Plankton

Gypsy Kings have been around since the 70's, but I hadn't heard them until the late 90's when an alternative radio station blasted them out over the airwaves and into my earholes. I was absolutely in love. I sought out as much of their work as I could, and had acquired a large number of their tracks (mostly through Napster) over the course of a few years. They even inspired me to purchase my oldest and dearest member of my guitar family, a 90's Washburn Nylon Acoustic that I still have today. I've learned a few of their tunes, but had quite a bit of trouble transposing their rhythms, due to the fact that the 3 rhythm players are left handed and use right handed guitars played upside down. This poses a huge problem for a self taught right handed player, but I muddled my way through it as best I could. I even played my first open mic during this time period, where I did a couple of their easier songs, much to the delight of the crowd, and had been asked back a few times. Once even playing with Stevie Starlight at a Halloween jam. Something about the soothing tone of a nylon string guitar played in Flamenco style just melts me.

Regardless, these masters of the Rumba Flamenca style (as well as being known for "World Music") deserve way more credit here in the US than they've been shown. It's quite a shame that the masses really never picked up on these incredibly gifted musicians. They should be a household name, possibly replacing Miley like she never existed. In a perfect world...

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