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Description
CHICO AND THE GYPSIES
concert
Wednesday, 14 June 2023, 8pm (rain date: 15 June)
Margaret Island Open-Air Stage
The concert by Chico and the Gypsies promises to be a huge, hot-blooded party and a true evening of summer fun! The legendary founder of the Gypsy Kings will arrive with such worldwide hits as “Bamboleo”, “Djobi”, and “Ben Ben Maria”. With their renewed strength and fresh sound, he and his band are sure to create a sultry atmosphere.
Chico Bouchiki comes from a Moroccan-Algerian family. Growing up in Provence, he began to play guitar at age 16. He soon befriended the Reyes musical family as a pupil and came under the influence of flamenco, gypsy, and Afro-Cuban styles. Together with José Reyes, he founded the Gypsy Kings, where Chico also served as co-composer of numerous hits. In 1992, he went solo and formed his own seven-member band, Chico and the Gypsies. Their music is characterized by rumba, flamenco, and rock, as well as Catalan and Latin-pop styles. The ensemble is committed to fighting for freedom and peace. In 1996, Chico was named an Honorary Ambassador of UNESCO. His conviction is that good music knows no borders, and music serves as a bridge and a link between people.
He has made and continues to make joint recordings with numerous artists all over the world. Theirs is the first French ensemble to earn a platinum album in the United States.
Internationally speaking, Chico and the Gypsies is the most significant cross-over production, outdoing even the Buena Vista Social Club. Their most famous song, the fiery “Bamboleo”, is the greatest gypsy anthem of all time. Their music embraces gypsy traditions spreading from Catalonia to the Mediterranean regions of France.
