Gipsy Kings: The Best of Rumba!

Gipsy Kings is the name of a French musical group descendant from Catalonians which moved from Spain escaping Civil War. Their music is the result of the mixing of Rumba Catalana, Flamenco and Pop in something that can be called Rumba Flamenca. This is a family group that has been composed of musicians belonging to the Baliardo and Reyes Families in Motpelier and Arles. Nicolas, Canut, Patchai and Pablo Reyes as well as Paco, Tonino and Diego Baliardo have been part of this successful group. The story of this gipsy group began with their father Jose Reyés a very important artist within his community.

The Reyes with the Baliardo got together in a band that started playing at private parties, especially of millionaires and very important people. Little by little, they started to build the recognition that would drive them to perform in front of world audiences. For instance, they performed with Enrico Macias at the Olympia in Paris. From 1979, the date of the performance at the Olympia, to 1982, they kept performing in the south of France. One day, the producer Jacqueline Tarta heard them in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. Impressed by their performance and talent, she helped them to sign with Phonogram.

Their debut album Allegria (1983) was very successful locally but failed to gain the acceptance of the national audience. The next year, they released their second album Luna de Fuego, but it was not successful either. In 1998, with a new producer and a much more modern sound, they released the album Gipsy Kings and the single “Bamboleo”. They were now in the way to succeed. “Djobi Djoba” and “Un Amor” were other of the hits included in the successful Gipsy Kings. Their most remarkable works are the single “Volare”, contained in the album Mosaique, and their own versions of “Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu” and “Hotel California".