Driving with the hood down

The rumour has it that there are palm trees in the south of England but if it is true they are well hidden. Southampton is not an exotic place, and you wouldn't want to be an exotic tree around there.

Latin tunes

Latin tunes span a wide range of styles. Each style has its own name, and several of them are worthy of their own ballroom dancing catagory. In fake books latin tunes are often classified as 'bossa', and that means they have to be played in straight eights, not in the swing feel.

The characteristic sound of a latin band includes a saxophone, a classical guitar with nylon-strings, and lots of percussion. Short on all three, I will stick to the M3, and the result is predictably less authentic.

The Girl From Ipanima (mp3) by Jobim is one of the best known latin tunes. It is very mellow and soft, almost too soft for the jazz treatment. Jobim is a 'proper' latin style composer, and his tunes have to be adapted to fit the style of jazz.

St. Thomas (mp3), written by the jazz musician Sonny Rollins, is a very catchy tune, and the structure is great fun to solo on.