Plugged-in and wired these days with a battery driven amp.
Buskers of old couldn’t afford a postage stamp.
Old school and acoustic with a voice to draw the crowd.
Today a busker has backing tracks, a mic and is far too loud.

An open guitar case to receive some donations.
A five-pound note laying there to declare expectations.
Some will have an accomplice to rattle the tin.
Even offering a card machine with a cheeky grin.

They used to play Simon and Garfunkel and folk songs of old.
Nowadays its Ed Sheerin and Guns N Roses I’m told.
Some busk as duos and groups rather than alone.
And if a member doesn’t turn up they need to postpone.

Buskers now have their own locations and declared pitches.
They pay for the best places where they hope to secure riches.
They are professional really, without a venue to perform.
I’ve seen one group of buskers wearing a uniform.

These aren’t buskers I would contest, but bands on the run,
Whereas a solitary busker’s aim was to have some fun.
Give me an old-fashioned busker every single time.
One who plays to people who are queuing in a line.