The Latin Bit

The Latin Bit is an album by American jazz guitarist Grant Green featuring performances recorded in 1962 and released on the Blue Note label.^[2] It is a loose concept album inspired by Latin American music. It features tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec, pianists Sonny Clark and John Adriano Acea, bassist Wendell Marshall and percussionists Willie Bobo, Garvin Masseaux and “Patato” Valdes.

The Latin Bit
Studio album by Grant Green
Released	May 1963[1]
Recorded	April 26 & September 7, 1962
Studio	Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ
Genre	Latin jazz
Length	38:56 original LP 59:53 CD reissue
Label	Blue Note BST 84111
Producer	Alfred Lion
Grant Green chronology
Born to Be Blue (1962) The Latin Bit (1963) Goin' West (1962)

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[3]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings	[4]

The Allmusic review by Michael G. Nastos awarded the album 3½ stars and stated "This CD always yielded mixed results for staunch fans of Green, but a revisit shows it to be a credible effort, even if slightly flawed in part".^[3]

Track listing

All compositions by Grant Green except where noted

1. "Mambo Inn" (Mario Bauzá, Edgar Sampson, Bobby Woodlen) – 5:52
2. "Bésame Mucho" (Consuelo Velázquez) – 7:12
3. "Mama Inez" (L. Wolfe Gilbert, Eliseo Grenet) – 6:42
4. "Brazil" (Ary Barroso) – 5:01
5. "Tico Tico" (Zequinha de Abreu) – 7:46
6. "My Little Suede Shoes" (Charlie Parker) – 6:23

Bonus track on CD reissue:

7. "Blues for Juanita" – 7:06
8. "Granada" (Agustín Lara) – 6:27
9. "Hey There" (Richard Adler, Jerry Ross) – 7:24

Recorded on April 26 (tracks 1–7) and September 7 (tracks 8–9), 1962.

Personnel

• Grant Green – guitar
• Ike Quebec – tenor saxophone (tracks 8–9)
• John Adriano Acea (tracks 1–7), Sonny Clark (tracks 8–9) – piano
• Wendell Marshall – bass
• Willie Bobo – drums
• Carlos "Patato" Valdes – conga (tracks 1–6, 8–9)
• Garvin Masseaux – chekere (tracks 1–6)

Charts

Chart performance for The Latin Bit

Chart (2022)	Peak position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[5]	186
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[6]	54