The Jobim song "Girl from Ipanema" is often listed among the most recorded songs in history. It's been done countless times by innumerable musicians in a variety of styles, even being adopted as "elevator music," and yet its allure seems not to have been exhausted. Perhaps this is partly due to its beautiful yet simple melody and its unusual harmony, both of which seem like invitations to play them.

Given the song's notoriety, I wanted to "play around" with it (and not just "play" the song, as in "cover" it). So these are my "Impressions of Ipanema," performed live in January 2024 as part of a half an hour suite on the theme "Echoes of Jobim."

The guitar is a custom 2002 Taylor 712CE with a Cedar top and Rosewood body, strung with a set of Thomastik-Infeld Plectrum 11s and fitted with a passive K&K Pure Mini pickup. It's run through an array of effector pedals, most prominently a T-Rex Binson EchoRec, and then into the venue PA. Recorded on a smartphone.