Manitas de plata:
(Hands of silver)
YouTube - Manitas de Plata - Por el camino de Ronda
Manitas de Plata (Little Silverhands). (born
Ricardo Baliardo, August 7,
1921) was in the 1960s one of the most renowned
flamenco guitarists in the world, and continues to be highly esteemed by fans.
He was born in a Manouche Gypsy
Gitano caravan in
Sète in southern
France, into the
extended family to which the members of the flamenco band, the
Gipsy Kings, also belong [
citation needed]. He became famous by playing each year at the
Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer Gypsy pilgrimage in
Camargue, where he was recorded live by Deben Bhattacharya.
Manitas de Plata only agreed to play in public ten years after the death of
Django Reinhardt, unanimously considered the king of gypsy guitarists. One of his recordings earned him a letter by
Jean Cocteau acclaiming him as a creator
[1].
Upon hearing him play at
Arles in 1964,
Pablo Picasso is said to have exclaimed "that man is of greater worth than I am!" and proceeded to draw on the guitar
[1].
But Manitas de Plata became really famous only after a photography exhibition in New York, organized by his friend Lucien Clergue.
He had recorded his first official album in the chapel of
Arles in France for the Connoisseur Society Label sold through the Book of the Month Club.
This was a popular double LP
*** that brought him to the attention of an American audience. An American manager obtained a booking for him to play a concert in
Carnegie Hall in New York in December 1965
[1].
In New York, Manitas de Plata, who was
illiterate, represented Europe at the yearly gala of the
United Nations.
Since 1967 Manitas de Plata has been touring the whole world and recording discs. He played with
Paco de Lucia or with the dancer
Nina Corti [1]. In 1968 he played at the
Royal Variety Performance in London.
Manitas de Plata - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
***It was a triple LP record set ---I have a copy of that set that was availble only via the Book/Music Club. I wish it would be re-mastered and made available asap.
