Latin American beats had been joined with flamenco by gitanos since at least the 1950s, mixing complex strumming with rhythmic, percussive tapping on their guitars' tops. The new Reyes generation — soon to meet and join up with three guitar-playing brothers from the Baliardo family — began creating more pop-oriented songs. They played at roma parties and at street corners until they got their chance to record under the group's new name, Gipsy Kings.
Sharp-eyed individuals might have noted that all the left-handed members of the group play guitars strung upside-down; this is usually as a result of the individuals' not having their own guitars when growing-up. Borrowing and playing a right-hander's the wrong way up was the only way to learn.
Band's story
They became popular with their self-titled first album, Gipsy Kings, which included the songs "Djobi Djoba ", "Bamboleo " and the romantic ballad "Un Amor". The song "Volare" on their second album Mosaique is a rumba version of Domenico Modugno's Italian hit "Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu". The Gipsy Kings were enormously popular in France and throughout Europe along with the middle east. In 1989, Gipsy Kings was released in the United States and it spent 40 weeks on the charts, one of very few Spanish language albums to do so. Their cover version of "Hotel California" is an excellent example of fast flamenco guitar leads and rhythmic strumming (this version was featured in the Coen Brothers' movie The Big Lebowski).
In 1991 the Gipsy Kings provided flamenco guitar and backing vocals on Bananarama's version of "Long Train Running", using the pseudonym "Alma de Noche" ("Soul of the Night"). Also in '91, for a multi-artist project called "Simply Mad About the Mouse" — a compilation of new versions of songs from Disney films — the Kings contributed an annaly-crafted, fast-paced rumba flamenca version of "I've Got No Strings" from "Pinocchio" - replete with feverish flamenco guitar leads and rhythmic hand-claps (palmas). The lyrics' enthusiasm for freedom, not being tied down, fit the gipsy creed perfectly.
Their 1993 album "Love and Liberte" won the Latin Grammy Award for "Best Pop Album of the Year," and contained the enduring song "Montana," an emotional account of Roma chased from their birthplace by prejudice and persecution.
The '95 compilation "The Best of the Gipsy Kings" went platinum, staying on the charts more than one year. Albums "Mosaïque," "Allegria," "Este Mundo," "Gipsy Kings Live," "Love & Liberte," "Tierra Gitana," "Cantos de Amor" and "Volare! - the Very Best of the Gipsy Kings" went gold.
Lead guitarist Tonino Baliardo — who has always written the group's instrumentals — released his first solo album, Essences, in 2001; a second self-titled one followed in 2003.
Flamenco purists criticized their use of drum kits, electronic bass, and electronic keyboards and rock and reggae beats. Defenders say they helped create a new style.
Gipsy Kings' total album sales worldwide now exceed 18 million; they toured worldwide again in 2007. They are the world's best-selling music group from France in history, according to their website, where dates and places of their current tour can be found.
Years active: from 1987 till present.
Members
Gipsy Kings are members of two related families: the Reyes and the Baliardos (Reyes means Kings in Spanish). They are cousins of the flamenco great Manitas de Plata, lead guitarist Tonino Baliardo married his granddaughter. Nicolas, Canut, Paul, Andre and Patchai Reyes are sons of flamenco singer Jose Reyes. The Gipsy Kings are:
Nicolas Reyes: lead vocals, guitar
Paul Reyes: backup vocals, guitar
Canut Reyes: backup vocals, guitar
Patchai Reyes: backup vocals, guitar
Andre Reyes: backup vocals, guitar
Diego Baliardo: guitar
Paco Baliardo: guitar
Tonino Baliardo: lead guitar
Chico Bouchikhi was also a member of the Gipsy Kings, but quit after the album Mosaique.
No Vivere
Gipsy Kings Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Si me falta su amor
Contra ti, ser feliz y nada mas
Sono no mingue
Sono lo que tenga de signe
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti, de ti, de ti
Me falta tu amor
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti, de ti
Me falta tu amor
No quiero perdir su amor
No vivire
Que l'amor no se acaba
Contra ti, ser feliz y nada mas
Sono no mingue
Sono lo que tenga de signé
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti, de ti, de ti
Me falta tu amor
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti
Lo que quiero yo de ti, de ti
Me falta tu amor
No quiero perdir su amor
Yo sere feliz
No quiero perder te
Nunca lo vivir sin ti
No diga mas hoy
El lo mismo me encuentra
Ser feliz, vivare y nada mas
Sono no mingué
Sono lo que tenga de signe
Sono no mingue
Sono lo que tenga de signe
Sono no mingué
Sono lo que tenga de signe
The lyrics to Gipsy Kings' song "No Vivire" express the importance of love and the devastating effects of its absence. The singer says that they cannot live without their lover's love, and that they will only be happy with them. The repetition of "Me falta tu amor" reinforces the idea that the singer is incomplete without their lover's love. The phrase "Sono no mingue, Sono lo que tenga de signe" suggests that the singer is willing to do whatever it takes to keep their lover and be happy. In the end, the singer declares that they will be happy as long as they have their lover and that they never want to live without them.
Line by Line Meaning
No vivire
I cannot live without your love
Si me falta su amor
If I am without your love
Contra ti, ser feliz y nada mas
Against all odds, I will only find happiness with you
Sono no mingue
I am nobody
Sono lo que tenga de signe
I am whatever fate brings
Lo que quiero yo de ti
What I desire from you
Me falta tu amor
I lack your love
No quiero perdir su amor
I do not want to lose your love
Que l'amor no se acaba
Love does not end
Yo sere feliz
I will be happy
No quiero perder te
I don't want to lose you
Nunca lo vivir sin ti
I will never live it without you
No diga mas hoy
Do not say anymore today
El lo mismo me encuentra
He finds the same thing with me
Ser feliz, vivare y nada mas
To be happy, to live, and nothing else matters
Sono no mingué
I am nobody
Sono lo que tenga de signe
I am whatever fate brings
Sono no mingué
I am nobody
Sono lo que tenga de signe
I am whatever fate brings
Sono no mingué
I am nobody
Sono lo que tenga de signe
I am whatever fate brings
Writer(s): AYSEL GUREL, ONNO TUNC, NICHOLAS REYES, TONINO BALIARDO
Contributed by Jasmine M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
hain kostok
Duygularimiza dünyanın sonu gelene dek tercüman olacak şarkılar yapan Onno Tunç ustaya bin selam..
azul
i fell in love with gipsy kings in 2000! i can’t believe it’s almost 20 years😭😭😭❤️
سلیم کہاں
I fell in love with them in 2017. Listen to all their beautiful songs. 💙💙
bouchra elhadfi
❤️❤️❤️
Erem Yıldız
30 years
Oktay Yıldırım
Originally Turkish song 🎵 🇹🇷 Hadi Yine Sev - Nilüfer 1992 🇹🇷
daisy lucid
Linda canção amo muito vocês Gipsy kings. Brasil ❤🌹💯💯💯💯💯🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷❤👍👍👍❤
Adri Garcia
esta canción me da mucha tristeza, mi abuela la escuchaba cuando era niña, ella ya falleció pero ese recuerdo siempre vivira😢
VALÉRIA MARINO
Aaaaammoo essa música !!!!!!! Faz meu coração vibrar infinitamente 💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗
Oktay Yıldırım
Originally Turkish song 🎵 🇹🇷 Hadi yine sev - Nilüfer 1992