The Gipsy Kings have signed a recording deal with Knitting Factory Records for their new album, Savor Flamenco that will hit the stores very soon. The French group is also ready to headline concerts at several venues throughout the US and Europe including the Greek Theater in Los Angeles and the Royal Albert Hall in London.
The Gipsy Kings is a flamenco music band made up of Nicolas, Paul, François, Patchai and André of the Reyes family and Diego, Paco and Tonino of the Baliardos family. A few band members such as François Reyes, André Reyes and Tonino Baliardo have also recorded and released their solo albums.
Origin
Founded in 1978, the Gipsy Kings band hails from Montpellier and Arles and performs in an Andalusian accent. Although the musicians were born in France but their parents are mainly Spanish who left Catalonia during the Spanish Civil War in 1930s. The sons, Nicolas and Andre Reyes of the popular flamenco artist, Jose Reyes joined hands with their cousins, Jacques, Maurice, and Tonino Baliardo to form a band in the seventies. Later, Jose Reyes formed his own band, Los Reyes that comprised only of his own sons. The band played at the festivals, weddings and on the streets of France and introduced the music enthusiasts to rumba catalane which is a great blend of traditional flamenco and pop music.
Studio Albums
Popularity did not come quickly to the Kings as their first two albums attracted very little attention. In 1986, the band came across the producer, Claude Martinez who could foresee the band's amazing talent and its ability to shine as a well-acclaimed band. In 1988, the band released its self-titled album to great delight of the audience. The Spanish album received platinum certification by the RIAA and spent forty weeks on the US album charts. Some of the fan-favorite singles of the album include Djobi Djoba, Bamboleo and Un Amor. The band has also released other albums including Este Mundo, Love and Liberté, Compas, Somos Gitanos, Roots and Pasajero.
The Live Experience
A Gypsy Kings concert is one of the fantastic events that you could attend. The group's amazing guitar solos bring the audience out of their seats and on the floor dancing to the tunes. You might have seen them on Saturday Night Live twenty-five years ago but they are much more amazing in a live performance. The music will bring back memories to your mind when they play all your favorite songs. The venues are packed with enthusiastic attendees who begin to scream out of excitement when these musicians appear on stage. By playing the crowd-pleasing numbers, the band members get the audience warmed up and excited during the show. They really enjoy playing for the crowd and keep filling their souls with great music. By the end of the evening, the attendees are on their feet singing and dancing to the sound of the great Gipsy Kings who continue to play flawlessly without missing a single beat. Perhaps this is the reason why Gipsy Kings tickets always sell like hot cakes.