Out of the blues

the blues Turning her back on the turmoil of the last decade, Suzanne Bonnar unveils a sexy new Latin sound - with unexpected influences - to an awestruck Ian Black Suzanne Bonnar has been singing the blues all her life, and her two shows based on the lives of Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday will live on in the memory of those who saw and heard them. But things have been taking a rather different turn of late.

You may remember 1993's The Blacksburg Connection, the BBC Scotland documentary that documented her emotional reunion with her biological father and the rest of her American family, but you may not be aware that her father died suddenly not long ago. You'd think this would have driven Bonnar deeper into the blues - but in fact the reverse has happened.

"It was painful," the Scots singer admits. "It was like he was dead, then I met him and he was alive again, and now he's dead again. It changed the course of my life completely. It made me think, made me change the course of my music."

Bonnar cites different influences these days - people such as U2 and Prince, not to mention Kate Bush and Betty Carter, the jazz performer whose short temper is nearly as legendary as her music. So is Bonnar becoming more like her? She roars with laughter. "I haven't earned enough stripes yet to tell people to shut up!"

What about Kate Bush, then - what's going on there? "She's definitely an influence. You'll be getting a Brazilian version of Wuthering Heights." It's disappointing to discover this is a joke.

Bonnar also likes U2's early material: "Their songs have a lot of content. These are people with something to say."

She is into Brazilian and Latin music now, and her set includes numbers from the Tom Jobim oeuvre, such as One Note Samba and Girl From Ipanema, as well as the Jorge Ben corker Mas Que Nada. She is also contemplating a Carmen Miranda song or two, but won't be emulating the fruit-shop-on-the- bonce look.

"The Latin and Brazilian stuff - I enjoy it a lot. It's broadened my horizons and allowed me to celebrate who I am. It has freed me. It's like a different flavour. It allows me to expand, rather than just doing verse, solo, verse, solo."

Those of us who love her expressive voice and e-l-a-s-t-i-c phrasing can't wait.

Suzanne Bonnar, St Andrews In The Square, June 30, 8pm

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