If you have a Spanish guitar-obsessed mind like I do, you notice its elements all the time in the most unlikely places. When I first heard the catchy Coldplay piano riff opening of the song "Clocks," I immediately thought, "Hey, that's a textbook Latin rhythm!" 

What...

Few things sound as instantly recognizable as the "phrygian sound" that we can get by playing two major chords a half step (one fret) apart. Even the Andalusian Cadence – which ends with this two chord sequence – is less potent than just playing these two...