I first hear Flamenco music in 1964 when the uncle and father of members of The Gypsy kings released their first record album in the US titled: Manitas de Plata: Guitarra Flamenco. It was recorded in a small room with a few invited guests, including the world famous artist Pablo Picasso. His cousin, a carpet layer, Jose Reyes, who is the father of several of the members of The Gypsy Kings, was the vocalist. When I heard the magnificent and authentic guitar playing on this record I was instantly electrified! Memories of my past lives spent in Spain and France as a gypsy flooded back into my consciousness with overwhelming passion for this music and these beautifully crude, by free, peasants who were originally refugees from India and Egypt. Here are two cuts from Manitas De Plata performing Tarantas. This is the first US recordings ever made of Manitas De Plata — October 1963, in Arles, France, produced by Connoisseur Society (the recording engineer was David B. Jones). It was initially released as an LP (“Manitas de Plata aux Saintes Maries de la Mer“) on the Philips and Connoisseur Society labels. To this day I have never heard a performance of authentic Flamenco guitar playing as flawlessly performed as those recorded on this record.
Here are TWO selections from that album:
In 2003 I attended a concert of the Gypsy Kings at The Greek Theater in L.A. as a birthday present to myself. This is my favorite music group of all time! They continue the proud heritage of the true gypsy spirit of freedom and passion and musical genius! Here is the complete album of the Gypsy Kings Greatest Hits:
Since the 60s I have been enchanted by Manitas de Plata (Fingers of Silver). He is the finest, most authentic Gypsy Flamenco guitar player who ever lived. He was the progenitor of The Gypsy Kings, together with the singer who performed with him most of his life, Jose Reyes. This is a full-length (remastered) concert by Manitas de Plata, with Jose Reyes (and others) from 1975. The first solo performance by Manitas de Plata in this concert begins at 10:00. It is “Por el Camino de Ronda“.
Manitas De Plata, Jose Reyes and Manero Ballardo Perform the Malagueñas Flamenco. This is the first recording ever made of Manitas De Plata – October 1963, in Arles, France, produced by E. Alan Silver of the Connoisseur Society (the recording engineer David B. Jones WAS). It WAS INITIALLY year released as LP (“Manitas de Plata at Saintes Maries de la Mer”) on the Connoisseur Society label and Philips (I Believe the Connoisseur Society distribution cam first) I Purchased the chromium-oxide tape version – from Which I Have made this video – when it Appeared sometime in the early 1970s.
~ ~ Guitar: Segovia, Bream, Manitas de de Plata (literally small Scissorhands but in fact is the French expression “nimble fingers”) is a famous gypsy guitarist. Whose real name is Ricardo Baliardo, Manitas de Plata was born August 7, 1921 in Sète, in a caravan. It was soon recognized by his people as Manitas de Plata, the man with the “magic fingers”. It differs every year, playing the guitar at the Gypsy pilgrimage of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. Django Reinhardt was alive, he dare not even think to dethrone that which was then considered the king of gypsy music. Ten years after the death of Django, he agrees to play in public, and the miracle happens. In New York, at an exhibition of photographs by his friend Lucien Clergue, an acknowledged admirer of one of the shots and persuaded him to record. He made his debut in the chapel of Arles. An American manager does play on stage at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York in December 1965. The gypsy illiterate, who can not read a note of music, conquers the world. In March 1964, an evening bullfight in Arles, Picasso, after hearing him play, exclaims: “It is more expensive than me! “.He was a friend of Salvador Dalí. Since 1967, Manitas de Plata continues to release records, travels the world surrounded by his tribe and always his eldest son, Manero, one of the last great singers of the Camargue, or developing smaller, his family around him . He played well in the U.S., Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Singapore, England, Algeria, etc.. Manitas has sold over 93 million albums of his music, over 83 different disks (source: manitasdeplata.fr). He lives very modestly to the Grande Motte. Manitas has lost his younger brother, 27 May 2009, which accompanied him during his early career on the biggest stages the world Balliardo Hippolyte, 84, also of the greatest friend. On August 8, 2009, there is still the arena “El Cordobés” Palavas-les-Flots (France), at the tribute night dedicated to his brother Hippolyte but also on the occasion of his birthday (7 August 2009), the public makes him a standing ovation while moving him this illiterate gypsy, who introduced El Flamenco worldwide, having reduced later this music to its purest form. Manitas de Plata is now considered the greatest flamenco guitarist in the world although controversial by the purists of the traditionalist school academic Spanish, because of his illiteracy and non-academic. Yet the artist Manitas is the world flamenco, all shades together, to be the best selling album in the world, an artist always respected and loved precisely because of its extraordinary art. Salvador Dali, who resembled the father Manitas, said of him, “Whenever Manitas plays, firefighters take fire.” Manitas met the most influential artistic, economic, literary and political, all captivated by the art, the personality of the artist at once modest and somewhat narcissistic, but always so endearing, touching and authentic. There are a permanent UN International Gypsy world representing these people and stuff.
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Manitas de Plata partying with 60’s sex-bomb Bridget Bardo
