Who's he?

Born in 1916 in Maryville, Kansas, Louis Harding was always destined to be a musician. After teaching himself percussion by rapping obsessively on a cardboard box, the five-year-old's love of music was cemented on a family trip to an Arapaho Native American reserve where he first played buffalo-skin tom-toms, an instrument that reappeared regularly in his later work. Following an accident with a dynamite cap at the age of 17, the promising student was completely blinded, forcing him to learn how to write music in Braille. However, the Moondog legend really began in 1943, when Harding relocated to New York, arriving in the Big Apple with only a month's rent and no contacts. Undeterred by his lack of lodgings, Harding took root on the corner of 54th Avenue and played his music on the street for the next 30 years.

Why should we care?

Adopting the name Moondog in 1947 because of his propensity for howling at our heavenly satellite - and sporting an unkempt beard, homemade robes and Viking helmet - Harding soon became a New York celebrity. But unlike most buskers trying to make ends meet, Moondog's haunting music - played on homemade drums and portable keyboards - sounded unlike anything else on Earth, blending the sensuality of Native American instrumentation with Harding's knowledge of classical music. Soon, musicians playing in the nearby Carnegie Hall flocked to catch Moondog play and offer to record his primitive sounds.

Where is he now?

By the early 70s Moondog was still playing on the street, but had released records on labels such as CBS and Prestige and appeared onstage with Lenny Bruce and William S Burroughs. Moondog died in 1999, but his work has been lauded by minimalist musicians such as Philip Glass and Steve Reich, and is also an obvious influence on modern bands such as Stereolab and Moonshake.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE: Moondog Vol 1 and 2 are available on the Bgo label from Amazon