NY and the Village Vanguard Jazz, but first, Me!

So, just because some people have been accusing me of not actually doing an honest day's work on the ship but simply schlepping round various ports, I'm putting a 'work' shot in. It's Nick and myself, about to give it some 'Chicago' dancing. I don't know why it came out this small, but it's just as well.

Now, on to other things. These are my trying-to-be-discreet-by-turning-off-my-flash-and-red-eye-reduction-on-the-camera-before-snapping efforts from our night out at the final half set of the Village Vanguard Orchestra in New York's Greenwich Village.

Yes, they're dark, but they capture the atmosphere of the place pretty well. We got in at a discounted rate of only $10 because by the time my man finished working, it was 11.30pm, the time the last set starts at the Village Vanguard. It would otherwise have been $30 to hear big-band jazz, not cheap even by my London standards.

The room was fairly small for such a large group of musicians and had all the elements required for a 'genuine' big-band experience, four trombones, sax and trumpets, of which the lead trumpet-player was of the crazy, frat-boy ilk etc. and one really great bassist.

Duncan was impressed.

Eric and I had been to The Village (we talk like locals now!) earlier in the day, for his appointment to try out some upright basses at a specialist store called David Gage, check out this showroom (I'm a regular undercover photographer now) and on our walk there I particularly liked this collection of tiles painted by locals after 9/11, some had really poignant messages on them.

After the Village Vanguard had finished their final set, and my company did the usual and sometimes profitable "Hey, I'm a musician/you're a musician" social thing, we got a tip-off to go to Smalls for more jazz.

This three-man outfit couldn't compare to the evening's previous entertainment, but we stayed a while anyways, and I did get a good shot of the bass player.