...is Zyryab, from Paco de Lucía's 1990 album of the same name. The theme is named after Abu l-Hasan Ali ibn Nafi, aka Ziryab, a legendary 9th-century Arab singer, composer, poet, musician and teacher, who established in Córdoba one of the first music schools in the world and is said to have known 10,000 songs by heart.
By now, Zyryab has become a flamenco and jazz standard, covered by the likes of Chick Corea & The Spanish Heart Band, Ara Malikian, Colina / Serrano / Carmona trio, Amos Lora... the list goes on. For me, however, nothing beats the author's own take which I was lucky to see live some 30 years ago. Of course, there is no such thing as"definitive" Paco de Lucía version. Which one is your favourite?
