Added: 4 years ago
From: septicdonkey
Views: 98,552
Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:
see all

All Comments (205)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • Everytime I go to Chester I used to lose hours watching Ed. Really nice guy to speak to as well.

  • I love listening to him, IMO one if the best buskers I've seen. Come to Chester and listen to him for real, he's epic.

  • I'm getting an electric violin soon I hope i can overtime play as good as he is!!!!

  • @crazylady12344 I've been practicing with my electric for months and just now getting down Twinkle Twinkle Little Star well. It's a lot of work but well worth it.

  • To klndxrnn

    This guy has produced a few albums already. Ultraviolet being the pick of the bunch in my opinion. Although I absolutely love the stuff he did with New Model Army. Check out the album Thunder and Consolation by them.

  • You get a good enough artist, and you can make the music sing FOR you

  • I belive this is what it would have been sounded if Metallica where born in the 18th Century...

  • I NEED to see this guy busk. Someone get this guy a record deal. PLEASE. D;

  • @krnlxndrr I watch him everytime I goto chester ;)

    

  • Now I have a dilema..watch Ed johnson videos or Karl Pilkington videos??

  • look how he pick metallica music and give´m hes touch...This is what a artist is made of...he doesnt limits to imitate Metallica...he Pays WITH metallica and thats a lot different

  • atm im sitting with crappy small work speakers... still sound amazing.. cant wait to i get home to play it on my good hifi ...love that i make all the sounds there and then..no premade stuff.. :) dough that would be okey to.

  • wow man... jaw = on the floor.

  • saw him today in york. cant believe my ears have missed out on his music for so long. i was sold as soon as i heard him. brilliant artist.

  • it is a shame!!!! such a talent,such a great musician(it's not by accident ,that the man is rocker!!!!)to encounter like a beggar...Give your shits to music industry and support independent REAL artists!!!

  • holy shiznit this is awsum!

  • Amazing, I love Metallica, and I would have clapped my hands much more than these people did =/

    Great Job!

  • Lol at woman a 1.11 she clearly has no idea what is going on!

  • This is wonderful. His love of music genuinely shines through all the surrounding hubbub (which makes it even more real).

    I've added it to my youtube channel of eclectic violin favorites of all genres: rock, jazz, bluegrass and some you've probably never imagined, Check 'em out at the blue jazzmessenger123 link to the left below.

  • Full of win.

  • this is brilliant!

  • I am really, really really happy he doesn't play on the way to work. I would never arrive at the office and probably be fired with in the first week for not showing up all week =D

  • Omg :3 love his music, if he ever came to cali for a concert id definatly go no matter what! I like this more then the crap that passes for music on mtv. Now i wanna to learn to play :3

  • Yes, I have bought several of his albums off from itunes. I LOVE his Child in Time song originally put out by Deep Purple.

  • Does anyone know if any of his CDs can be bought on Itunes? Or perhaps a website?

  • I wish here in america we had beautiful music like this in the street of everyone to enjoy.. But no we got gang banging music. :\

  • man you are amazeing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!! you rock,,,,, i want to see you rock it out with shinedown,, you guys were ment to play together!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If i could call it would be a hit number

  • i would pay him just to give me a chance to play my piano with him playing his violin ... its so , inspiring !!!!

  • if this guy was on American idol, he would get my vote every time!

  • id happily stay there all day till he goes :)

  • Now this guys is worth missing a train for.. No way i would make it to college in time if i run into this guy. Bought his latest cd straight away!

  • really amazing

  • By far one of the best, most talented and inspiring artists of our time. This man is our Bach our Beethoven this is what music of our time should be remembered for not the crap the put on MTV.

  • Beautiful! That lady who descended the staircase didn't have a clue! ~0:--/

  • If you clicked dislike, you admitted to not knowing what talent is and live inside of your little Justin Beiber world >:/

  • that is fucking awesome

  • Who clicked dislike!? Did they slip? o.O

  • Met the man in Chester last weekend. He's an incredibly nice guy, just wants to play music and entertain. Ed, you're amazing.

  • @Badhabitsjay Play music and entertain AND make about a hundred quid every couple of hours worth. Wonder if he collects dole money? :-P

  • @bizenya I don't think he's particularly bothered about money to be fair. The guy was doing great as a part of the music industry but quit because they're "all a bunch of wankers" (in his own words). He said he couldn't care less about money, he only wants enough to live and carry on doing what he does.

  • He is awesome. The only people who suck are the ones who walk by him and don't stop to admire his greatness.

  • What is the name of that song? Yeah, "Fade to black" I´m lovin it!!!!! Great guy!!

  • Will he ever be in the USA? or can you buy his CD here ?

  • amazing!

  • talent pure talent this guy's amazing and i h8 the violin now i wanna start playing it

  • Wow that was amazing. thats Fantasticly beautiful

  • Truly awesome bro!! 5 stars!!!

  • Truly brilliant....but way too many people smoking in that vid kinda spoiled it.

  • you're a fucking dick.

  • Comment removed

  • Truely amazing.

  • Brilliant rendition...

  • I wonder what his rendition of "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" would sound like...

    The Universe would probably explode, and it would be well worth it.

  • I would drop 5 quid in his box if I saw him on the corner... true talent here.... love this guy!

  • i ve seen him in 1992 in austria in posthof, bought a cd "purple electric violin concerto" on his private-stand after the concert , and im listing to his violin even today.

    great thanx to this musixen!

  • Ed Alleyne Johnson is a musical genius.I watched him play in Chester and bought his Echoes C.D. People like him should be on X Factor and not talentless muppets.

  • I agree I also disagree, the fact he is not on a show like x-factor but playing to the people in the street and not to some stuck up judges makes him that much more awsome..

  • Great

  • Well, I bought 2 cd's of him on amazone the second after I saw the firt video of him on youtube. Where he plays in chester something. I Id be him, I would create a youtube account, and post all the songs I knew. I sad that a great artist like him should have to make his money for cd recording by doing street conserts. When crappy musicans like '' the killers'' and such probably have everything sponsored. Ed is great, give him a chanse to succeed ^^

  • @DeadMaple88 I'm not sure if he HAS to, or chooses to... Because if he chooses to, I just gained alot of respect for him. :D

  • @DeadMaple88  spot on

  • @DeadMaple88 Well Put My Son

  • @DeadMaple88

    he doesnt have to, he chooses to perform this way. And I think that makes him an even greater artist.

  • @DeadMaple88 I agree with you for the first part but the killers is not shit !

  • @DeadMaple88 some musicians dont want to make it big for one reason or another. for one thing, when you get a lable, you have to do certain things the record companies way or to suit your producer. and another reason is he might literally make more money this way.

    the other reason is that me may just do this for the pure love of the music, in which case we are blessed that he has decided to share his gift with us instead of keeping it in his own home.

  • 5:22 that old lady just paid to listen to Metallica.

  • That old lady is probably in her 40s. The same age as Metallica.

  • This is my favorite song of his. It almost brings tears to your eyes its so great. Heavenly is a understatment

  • I work in the offices of Browns of Chester and get to hear this guy everyday he's in town. He is extremely funny as well! When we had a freak snowstorm last year he started playing Winter wonderland!

  • THat was Really awesome!

  • Jason Becker is one that is back in the picture?

  • jason becker is paralized over his whole body exept is eyes :\

  • Watched him in Liverpool a few years ago. Went straigt to HMV to buy the Echoes album!

  • Good for you JRTET21 !

  • This man is an outstanding musician. The violin is such a great instrument, but how many people could make it sound like this?

  • I can.

  • lmfao

  • actually he can, look for his videos at his account =\

  • JRTET21:

    I checked your channel, and you actually can. Thumbs-up to your comment, to counteract the thumbs-down from someone who presumably didn't check.

    -Pat

  • its electric and he got a pedalboard for it.

  • He is amazing and inspiring.

    I hope you put money in his hat or bought a CD. There is nothing more galling than having your pic/vid taken by someone who doesn't leave a tip. I mean if something is good enough to record it's good enough to reward.

    Pass the message on pls

    - on behalf of everyone entertaining on the streets

  • yes i put money in his hat and my wife and friend did and my son put his pocket money in..his own choice,also i bought a cd from him that he autographed..even though i already had it..does that answer your question..also i asked and got his permission to film and post on youtube

  • Glad to see this Ed material on here. I saw him perform in Swindon many years ago and purchased Purple Electric Violin Concerto on the spot. Still play it a lot. I must endeavour to get some more of his stuff... oh and also get myself to Chester, forgotten how nice it is.

  • @septicdonkey I dont see a hat there

  • If he put his Songs on Youtube that would be a really good tip on its own!

    Just think how many people have bought the CD's because of seeing these Videos!

    Theres been over a million views all together so i think thats a good thing!

  • @Theladyragz

    Hat?

  • I always thought violins were rather nerdy, then I found Ed on youtube and OMG he so rocks, He breathes life into an instument I would pay to see him however I do not think he comes to Australia...unfortunately

  • A common misconception. (Although admittedly this is coming from a violinist :P) If you like this, then look up Apocalyptica. Although they tend to use a lot more distortion and effects, and that can unfortunately often mask the timbre of the instruments and you might think you're just listening to guitars. They're pretty cool though.

  • Does Anyone know of a website or way of contacting Ed Alleyne Johson? I am requesting permission for one of Ed's songs to be used in contest I am entering....any help would be appreciated!!!

  • he should come 2 norway, we need some street performers here. and every1 would welcome that violin.omg hes sick... release a cd man!

  • He's released 8 cd's... 2 Cover albums, 4 original solo and 2 with his wife, I own all but the earliest stuff cause he never has it on him in York.

  • Fantastic! He make's me cry...

  • Awesome!!!

  • Aw, I love this dear man! He's playing at my wedding!!!!!

  • he goes around the world so i supose he doesnt come a lot there -- i hope he comes some day in the netherlands again (i dindt know he was in amsterdam ;p

  • Ed is amazing live, the sound quality here doesn't do him justice, thanks for filming anyway!

  • Great work...love it, does he still perform in Chester?

  • saw him doign sweet child today lol. legend

  • Does he only perform in Chester?

  • He also plays in York, I've heard that the Community of Chester was giving him problems for selling CD's but he still on occasion plays there

  • EPICC \(^0^)/ three cheers for ED

  • GRRR 5 chears for eddy!

  • I wish he had this song available on one of his Cd's on iTunes. I always come here to listen to it. :-P

  • Sry, but this is "The Unforgiven" ("Black" album) not "Fade to Black" ("ride the Lightning" album)

  • Awesome sound. He's so cool!!!

  • Great interpretation of the "Unforgiven" song.What I would really like to hear is the "No leaf clover" in electric violin version

  • the unforgiven WOW that is so fucken awsome mad respect!!!

  • COME BACK TO CHESTER WE MISS YOU

  • AldrinCoolFool (2 weeks ago) Ed alleyne johnson is 1 of the greatest underrated underappreciated violin players ever. Any1 from any music group will apreciate the sounds of Ed. Too bad, he's not heavily advertised, as the crappy music we are forced to listen to here in the U.S.

    This man should be playing in very big concert halls, not in the streets. He probably will make it big someday, and he should, because the world would love every single ed alleyne johnson originals. GO ED!

  • OMG This guy is AWESOME!

  • So Peter!

    That's it, they're five instead of 6!

    Usually, violins have 4 string and his are one more!

    Thanks

  • metallica have never played this song this well

    amazing

  • I'm from Brazil and I firs heard his song when I was studying English. I felt in love with his music at first sight!

    The reason of the purple violin is because when he was a child he was given an old violin that he had to paint it! So he decided to paint it purple! Since then he develops his own violins with 6 strings and he had created a method of playing it and make it sounds like 3 or four instruments at the same time!

  • if you watch close ups, for example during septicdonkey recording of Verve/Beatles, you will see his violin has 5 strings.

  • i would make love in front of this man live with my girlfriend WHY ARE THOSE PPL WALKING PAST ARE THEY FUKING IGNORANT OR WHAT

  • Mate, calm down. People have lives to go about. Btw, ignorant has nothing to do with ignoring something. It means to be lacking knowledge about something.

  • Ok if u pass by..Pass by..But if stop to listen to this..Drop a few coins..He is clearly deserves this..Its a piece of art..

  • Ok, so why doesn't this guy have a huge crowd around him?! Seriously, how could you just walk by this?! Hes amazing!

  • Muy buena cancion... muy buenaaaa amigooo

    y perfecto el estilo...

  • Thank goodness for You Tube and the internet. Otherwise only you lucky blokes in England would get to see and hear him play.

  • Well if you ever come to England visit York as its a perfect backdrop for Ed's music .We saw him perform at York in late November and he was outstanding .

  • Make me very angry to see this briliant musician busking.And then hear the shit there playing on the radio and mtv

  • But busking sometimes is where the real music is, you have to leave the commercialised music industry to find the odd gems in the midst of it all

    Really, you shouldn't be angry seeing him busking, this is what he does, and he obviously loves it. That's what music is about. I think I'd be more angry seeing him flogged as yet another manufactured 'musician'.

    Still, I have to agree, the 'music industry' doesn't half produce some god awful stuff nowadays. But, then again you just have to look.

  • great cover ... see him in york all the time :)

  • Because of him i bought me a violin

  • Yes! :O He must do some Lord Of The Rings! :D

  • true busker :) he just enjoys playing.

  • Awesome/

  • This guy doesn't need a label- he get's hundreds more times recognition doing just what he's doing- and now that he's on utube he'll get millions more!

  • hes had an album i think, he used to play with New model army, check out violin on purity

  • Does Anyone know what his pedalboard consists of? I know he has a loop station, distortion, and a chorous pedal, what else? If there is anything else.

  • he use a flanger for sure

  • I hear a phaser in one of his other traccks.

  • sounds like a flanger in the mix as well

  • its either a flanger or a phaser.

    Man I'd love to see his custom pedal board arrangement

  • just bloody brilliant.

  • Hmmm... I wonder why none of the major label companies haven't picked this guy up ? he's awsome

  • Truly one of this generations best. It would be an honor to be able to meet this man, if only to shake his hand.

    Also, Now that you mention it, it would be spiffy to see him to a cover of Dragonforce.

  • =P when i both a CD I had eye contact and i got a smile ;)

  • Lmao, imagine him playing Dragonforce xD

  • Like The solo part in "Dawn of a New World" or The end solo of "Valley of the Damned"!

  • lol even without frets i reckon he'd still hit more notes than Herman!

  • omg you rule

  • Imagine "One" played by this guy. Green Day would sound nice too. i actually play violin, but i'm no where near the violinist he is. it also takes alot of courage to play in a public place like that.

  • Great!!! very nice violin sound

  • That's beautiful!

  • He should do the tetris theme =P

    Really though. Awesome.

  • hey! maybe a Whole Nintendo based piece! Like Tetris and Mario. Maybe some Zelda and Kirby!! That would be awesome!

    Or even better. He could do the Lord of the Rings =D

  • It would be awesome to hear a great Tetris song made even better with his great use of the Loop Station. Mario and Zelda would also be awesome. I can't really imagine a Kirby song played with his style, though.

  • LOl what if he did dream theater.

  • so beautyful ...(L)

  • omg awsome dude...

  • How amazing is this guy!

  • It would be awesome if he could play "One" by Metallica.

  • i think a cover of "hocus pocus" by FOCUS would be cool in eds style and i even suggested it to him..-;o)

  • that would do lol

  • i would like to see Ed do Enjoy the Silence from depeche mode

  • One of the coolest guys alive...

  • Ed Alleyne-Johnson is probably the only person alive who can play a Metallica song on a violin and make it as incredible as the original. I don't know if anyone will ever make a better cover than this.

  • i would have to agree although apocalyptica has some realy good covers on cello

  • yup yup

  • Yup... i got the cd and it's amazing!

  • Ed is awesome!! I've been into his work since the 'Purple Electric Violin Concerto' days (15 or so years). A mate of mine has seen him busking in Southport, which is where i work, but i have yet to have the honour of catching him. Hopefully one day! An incredible talent!! (:o)

  • I think this is Unforgiven anyone?

  • Yap

  • fukkin awsome. wish he'd get a drummer, some guitars, and make a band.

    he's fukkn badass.

  • no he is a one person band, other instruments might water him down, if you know what i mean

  • Ed used to play in New Model Army

  • @petercr49: "Ed used to play in New Model Army"

    He played *with* New Model Army for two albums, but was never a member of the band.

  • plz Ed come back in nma for a next album, hear violin is better than keyboard :)

  • i see this guy all the time in york he owns. the one drawback is i find it almost imposable to move on when i see him. and i cant afford his albums T_T oh well atleast i gt to see him ^^

  • i love ed's work! he's great!

    ...and i guess its a good thing that the 12 year old kid doesnt know how to actually smoke... i guess he just likes the taste in his mouth?

  • or mabye he was ju