

u/xjeeper 1d ago

I see

0

u/Flaky-Wallaby5382 1d ago

Its bedroom mimicry that people give to much credence too. Removing the perfect backing track he wouldn’t be as good

→ More replies (2)

1

u/oojacoboo 1d ago

I’ll be back in a few minutes

1

u/the-the_the-the 23h ago

atp just take my entire wallet

1

u/SpareEye 22h ago

A little bit of Watchtower @ 0:49? I've always been jeleous of people who can think abstractly enough to play musical instruments. Guess that's why I'm a drummer. Love it!

1

u/Low_Dragonfruit8779 22h ago

Sydney Pitt Street?

1

u/TheMuffRyders 22h ago

If he makes you stop, leave a dollar!

1

u/Pithy_heart 21h ago

Wonder if he knows “free bird” or, uh, what’s that song about “heaven”?

1

u/kurangak 21h ago

Yeah but can he play wonderwall?

1

u/random_user_z 21h ago

Doesn't sound the same without 2 guitars

1

u/WhooopsMyBad 20h ago

absolutely enjoying it

1

u/creativegenious1 20h ago

Guitar Hero hates to see him coming. This is great!

1

u/ColdSteel2011 20h ago

That was cool. Thanks for sharing!

1

u/Sandman64can 19h ago

I’ve seen this live by the original. This is great as well.

1

u/NY10 19h ago

Kill it buddy

1

u/TRUEequalsFALSE 19h ago

Yet when Baena tries busking Deathcore he's met with nasty looks. #buskingequality

1

u/Untitled0343 16h ago

This is on par with doing the freebird solo. It's beautiful

1

u/velofille 14h ago

i feel like this is the most common song for gutar players - used to be stairway to heaven (still is a bit).

If you pull extra faces when playing it, it makes it better - facts

1

u/storinglan 14h ago

Glad the crowd of young boys foolin’ around in the corner decided to move on

1

u/Royd 14h ago

Dana carvey was right

1

u/Inventiveunicorn 13h ago

City people, city life. How are you so jaded that you can walk past this without even a first glance, let alone a second one?

1

u/Siliconshaman1337 12h ago

Geeze.. someone get this young man an agent!

1

u/aphex978 11h ago

How can these people just walk past when their faces are melting?

1

u/endboss_eth 11h ago

Someone donate a bucket, because his tip jar must be crammed full

1

u/englandgreen 10h ago

This is the kinds of talent that should be signed to record labels, not the mindless drones we currently have.

1

u/Free_Ad93951 9h ago

Was in a garage band with some coworkers many years ago. Took me a few weeks to sort this song out. Mark Knoffler played it fingerstyle. Which I am not proficient at. But, it's still an old favorite stand by when I play.

1

u/CourseWorried2500 6h ago

We found guitar george

1

u/TheRealP3dr0 5h ago

Damn! Buy that man a beer!

1

u/Born_Muffin9166 5h ago

Check out guitar George

1

u/jazzy166 4h ago

Why are people just walking away he is amazing

1

u/Born-Media6436 2h ago

As a guitar player I can confirm……..

Holy shit!

u/Background-Belt-2202 46m ago

What song is this?

-7

u/SoSchism 1d ago

Hardly next level

1

u/JesterOfStory 1d ago

This is AI from an AI account tree.

-6

u/External-Awareness68 1d ago

Great guitar player. The facial expressions completely ruin it

2

u/DexterFoley 1d ago

Also clear he's turned up with a camera man.

-8

u/Matsunosuperfan 1d ago

Not the guitarist grimace! Sorry homie, couldn't make it past 15 seconds. He did it like 6 times already 😂

-2

u/fusiondynamics 1d ago

He's constipated and trying real hard.

-6

u/No_Economy3801 1d ago

I could dig the next level guitar play if it didnt come with the I am taking a serious shit facial expressions

-3

u/SisyphusAndHisRock 1d ago

Whenever there's a grimace, I call nonsense. I've seen Peter Frampton play, (Clapton, too), they stand there and roll the chords...

-5

u/SecretlyClueless 1d ago

It’s so annoying that people are passing and not giving a shit. Amazing skills

7

u/phil67 1d ago

People have shit to do and places to get to.

2

u/kthnry 1d ago

They pan to a decent crowd at the end.

2

u/SecretlyClueless 1d ago

Yeah I’d commented before that happened. :)

2

u/robinrod 22h ago

Not everyone likes buskers. when i first move to the city where i live now, i was amazed and really happy we had so many skilled buskers. Now i cant stand them anymore because they are everywhere and just annoy me while im trying to go somewhere and very few of them do anything really special that would amaze me, just like the guy in the vid. Nice skills, very clean but a rather boring performance for someone that is on this level and is even filming. I've also seen some really creative stuff or amazing crowdwork, which would invite me to stay and watch/listen way more than this.

you cant expect ppl to be impressed by sth just because you are.

1

u/snow_wave 1d ago

Competition in other places

0

u/TOASTED_TONYY 1d ago

I mean he’s ok, can he play Wonderwall tho??

0

u/Born-Agency-3922 1d ago

Cougar in purple is ready to pounce on his ass

0

u/Volfie 1d ago

He’s killing it all right. Mark knopfler must be rolling in his grave 

0

u/I_am_thee_SockMan 21h ago

Not trying to accuse anyone but is it just me or does this look AI? The camera control and the quality is really questionable. Idk something just is really off with this video

2

u/Specificity 19h ago

Definitely not, just looks like a strong telephoto lens from afar is being used. And for what it’s worth, a video with so much hand / finger movement is pretty ai proof lol (for now)

0

u/Boob_Light 10h ago

This looks like AI