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The sound is less ping and tinkle than clickety-clack, and you’ll see the crowd of smiling, toe-tapping listeners before you see percussionist Abby Roach, or Abby the Spoon Lady — one-named, like Cher — on the sidewalk, rhythmically tapping a pair of steel spoons against her palms, fingers, thighs, and forearms. Originally from Kansas, Abby taught herself to play spoons while riding boxcars across the country before accidentally (“I took the wrong train,” she explains) landing in Asheville four years ago. Between sets, she greases her hands and spoon handles with a salve concocted specially for her skill set, and instruments that come from a kitchen drawer. Admirers approach, and there’s the ping! as Abby hits the oversized bell at her foot: another buck for the buskers.
Photographed, Friday, May 5, 2017, in Greensboro, N.C. JERRY WOLFORD and SCOTT MUTHERSBAUGH / Perfecta Visuals
Photographed, Friday, May 5, 2017, in Greensboro, N.C. JERRY WOLFORD and SCOTT MUTHERSBAUGH / Perfecta Visuals

