The song I picked to represent the Caribbean region is “St. Thomas,” a jazz standard made popular by American saxophonist Sonny Rollins. The tune opens with a Calypso-like drumset groove followed by Sonny Rollins and the piano playing the melody, which is based on the Bahamian folk song “Sponger Money” and “The Lincolnshire Poacher,” a Virgin Islands nursery song Rollins’ mother would sing to him. I picked this song because it’s a tune I’ve heard called often at jam sessions, and I thought it had a tropical/island vibe to it but wasn’t sure what type of music it was based off of. After learning about Calypso and the elements that make up the tradition, I immediately was able to recognize that this tune draws from those influences. 

Here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdakJqKPRDE

Enjoy!