Kate McGregor - Summer Breeze

Kate McGregor was born and raised in the valleys of South Wales - an area with immense musical heritage predominantly based around male voice choirs and Tom Jones. Nonetheless her real passion has always been music so, rather than getting the men to move aside and free up the stage for her, she set off for sunnier shores with a slightly more recent musical heritage - Ibiza...

Kate's musical influences are as diverse as Dolly Parton, Amy Winehouse, Janice Joplin and Al Green and she can do justice to most of them, but with the influence of her own Welsh roots shining through.

She arrived on the island eight years ago as a singer songwriter with an acoustic guitar on the back of a motorbike, but has now mastered the double bass to complement her dulcet vocals. Whilst working at 'Daffers' restaurant in Santa Eulalia her frustration at not being able to play music got the better of her, so when the restaurant closed for the winter she talked the owner into letting her open it to run a jam session for local musicians on Saturday nights. Despite constant hassle from the local police this resulted in the formation of 'The Lost Mountain Orchestra' - arguably the best live band on the island.

Since then Kate and her double bass have become both a regular feature and a guarantee of fine entertainment on the live music scene of Ibiza. Nowadays, when she's not performing locally with The Lost Mountain Orchestra, you'll find her performing around the island as a duet with Volker Schmitz on guitar.

Her debut album "Summer Breeze" contains many of her favourite songs, spanning the spectrum from Burt Bacharach through the Stones to Norah Jones - Kate's love of music spans some three decades of fascinating tunes. This follows on from her recognition as a real vocal talent through inclusion of 'Sunset People' (Track 1 CD 3) on the latest Cafe del Mar release - Volume 15.

Her arranger and guitarist, Volker Schmitz, has applied a smooth and laid back jazzy feel which, alongside the finishing touches from producer Oli Statz as he recorded and mixed the album, have resulted in a surprisingly up to date and ambient interpretation of some timeless classics.

"Summer Breeze" brings back many memories and feelings - particularly those of beautiful days spent on Ibiza...