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PACO DE LUCIA IS NOT REALLY SPANISH!!!
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Ramon Amira
Posts: 1025
Joined: Oct. 14 2009
From: New York City
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 PACO DE LUCIA IS NOT REALLY SPANISH!!!
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I was reading the London Times a couple of days ago, and I came across this article that I thought would be of interest. I have reprinted it here verbatim:
January 2, 2010 – The London Times – Morning Edition
The noted ethnomusicologist, Professor Enrique Calderero, professor of musicology at the University of Granada, author of "Origins of Flamenco" and "Music of Spain," has made a startling claim. He states that he has uncovered evidence that the famous flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucia is not Spanish at all, but is in fact English, passing himself off as Spanish. In an interview with the Times, Professor Calderero gave the following narrative:
"My attention was first drawn to this subject when during a lecture tour in England someone approached me after a lecture and said he had some important information about the flamenco guitarist known as Paco de Lucia. It turned out that this gentleman had gone to school with that guitarist in Liverpool, and he told me that he had been a good friend of his and that his real name was Frank Gomest. He provided some further details which I will recount here. It seems that this Frank Gomest made a modest living playing the banjo on street corners in Liverpool, where people would toss coins into his banjo case. Apparently one day a famous flamenco guitarist by the name of Sabicas heard him playing the banjo and saw some potential in the young man. After listening to this Frank Gomest play for a while, Sabicas approached him and said to him, " Hombre joven, usted toca bien, pero usted toca como usted tiene un palo arriba su culo." Sabicas then offered to take Frank Gomest under his wing and teach him how to play flamenco guitar. Sabicas told him that no one wants to hear an Englishman named Frank Gomest play flamenco guitar, and advised him to change his name from Frank Gomest to Francisco Gomez, and to tell everyone he came from some town in Spain. "Algeciras has a nice ring to it," Sabicas said. After a year of study, Sabicas said it was time to put out his first record, but because he was still learning Sabicas actually played all the tracks. The record was a big success, and four more followed, all played by Sabicas. Finally Frank Gomest, now Francisco Gomez, put out some records of his own and started making personal appearances, being very careful – on the advice of Sabicas – to put on a fake Spanish accent when he spoke English, to convince everyone he was really Spanish. Before long, now a great virtuoso guitarist, "Francisco Gomez" became very famous. And then a terrible thing happened. Another man, who had also known Francisco Gomez when he was the Englishman Frank Gomest, threatened blackmail. It turns out that this gentleman was an aficionado of "Old School Flamenco," and he couldn't stand listening to what Gomez was playing. He sent a blackmail note to Gomez, saying "If you don't stop playing that modern stuff, I am going to expose you!” Panicked at the thought of having to play some traditional falsetas, Gomez sought the advice of Sabicas. Sabicas advised him, but in order to do so properly, Sabicas had to make a confession – he himself was not really Spanish! He was actually a country squire from Devonshire by the name of August Castleton. This conversation had been related as follows by another flamenco guitarist named Mario Escudero who was present at the meeting. According to Escudero, in his confession Sabicas said "I figured who wants to hear an English flamenco guitarist named August Castleton. So I changed my name to Agustin Castellon, and made up some cockamamie story about how I liked beans when I was a kid, and gave myself a colorful nickname of Sabicas. Then I told everyone I was born in Pamplona. And they believed it! Imagine that – in the entire history of Pamplona there have only been three flamenco guitarists, and all three were gored to death during the running of the bulls. But they fell for it, hook, line, and sinker." Escudero related that Sabicas then advised "Gomez" to change his name again to get away from the clutches of the blackmailer. He asked Gomez what was his mother's name, which was Mrs. Lucy Gomest. So Gomez changed his name to Paco de Lucia."
Professor Calderero continued his narrative, which had yet another surprise. After careful research he discovered that all of Sabicas' records had actually been played by the guitarist Mario Escudero, and then he learned an amazing fact. Though genuinely Spanish, Mario Escudero was also perpetrating a hoax, and was in fact – a woman! She was born in Alicante, had played flamenco guitar from the age of six, and her real name was Mary S. Cudero. Professor Calderero is now in the process of writing a new book entitled, "Great Hoaxes in the World of Flamenco."
January 3, 2010 – The London Times – Morning Edition
FROM THE EDITORS – A RETRACTION
We would like to apologize to our readers. We have received information that the article in yesterday's morning edition was based on a hoax. It has now come out that Professor Enrique Calderero is not Spanish, but is actually an Englishman by the name of Henry Calder. Friends and family have told the authorities that in fact he was the aficionado of "Old School Flamenco," and listening to Paco de Lucia had slowly driven him insane. He is now incarcerated in the Downtown London Asylum in a padded cell. His keepers have said that he keeps beating on the walls – for some unknown reason always in groups of twelve – and was heard to be shouting "Viva Manolo de Huelva!"
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Classical and flamenco guitars from Spain Ramon Amira Guitars
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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |
Date Jan. 4 2010 5:47:10
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gato
Posts: 322
Joined: Jun. 9 2007
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RE: PACO DE LUCIA IS NOT REALLY SPAN... (in reply to Ramon Amira)
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I'm not even going to read it, because what's the point, Paco has proven himself to be a great guitarist, and, that's what he is known for. To argue about Paco, JM, or anyone else is just racist ploy, and for what else?
We simply just don't have any imformation like that of a habeus corpus to tell other wise. Who is what? How old, or where from, is something of a mystery for a lot of people. If you know what I am speaking of, weather I spelled it right or not, you know that lives are but a mystery, sometimes even onto ourselves!
So I don't even want to think about it, it's impossible to find out. Listen to his music! That's all you get!
Gary
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The Life Everlasting/Oswald Utopia
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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |
Date Jan. 5 2010 15:31:01
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Ramon Amira
Posts: 1025
Joined: Oct. 14 2009
From: New York City
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RE: PACO DE LUCIA IS NOT REALLY SPAN... (in reply to Arash)
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quote:
yeah, sounds like a revenge of a juan martin fan
This actually wasn't the revenge of a Juan Martin fan. I'm not especially a fan of Juan Martin, though as I said before I have nothing whatever against him. He's helped a lot of beginners to get interested in and learn some basics of flamenco, so I don't see anything wrong with that. But yes, that little piece was inspired by that recent Juan Martin thread, which I found humorous – either way. If he really is Spanish and with a real Spanish accent, then the fact that some apocryphal story that he is really an Englishman named Johnny Martin could gain credence by mere repetition is pretty funny. On the other hand, if he really is English passing himself off as Spanish, fake accent and all, then that is even funnier.
What actually happened was that I stupidly cut my I finger over the weekend, and couldn't play. Being a lazy frozen Saturday, twelve degrees in New York, and not being able to play, as I normally would be, I just thought I would start the New Year off on a light note. (no pun intended)
Incidentally, I have been doing some research, and I have learned that not one member of this forum is really a flamenco guitarist. The truth has now come out that we are all actually . . . . .
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Classical and flamenco guitars from Spain Ramon Amira Guitars
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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |
Date Jan. 6 2010 6:43:40
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