Gipsy Kings

Over the years the Gipsy Kings – who hail from the gypsy settlements in Arles and Montpelier in the south of France – have included singers and guitarists from the Reyes (Canut, Nicolas, Pablo and Patchai) and Baliardo families (Diego, Paco and Tonino). Lead singer Nicolas Reyes is the son of famed Flamenco singer José Reyes, who with his cousin, guitarist Manitas de Plata, sold millions of records in the 60's and 70's. The band's vigorous guitar work and passionate vocals are the trademark of an indigenous musical tradition known as rumba flamenca. The rumba – which originated in Africa – traveled from Zaire via the slave trade to Cuba and the New World, then back to Barcelona, where it was adopted by the Gypsies. The Gipsy Kings particular style reveals the influence of Paco de Lucia's nuevo flamenco, as well as singers Cameron de la Isla and Manolo Caracol.