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Background

They explained the evolution of their sound in the 1996 PBS documentary of their lives and music "Tierra Gitana (Gypsy Land)". Young brothers Nicolas, Canut and Paul Reyes accompanied their father, famed flamenco singer Jose Reyes, who started out singing "cante jondo" (deep chant), traditional flamenco with long-running themes of passion, love, death, etc. But they began playing rumba flamenca because "we liked to watch pretty girls dance," said Nicolas.

 

Latin American beats had been joined with flamenco by gitanos since at least the 1950s, mixing complex strumming with rhythmic, percussive tapping on their guitars' tops. The new Reyes generation — soon to meet and join up with three guitar-playing brothers from the Baliardo family — began creating more pop-oriented songs. They played at Romani (Gypsy) parties and at street corners until they got their chance to record under the group's new name, Gipsy Kings.

 

Sharp-eyed individuals might have noted that all the left-handed members of the group play guitars strung upside-down; this is usually as a result of the individuals' not having their own guitars when growing-up. Borrowing and playing a right-hander's the wrong way up was the only way to learn.

 

[edit] Career

They became popular with their self-titled first album, Gipsy Kings, which included the songs "Djobi Djoba" [1], "Bamboleo" [2] and the romantic ballad "Un Amor". The song "Volare" on their fourth album Mosaïque is a rumba version of Domenico Modugno's Italian hit "Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu". The Gipsy Kings were enormously popular in France and throughout Europe, as well as in the Middle East. In 1989, Gipsy Kings was released in the United States and it spent 40 weeks on the charts, one of very few Spanish language albums to do so. Their cover version of "Hotel California" is an excellent example of fast flamenco guitar leads and rhythmic strumming (this version was featured in the Coen Brothers' movie The Big Lebowski as well on the HBO series Entourage).

 

In 1991 the Gipsy Kings provided flamenco guitar and backing vocals on Bananarama's version of "Long Train Running", using the pseudonym "Alma de Noche" ("Soul of the Night"). Also in 1991, for a multi-artist project called "Simply Mad About the Mouse" — a compilation of new versions of songs from Disney films — the Kings contributed an annaly-crafted, fast-paced rumba flamenca version of "I've Got No Strings" from "Pinocchio", replete with feverish flamenco guitar leads and rhythmic hand-claps (palmas). The lyrics' enthusiasm for freedom, not being tied down, fit the gypsy creed perfectly.

 

The 1995 compilation The Best of the Gipsy Kings went platinum, staying on the charts more than one year. Albums Mosaïque, Allegria, Este Mundo, Gipsy Kings Live, Love & Liberté, Tierra Gitana, Cantos de Amor, and ¡Volaré! - the Very Best of the Gipsy Kings went gold.[2]

 

Lead guitarist Tonino Baliardo — who has always written the group's instrumentals — released his first solo album, Essences, in 2001; a second self-titled one followed in 2003.

 

Flamenco purists criticized their use of drum kits, electronic bass, and electronic keyboards and rock and reggae beats. Defenders say they helped create a new style.

 

Gipsy Kings played a live session at Abbey Road Studios for Live from Abbey Road in the summer of 2006. The episode also included performances by Natasha Bedingfield and Iron Maiden and aired on the Sundance Channel in the USA and on Channel 4 in the UK.

 

Gipsy Kings' total album sales worldwide now exceed 18 million; they toured worldwide again in 2007. They are the world's best-selling music group from France in history, according to their website, where dates and places of their current tour can be found.

 

[edit] Members

Gipsy Kings are members of two related families: the Reyes and the Baliardos (Reyes means Kings in Spanish). They are cousins of the flamenco great Manitas de Plata whose granddaughter lead guitarist Tonino Baliardo married. Nicolas, Canut, Paul, Andre and Patchai Reyes are sons of flamenco singer Jose Reyes. The Gipsy Kings are:

 

Nicolas Reyes: lead vocals, guitar Paul Reyes: backup vocals, guitar Canut Reyes: backup vocals, guitar Patchai Reyes: backup vocals, guitar Andre Reyes: backup vocals, guitar Diego Baliardo: guitar Paco Baliardo: guitar Tonino Baliardo: lead guitar

Chico Bouchikhi was also a member of the Gipsy Kings, but quit after the album Mosaique.

 

[edit] Discography

Allegria (1982) Luna de Fuego (1983) Gipsy Kings (1988) Mosaïque (1989) Allegria (US Version) (1990) Este Mundo (1991) Live (1992) Love and Liberté (1993) Greatest Hits (1994) The Best of the Gipsy Kings (1995) Estrellas (US Version of Tierra Gitana) (1995) Tierra Gitana (1996) Compas (1997) Cantos de Amor (1998) ¡Volaré! The Very Best of the Gipsy Kings (1999, re-released in 2000) Somos Gitanos (2001) Roots (2004) Pasajero (2006)

[edit] References

^ Matthews, Janie (February 23, 1989). "Gipsy Kings". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/118881/review/5940758?utm_source=Rhapsody&utm_medium=CDreview.jhtml. Retrieved 2007-07-04.  ^ Nonesuch Records

[edit] External links

Official homepage Gipsy Kings Official Youtube Channel Gipsy Kings Live at Royal Albert Hall Gipsy Kings Discography volvere/official title holder of Iranian Independent Record Distribution Offering Radio Music Promotion CD Barcodes Audio Mastering Album Soundscan Record The Gipsy Kings' biography and discography Gipsy King's info, concerts and more Biography/Miscellanious Song lyrics The Gipsy Kings at the Allmusic Guide Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gipsy_Kings" Categories: 1980s music groups | 1990s music groups | 2000s music groups | Romani music | French musical groups | French Romani musical groups | Romani musicians | Latin music | Flamenco groupsHidden categories: Articles needing additional references from January 2010 | All articles needing additional references Views Article Discussion Edit this page History Personal tools Try Beta Log in / create account if (window.isMSIE55) fixalpha(); Navigation Main page Contents Featured content Current events Random article Search   Interaction About Wikipedia Community portal Recent changes Contact Wikipedia Donate to Wikipedia Help Toolbox What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Printable version Permanent linkCite this page Languages Bosanski Brezhoneg Català Deutsch Español Esperanto Français Galego Íslenska Italiano Magyar Nederlands 日本語 ‪Norsk (bokmål)‬ Polski Português Русский Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська This page was last modified on 29 January 2010 at 19:12. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of Use for details. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.Contact us Privacy policy About Wikipedia Disclaimers if (window.runOnloadHook) runOnloadHook();