Historia CD

The Grammy Awardwinning Gipsy Kings and their leaderfounder Tonino Baliardo broke the mould with their selftitled album back in 1987. It was a time when the US and UK charts were almost completely devoid of nonEnglish language songs, and especially music that was inspired and informed by the rich tapestry of world music from the preceding decades.Now in 2026, after 25 million album sales, in excess of 2 billion streams and soldout shows at prestigious concert halls across the world, Tonino Baliardo and the Gipsy Kings family are still burning bright, with music as electrifying and lifeaffirming as ever with the news that they will release the new album Historia on May 16th.The Gipsy Kings have come a long way since they started out playing the streets, weddings and bars of their native Arles, France in 1979. Perhaps their greatest achievement, however, which continues on their superb new album Historia, is in keeping the rich, passionate, virtuosic traditions of flamenco music and Catalan gipsy culture alive.Family is at the heart of everything, says Baliardo. My two sons are in the band, and in the community young people are still brought up with flamenco and Catalan rumba. It is a big part of who we are, and it is woven into our identity.Historia celebrates all of this, and it was made while a documentary crew followed Baliardo to tell the story of his 35 years on the road as a bandleader and musician. It is also a testament to the Gipsy Kings enduring legacy because, as he points out, Throughout it all we have remained faithful to who we are and where we came from.With Historia providing a summation of the past, and everything the band has been through, what does the future hold I may be a gipsy, but I dont have a crystal ball, Baliardo concludes. My two sons are in the band, we collaborate with their cousins, and there is a new generation who are happy and enthusiastic to be a part of it all. The gipsy caravan, in other words, shows no sign of slowing down.