I'll try to get myself under control. But you see, I've been sitting at my desk for 15 hours today, creating an extremely complicated legal document that is finally finished. For the last 2 hours of this almost-torture, I have been listening to an album called Xinti by Sara Tavars. Gad, such intense, gorgeous music! (See, I even used an exclamation point). I've never met Sara, but . . . her voice . . . her fantastic song-writing and that excellent guitar playing . . . This is music that removes you from wherever you are and puts you in a place where everything is OK. I've never met Sara, but I love her. She's got me wrapped around her finger. This is pathetic, in a good way. When visitors come over to the house when Xinti's playing, they all demand to know who is making that incredible music. Sara is. And it's really daunting to try to describe exactly what kind of music she creates. Here's the description of her work from Amazon:

Brimming with Cape Verdean guitar licks, Angolese rhythms and warm Portuguese vocals, Sara never sounded more intense. This is a startling collection, packed with surprises that displays how progressively richer and more expansive Sara Tavares' vocal repetoire has become since her previous album "Balance". Her songs are lyrcial, sensual and more textured. They are intimate but also wrapped in irresistibly funky rhythms drawn from the Cape Verdean / African / Brazilian / Caribbean diaspora.

Have you ever listened to music of that genre? Maybe it's time you tried. Or buy Sara's album as a gift for someone you love, and they will love you back. It's unfair, because Sara did all of the work to make that music, and all you had to do was buy it. Here's a cut called "Sumanai" from Xinti (and you'll find quite a few of her other tunes on Youtube):