Lots of good sense here. I have always loved that quote about Wagner's music Frank, but I have seen it attributed to your own Mark Twain. Does Mudcat have an authority on this subject? It sounds like Mark Twain to me because it is so irreverent, but Shaw was a music critic before his playwriting career took off, so I would be rash to shoot my mouth off...
I think I would rate myself as a better showman than musician - which is fortunate for someone who has busked for over twenty years. However,I like to try and do it all as well as I can and I take my guitar practice very seriously, even though I have very modest ability as a guitarist. When I am playing gigs, I always try and play the best music I can get away with. When I was younger I would make any sort of a noise to get a reaction from the audience. I love entertaining folks, but doing just anything to get them moving leaves me feeling pretty cheap. That is not intended to sound disrespectful to people who do that. I appreciate their craft and bottle - but it's not where I want to be.