A Night in Tunisia

Which is something I hope to experience before I kick the bucket. After all, besides being famous for the variety of its couscous, Tunisia figures prominently in a famous jazz composition written by trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. A Night in Tunisia has been performed by Ella Fitzgerald, the Manhattan Transfer, Miles Davis, and Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, among others. For jazz listeners such as myself, this is a good enough reason as any to visit the northernmost African country. With nearly half of its land composed of the Sahara desert, it would be nice to find out whether the stars aglow in Tunisia's heavens would be bright enough to guide me through the desert sand. But taking a trip to the African continent just because of a song smacks of idle fantasy, especially for someone struggling with rent payments every month. With the costs of living surging at a near 17-year high, supposedly hard-working Filipinos such as myself should explore alternatives to keep themselves entertained without compromising their budgets. And about a month ago, I did just that. Accompanied by two friends, I visited Ten-02, a Quezon City jazz bar where I hoped the haunting, repetitive melody would be sung. I got lucky. Jazz vocalist Skarlet belted out her own version of the Gillespie original. Not only was it her tribute to other artists who helped make the tune a jazz standard, it was also an occasion to indulge an inebriated member of the audience who requested the song to be sung. Accompanying her on the piano that night was Joel Galang whose fingers danced on the keyboards, all without the benefit of a musical score sheet. Everytime I shouted out a request—Ella Fitzgerald's Shiny Stockings, for instance—Joel would play the first few chords, impressing the small audience with the diverse array of the tunes he already knew. Later on, having nursed too many beers, I introduced myself to the pianist, telling him that I swear by music played by Oscar Peterson when he got older and Miles Davis when he was younger. Joel admitted to being an apostle of Bill Evans (whose Mother of Earl is one of my favorites) and Keith Jarrett, a pianist whose style remains too heavy for me to appreciate. Fortunately, my public display of naivete wasn't the highlight of the evening. When Skarlet finally went offstage and helped with the drinks—she is also the restaurant's owner and manager—Marcy Estrella and Monet Rivera took over to ensure that the night continued to be magical. Holding microphone and harmonica with his both hands, Marcy performed his take on Sergio Mendes' Bridges. He was joined by Monet on vocals whose rendition was as intense as Marcy's. Together, the duet made music in the way that it should be heard, making time stop and the moment last. It was just too bad the night had to end. From the Anal Retentive Department. The Manhattan Transfer's version of the said song—featured in their 1985 Vocalese Album—is entitled Another Night in Tunisia. While still faithful to the original melody, the group's acapella rendition featured additional lyrics and vocals by Jon Hendricks. Now in his nineties, Hendricks is, among others, famous for translating Antonio Carlos Jobim's songs into English and providing his own rendition.