Travels With My Trombone

Rating:
Summary: A musical Caribbean tour of the islands.
Review: Mr. Shukman started playing Latin music in his native England following a trip to South America. A classical historian by education and musician by avocation, Shukman was drawn to the Caribbean by a desire to learn more of island styles of music and to play with local bands during the Carnival season. He carried names of contacts provided by a Caribbean-born leader of Homer's Odyssey, a steel band based in London. Starting in Trinidad, one contact leads to another as Shukman journeys from island to island, gig to gig and eventually to South America. He masters different musical genres (jing ping, soca, zouk) and experiences true island life through his close association with local musicians. The only this missing from this armchair adventure is a sound track!

Rating:
Summary: A fascinating, wonderful book.
Review: Travels with My Trombone describes Shukman's odyssey through the Carribbean playing trombone with various groups. The best thing about the book is that it is not a traditional travelogue. Anybody reading this book will learn about the cultures and music of the areas that Shukman travels through, but the real value here comes from the skill with which Shukman reveals not only his knowledge and experience, but his confusion and bewilderment. Reading the book is to share in the sensation of being overwhelmed by the sheer difference of the world in which the author immersed himself. It's like dreaming with your eyes open. The fact that you'll be compelled to go spend your rent money on world music after you finish is just an extra bonus.

The end of the road to nowhere- Bad Grammar. Badgrammar.tripod.com.