Syracuse, N.Y. — Marshall Street belonged to Elijah “Eli” Harris Jr.

For decades, Harris made the Syracuse street his stage. He played his guitar and sang on Marshall Street before and after games at the Carrier Dome, serenading fans as they passed by.

“He called Marshall Street his alleyway,” said musician Joe Driscoll, “and he appointed himself the musical mayor of the street.”

But Harris, a street musician, didn’t just perform on Marshall Street. He played outside of NBT Bank Stadium during baseball games. He played outside the Landmark Theatre, the Civic Center and the Westcott Theater before shows. And when he traveled across the city on his bike, he always brought along his guitar.

Harris, 62, was killed Tuesday night in a double hit-and-run crash on the city’s South Side, the Syracuse Police Department said in a news release Wednesday evening.

He was riding his bike near South Salina Street and Brighton Avenue around 9:40 p.m. when he was hit by a car, police said. The driver did not stop, police said.

Harris was sitting on the ground waiting for an ambulance, police said, when he was hit by a second car. That driver also fled the scene, police said.

His death — especially the way he was killed — has shocked his friends and admirers in the Syracuse’s music community.

“He certainly deserved a better ending than this,” said Frank Malfitano, founder and executive producer of Syracuse Jazz Fest. “We lost a prince. He was Syracuse music royalty, as far as I’m concerned.”

In the close to 35 years he knew Harris, Malfitano said the street musician endured a number of tragedies, including the death of his beloved wife. Harris also talked in 2012 about his battles with alcohol and drug addictions and going through rehabilitation in an interview with Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

Tuesday’s accident was not the first time Harris was struck by a car, Malfitano said: Harris had been hit before, losing his guita and bicycle.

Despite the hard times he faced, the only emotion Harris exuded when he played guitar was joy, Malfitano said.

Harris was a “human jukebox" who loved performing, Malfitano said. He could tap dance and rap, he said, as well as sing and play guitar. And he released at least two albums, including "Eli’s Christmas Mission,” through Marshall Street Records.

“Whether he went home with a guitar case full of money or nothing in it, he was still happy that he played,” Malfitano said.

Fundraiser underway to help family pay for funeral

Driscoll, a musician and Syracuse common councilor, was friends with Harris for close to 30 years. He was a 12-year-old aspiring musician when they first met.

As a kid learning his way around a guitar, Driscoll used to ride his bike down to Marshall Street and watch Harris play. He said Harris was the first musician he saw who played Motown on an acoustic guitar. So Driscoll said he watched Harris’ hands, tracking the chord’s the guitarist played and the styles he picked.

“He changed my perception of what you could do with a guitar,” Driscoll said.

Harris was one of Driscoll’s biggest early influences. When he got older and built his own career, Driscoll said Harris would join him on stage for a few songs when he played local shows, thrilling audiences.

“He lit up a room,” Driscoll said, “or the outside of the Dome or the OnCenter.”

If you've been to one of our shows (or any show in Syracuse for that matter, there's a good chance that you've seen Eli... Posted by The Westcott Theater on Wednesday, April 8, 2020

In February 2019, Harris won the Founder’s Award during the Syracuse Area Music Awards. Malfitano, founder of the SAMMYs, said it was a big night for Harris. But he said it also gave the city’s music community a chance to give Harris a message: Thank you.

“Everybody knew him. Everybody loved him,” Malfitano said. “Me too.”

Liz Nowak, director of the SAMMYs, called Harris a “Syracuse treasure.”

Nowak said she last saw Harris in February. She was leaving dinner in downtown and headed to a Broadway show at the OnCenter.

Harris was outside, playing his beloved guitar.

Staff writer Samantha House covers breaking news, crime and public safety for Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. Have a tip or a story idea? Email shouse@syracuse.com.