Gigging musician, hack musician, restaurant player. A highly expressive, casual noun with a nostalgic flavor that dates back to pre-Soviet and Soviet-era underworld and jazz slang (лабухский жаргон). It refers to a musician who plays for money in restaurants, bars, weddings, or funerals, often implying they are a mercenary professional or playing cheap, repetitive pop/folk tunes rather than performing high art. The word is tied to the criminal-slang verb лабать (“to play an instrument”).
Его герой, Сашуля, пожилой ресторанный лабух, забавляется тем, что по окончании трудового дня — часиков этак в 12 вечера — садится на телефон и звонит случайным людям по номерам купюр, полученных от посетителей за исполнение песен.
His protagonist, Sashulya, an elderly gastronomic musician, amuses himself by getting on the phone at the end of his working day — at about 12 pm — and calling random people whose numbers are on notes he got from customers for playing songs.
(Repytw @ liveinternet.ru, 06/2010)
