The new Best of Street project launched its interactive technology platform in New Orleans last week, and this week wraps its first volume of music recordings, set for release in April. OffBeat readers have the opportunity here to snag an advance sample of Best of Street Vol.1 with an exclusive free download of the single “I Wanna Be Like You” by Shine Delphi before it’s even available for sale this spring.

The arrival of a small group of innovative women, the “Benevolent Enablers,” in town last year has come at a most appropriate time. One of the city’s oldest traditions, street performance — or busking — has spent time over recent months on the table at City Hall to be considered for government regulation in the form of permits, fees and decibel limitations. While this was happening, the Benevolent Enablers were steadily working on an Internet platform that, similar to the locally-created Digital Tip Jar, would empower street musicians to digitally collect tips and performance compensation from passersby on the spot. This technology combined with the professional studio recordings of New Orleans street musicians participating in the new platform has been dubbed the “Best of Street” project.

With the rapid growth of mobile technology has come the ability of almost anyone to record media of street musicians and share it in multiple ways. However, this has not necessarily meant that the subjects of this (often monetized) media have also benefited from such great technological advances. Best of Street embraces the popularity and ease of mobile devices to make directly supporting musicians you see on the street, or purchasing their recordings, simple and fun. Scan-able QR codes and digital wallets meet to link a new music fan with a street musician’s profile on the Best of Street website via mobile phones.

In addition to supplying the mobile tool for collecting tips or performance fees, Best of Street has also asked a few handfuls of New Orleans street players they’ve met to record one of their songs at the Living Room local recording studio with engineer Chris George for the forthcoming release. The Benevolent Enablers subsidized the studio time for these musicians to record professionally for the first time, and state that they will retain just ten percent of the compilation’s sales for operating costs.

Nathan Rivera and Shine Delphi.

Although they are still adding and improving technology, Best of Street project managers went live with the website (and their handy instructional videos) last week and have already distributed the first batch of artist cards to the musicians who recorded for volume one of the Best of Street series. Among these artists is young singer, songwriter and guitarist Shine Delphi. Born near Philadelphia and raised just south of Los Angeles, Shine began traveling to New Orleans to play on the streets seasonally three years ago. He can usually be found playing during the daytime on Royal Street in the French Quarter, and is a self-identified gypsy folk-blues artist. Though he still travels often and just officially registered a residence in the city’s seventh ward last November, he proclaims the Crescent City as his favorite place by far to “not just play music, but to listen to other musicians and be inspired.”

The Royal Street regular was introduced to the ladies of Best of Street by fellow New Orleans street musician Sarah McCoy in October of 2013, but became formally involved in the project after a chance meeting while playing one day with street band Yes Ma’am just before the band was to head into the Living Room studio to record for the Best of Street compilation. Shine and accordionist friend Nathan Rivera were invited to tag along and possibly play on their track.

Yes Ma’am had selected the early 1970s calypso song, “Put the Lime in the Coconut” (or simply, “The Coconut Song”), as their tune for volume one, but once recording sessions began, everyone was feeling Shine’s vocal improv and he soon found himself singing lead on Yes Ma’am’s version of the Harry Nilsson pop hit. Almost immediately, Shine and Rivera were chatting with Best of Street about getting on the project.

One thing led to another and next Shine and Rivera were recording one of Shine’s early favorites, “I Wanna Be Like You” for Best of Street Vol.1. The duo put an upbeat yet pared-down spin on their cover of this song known commonly as “The Jungle Book Song” after its success in the soundtrack of Walt Disney’s 1967 film, The Jungle Book. Shine says the swing number has always been a favorite of his, like many, since childhood. It is also one of his first successful street songs, one for which he gets the most requests after someone has heard his version once.

But “I Wanna Be Like You” has a deeper connection to New Orleans. More than just a fond Disney memory of a singing baboon named Baloo, the song was first performed by New Orleans singer, actor and trumpeter Louis Prima and his band before the Disney film score composer re-recorded and released it with the Jungle Book. Prima was hired for the gig initially because the songwriters were specifically looking for a “New Orleans jazz” or Dixieland style sound. Those southern swing rhythms would go on to keep five year-olds and fifty year-olds alike dancing for generations to come. After all, who hasn’t imagined at some point — while lost in a moment of Jackson Square bliss singling “I Wanna Be Like You” — being like the free, happy street musicians of New Orleans?

Stream or download the single “I Wanna Be Like You” by Shine Delphi featuring Nathan Rivera below until April 1, courtesy of the artists, Best of Street and OffBeat Magazine.

Best of Street – New Orleans Vol.1 is due out in April, 2014. For more information on Best of Street, or to sign up for a street musician profile, visit www.bestofstreet.com.