Mr. King liked to pick his uke at his neighborhood Starbucks, where he said he did not feel nervous, because people had no expectations.
I know that feeling. There’s really something about playing freely, comfortably, in a place with no expectations, where folks are just enjoying things. You get in a concert hall and there’s this incredible tension that can eat you alive. Not fun. I really do try to remember that we are playing because it’s a wonderful thing to do. It brings us joy. It brings others joy. Sometimes it’s very difficult to remember.
But I ramble.
Mostly, I wanted to share this with you. The musician, John King, died at the young age of 55 this month and I just read about it … and him. He played ukelele. And I think this is beautiful: