6 Live Music Venues

(Issue 6 - January 2010) For those of you who crave music that’s live and lively, ZiNG has tracked down six of the best places to find it at the following LIAT destinations... Waterfront Cafe, Barbados Overlooking the historic Careenage in the heart of Bridgetown, the Waterfront Cafe has been a magnet for jazz aficionados for more than two decades. Six evenings a week – every day but Sunday – you can catch everything from traditional Dixieland to Latin or calypso-infused jazz to a gentle piano or a small steel pan ensemble. The eclectic menu and prime location are bonuses – as are occasional big name guests like Roberta Flack and Branford Marsalis. Dune Preserve, Anguilla It’s ramshackle, it’s quaint, it’s unique, and over the years it has featured some of the biggest names in Caribbean music... along with Jimmy Buffett. The Dune’s location on Anguilla’s spectacular Rendezvous Bay is a huge attraction, but its biggest plus is its creator and owner, the veteran reggae artist Bankie Banx, a man who has been described as the Caribbean Bob Dylan. When he’s not touring, he’s a regular on live music nights, which are Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. A treat not to be missed. Pigeon Island, St. Lucia Okay, it doesn’t operate year-round. But Pigeon Island, home to the main stage at the annual St. Lucia Jazz Festival, is unquestionably one of the most beautiful places in the world to catch live music. The 44-acre island, steeped in history and connected to the mainland by a causeway, is worth a visit even when there’s no music happening. Every May, though, it comes to life during a jazz festival which, since its inception in 1991, has attracted some of the biggest names in music, among them George Benson, Carlos Santana, Lauryn Hill, UB40, Amy Winehouse, Herbie Hancock and the late Luther Vandross. Mas Camp Pub, Trinidad Calypso and soca are the signature sounds of this funky, down-to-earth Port of Spain watering hole. It’s well worth a visit for its ambience and vibe alone even when there’s no live music going on, and it’s really special when artists like Valentino, Poser, Explainer, Calypso Rose, Stalin, 3 Canal, Chalkdust and the Mighty Bomber are holding court on the intimate stage. Located at French Street and Ariapita Avenue in the Woodbrook district. Shipwreck, St. Kitts The tiny Eastern Caribbean island of St. Kitts has a music scene out of all proportion to its size, and the Shipwreck bar is one of the places to sample it live. Tucked away at the southern tip of the popular South Friar’s Beach, the Shipwreck is a favourite hangout with locals, expats and savvy tourists seven days a week, but Sunday afternoons are when the music gets live and lively, with Mr T and the Foreplay group – both of whom play a listener-friendly mix of music with a strong Caribbean emphasis – alternating. Raman, the Shipwreck’s convivial proprietor, swears the local monkey population listen in every Sunday from the hillside at the back of the bar. El Chico Lounge, Puerto Rico The evening action is always vibrant in the El San Juan Hotel and Casino, on the Avenue Isla Verde beach, and it’s downright sizzling in the El Chico Lounge, located off the hotel’s magnificent lobby. Upscale locals need little encouragement to get up and boogie to the live salsa and reggaeton, and professional dancers circulate among the tables coaxing wallflowers to join the dance floor action. The plush and intimate surroundings are an added attraction, and, for those who fancy a flutter when the band’s on a break, the casino’s just a 30-second stroll away.