After a glass of grog, Chico was happy to chat. "Of course I knew Cesária Évora. I played with her on a tour of the US. Hey, she was first discovered singing at my piano!" It soon became apparent that there were many in Mindelo, capital of the Cape Verde island of São Vicente, who had known perhaps the greatest ever exponent of morna.
Morna is the national music of the Cape Verde islands, and Cesária was the undisputed queen of it until her death last December. The haunting melodies are creole – a fusion of Portuguese, African, Brazilian and Cuban – which some say are reminiscent of the Blues. To my ear morna sounds more poignant and refined. But what's indisputable is the place that is its spiritual home: Mindelo.
To get to São Vicente you have to fly via tourist hub on the island of Sal. But it's worth the trip. Mindelo's a pretty place of sun-bleached colonial buildings with cast iron balconies. And although tourism is growing, this is still a working town with an active port and fishing fleet. After work, fishermen head for bars on Rua Santa Antonio, a cobbled alley in the old town. Don't be put off by the lack of street lamps; it's a friendly place. The bars radiate a dim blue/green light and knock out decent beer for pennies. Grog, the local rum, is an altogether different kind of knock-out, believe me.
Pica Pau is a tiny, bare-boarded cafe with a big reputation for prawns and lobster – as evidenced by the hundreds of thank-you letters on the walls. I particularly liked its fish soup, loaded with dry bread.
Leaving a mark to celebrate your visit seems to be the done thing. Clube Nautica, an open-air bar by the marina is draped with flags donated by previous guests – passing sailors I presume, but it also has live music. On my first night in Mindelo I drifted into the bar and struck lucky: a lone musician began singing a hypnotic morna as he strummed a twangling 12-string guitar. He had the half-dozen drinkers transfixed.
Music permeates every corner of Mindelo. At my hotel, Porto Grande, Saturday night jam sessions kick off at about 11pm and attract more locals than tourists. Salsa, bossa nova and coladeira (a little more ribald than morna) are all favourites. Khaly, the young pianist playing the night I visited, was Cesária's very last keyboard player. "She never remembered my name; she called me piano boy," said Khaly, and for a brief moment I thought he might sob. "She's a queen. I always hear her, on the radio, in my head."
I'd say it was in his DNA.
At 2am I headed for bed – and learnt that Mindelo never sleeps. I nodded off to the sound of drums echoing around the streets in preparation for a carnival. It felt like I might be the only person in bed.
Mindelo's museum has an eclectic collection of local crafts, including a lovely workbench whose long history is gouged into its surface with thousands of knife marks. It once belonged to Mestre Baptista, a master guitar maker based in Mindelo. His son Luis still makes instruments today.
If you need a new guitar, Luis is your man. Of course he has made instruments used by Cesária's musicians. Then, as if to order, a couple of his many brothers showed up (yep, they played for the legend too) with their friend Edson, a vocalist. And for the next hour I had my own private impromptu concert in the basement of a little house in the outskirts of town. Mindelo is like that.
The amount of art and culture packed into Mindelo is impressive. Back by the marina is a gallery exhibiting the work of Cape Verdean artists. It's also got a great bookshop and cafe – and was yet another hangout for the artistic community. I met actors there planning performances for later in the year. Plans are also afoot for August's Baia das Gatas festival (festivalbaiadasgatas.com). Now in its 28th year it attracts top local talent as well as international names.
But round the corner from the marina, on Rua de Libertad d'Africa, was my favourite, Bar Lisboa. It's something of an intellectuals' haunt, tiny, atmospheric, and the purveyor of excellent caipirinhas and snacks. It was here I met Chico and talked about his days on the road with Cesária.
I've loved her music for many years, but in that little bar on a hot Tuesday evening I began to understand something more of the Barefoot Diva. Cape Verde and the woman are one and the same, and Mindelo – small, passionate, bursting with life – is the best place to find her legacy.
Chico put it simply, he said "our music has power" and I believe him.
• The Cape Verde Experience (0845 330 2047, capeverde.co.uk) has seven nights at the Porto Grande Hotel in Mindelo, São Vicente from £1,049pp, based on two sharing, including breakfast and flights from Gatwick via Sal
