Dear LPG,

One of my true musical heroes is Donovan. Like many, I used to think him the English version of America’s Bob Dylan.  I recently heard his song ‘Hurdy Gurdy Man’ and the sound and lyrics took me right back.

I am Scottish by birth and I grew up in the true north of that country.  By the time I was about twenty-one I had moved to London and was working in an office near Chancery Lane.   A Hurdy Gurdy man would regularly use the area in front of the building where we worked as part of his route, where he played the instrument, and the haunting melody would provoke my boss to instruct us to throw the street musician some money through the window, so that he would go away.

In those days I remember there being many more street musicians dotted around the capital, and on the whole, my friends and I walked past and offered the odd coin, but thought no more of it.   However, there was one singer that I saw perform in Leather Lane market, that really left a serious impression on me.

The songs have changed but the concept stays the same …and all this from a nostalgic sound of a song that I have not heard for so long. 

EF, Grove Park.

LPG found three versions of the song in question for you to enjoy; the singers of the other two versions may surprise you.  

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We also discovered that Hurdy Gurdy's were often mistaken for Barrel Organs and it was the barrel organ grinder who is referred to in the saying often used when expressing a desire to speak with the manager of an organisation rather than his second in command.  We found some information here for you too…

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