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This site is dedicated to the memory of Paco de Lucía, Ron Mitchell, Guy Williams, Linda Elvira, Philip John Lee, Craig Eros, Ben Woods, David Serva and Tom Blackshear who went ahead of us.
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Posts: 113
Joined: Nov. 22 2010
From: The Hispanic Kingdoms
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Guest)
I was listening to Zyryab album and if you take a deep look into the "Playa del carmen" song, where he actually died yesterday, the lyrics goes like this:
“Cuando me pongo a pensar, que me tengo que morir, yo tiro una manta al suelo y me harto de dormir"
"When I start to think that I'm going to die, I throw a blanket on the floor and get tired of sleeping"
I was shocked :O
_____________________________
La pureza no se puede perder nunca, cuando uno la lleve dentro de verdad...
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Guest)
Well it's quite presumptuous of me, not a native speaker of Spanish, to be correcting you, who is one -- I couldn't understand what Nunez was saying either, my interpretation is obviously just as much a guess as anything! Perhaps someone here can write him for clarification.
Posts: 15419
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Castelat)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Castelat
I was listening to Zyryab album and if you take a deep look into the "Playa del carmen" song, where he actually died yesterday, the lyrics goes like this:
“Cuando me pongo a pensar, que me tengo que morir, yo tiro una manta al suelo y me harto de dormir"
"When I start to think that I'm going to die, I throw a blanket on the floor and get tired of sleeping"
I was shocked :O
I am no stranger to voodoo, but this gave me a chill...as my buddy and I were just last week listening to this and replaying trying to get the exact letra....even look on line while driving and couldn't find it.
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Castelat)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Castelat
I was listening to Zyryab album and if you take a deep look into the "Playa del carmen" song, where he actually died yesterday, the lyrics goes like this:
“Cuando me pongo a pensar, que me tengo que morir, yo tiro una manta al suelo y me harto de dormir"
"When I start to think that I'm going to die, I throw a blanket on the floor and get tired of sleeping"
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to pjn)
I want to relate two anecdotes which exemplify for me the quality of Paco's humanity, mentioned previously to set up the lame joke about Ruben Diaz.
A friend of mine here in New York, who has a shaved head and a somewhat exotic look, went to hear Paco and his group several years ago. He was having a smoke at intermission, around the side of the building, when Paco and a couple of the group came out to do the same (no can do inside any more). Paco smiled at my friend, said "soy gitano?" (big compliment of course). Friend says "no, aleman." Paco laughs, asks for a light, makes idle chit-chat in Spanglish for the duration of the smoke, says "hope you are enjoying the concert, hasta luego" with a handshake, and is gone.
Here's a better one: flamenco player in New York, Latino (Puertoriqueño think), just a local hacker like me, is playing at a flamenco bar (there used to be quite a few centered around the north part of Greenwich Village). He told me this story, confirmed by others there. Paco walks in with some people, nods at the guitarist, who is now in a state of extreme panic. He gets through a couple of numbers and takes a break, about ready to be sick. Paco comes over to him (not the other way around), introduces himself (clearly not necessary!), asks the guy's name, compliments his playing, etc. etc. Guitarist has now recovered enough to stammer something about how nervous he was to play in front of Paco -- Paco says "nothing to be nervous about, we're all in the same boat. And anyway, I'm always nervous when I play in front of people."
As I said in the previous post, I have heard and of course read other stories like this -- Paco seems to have been a great man in the most fundamental ways, as well as the most exalted.
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Guest)
For all of the interest in Paco's death online and in the print media I haven't heard or read anything on TV regarding his passing--not on cable TV or during the national news on broadcast TV last night.
I recall reading about Paco being "more nervous than usual" before a concert. Having to perform and compose on a level equal to his reputation must have been an enormous burden for him.
Posts: 3463
Joined: Jan. 20 2004
From: Austin, Texas USA
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to BarkellWH)
quote:
ORIGINAL: BarkellWH
quote:
Playa del Carmen is a smaller, more authentically Mexican town on the coast a little to the south of the concrete internationalism of Cancun.
Actually, Playa del Carmen is neither more nor less "authentically Mexican" than Cancun. Cancun has a larger share of the resort crowd, but Playa del Carmen has plenty of gringos prowling its restaurants such as "Senor Frogs" and other night spots catering to the foreign tourist enjoying the "Riviera Maya," of which Playa del Carmen is a part. Just the Chamber of Commerce term "Riviera Maya" says something about how "authentic" it is.
the idea of being "authentically Mexican" reminds me of my mother, who spent the first sixteen years of her life in Mexico before moving to the United States with my grandmother. My mother thought that everything in Mexico that had changed since she had lived there was less than "authentic." I tried to convince her that Mexicans, no less than other people, were not preserved in amber. They moved on with the times. Cancun, for example, is just as "authentic" a Mexican destination for the international tourist crowd as a poor, dusty, village in central Mexico loaded with pregnant women and lame dogs is an "authentic" poor, dusty Mexican village loaded with pregnant women and lame dogs. Both are "authentic" aspects of the overall culture of Mexico today.
In any case, it is Paco de Lucia upon whom we are focused, and it is his passing that is mourned by all who care about vituoso flamenco guitar and Paco's mastery of it.
Sorry, Bill. Just trying to add a little info.
Wherever it was, Paco's love for the beaches of the Yucatan peninsula was clear in his video "Francisco Sanchez-Paco de Lucia."
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Richard Jernigan)
I spent a honeymoon in Playa del Carmen in 1992, in a place on the beach with mosquito netting around the marriage bed. We thought that was pretty authentic. Ate ceviche mostly, at the open air restaurant, also on the beach. There was definitely construction going on, and real estate signs in English aplenty, but it did not feel overly or falsely tourist friendly, no kowtowing to the gringos that I remember. What has transpired there definitely alters the memory of that experience.
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Guest)
This is hitting me harder than I thought. :( I lit a candle for Paco last night and was frustrated that it kept going out due to the candle's design (melted wax kept dousing the flame)... I went to bed thinking the candle was extinguished, but I woke up this morning and it is burning.......
Posts: 3472
Joined: Jul. 12 2009
From: Washington, DC
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Richard Jernigan)
quote:
Sorry, Bill. Just trying to add a little info. Wherever it was, Paco's love for the beaches of the Yucatan peninsula was clear in his video "Francisco Sanchez-Paco de Lucia."
No need to be sorry, Richard. It appears that it was Playa del Carmen.
My comment about "authenticity" certainly was not directed at you personally. You have been around the block enough to know how slippery the term can be. Nevertheless, I have developed a healthy skepticism of anything that is deemed "authentic" or "inauthentic," whether it be Mexican, Balinese, or any other cultural or ethnic category and practice. Modernity changes cultures, sometimes for the better, sometimes not, but always there is change. If there weren't, most Americans would still be Jefferson's yeoman farmers.
My skepticism of such categories as "authentic" and "inauthentic" cultural practices is, in part, a result of my wife Marta having a doctorate in Anthropology. She is pretty well-grounded and more rational about the issue, but sometimes being around her anthropology colleagues and listening to them discuss various traditional groups, one would think they (the anthropology crowd) would like to keep their pet cultures preserved in amber or freeze-dried. The minute such cultures begin to acquire a taste for the accoutrements of modernity, you can bet the next thing you hear will be cries of "inauthentic" and, this is one that always comes up, "neoliberal" policies "destroying cultural traditions." As if they (the anthropologists) would like to keep certain cultures preserved in amber for their own enjoyment and interest.
I guess thinking about that got me going. Always a pleasure to exchange ideas with you.
And in spite of the shock and sadness of Paco's passing, I found reason for a little lightness last night. A woman with whom I play squash and whom I introduced to flamenco and Paco de Lucia, called me last night to express her condolences upon hearing of his passing. It made me feel good that someone who had not known of him before, had developed a love of his playing sufficient to warrant a special call to me. Paco had touched another soul.
Cheers,
Bill
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And the end of the fight is a tombstone white, With the name of the late deceased, And the epitaph drear, "A fool lies here, Who tried to hustle the East."
Posts: 2773
Joined: Jan. 30 2007
From: London (the South of it), England
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to ARJR)
I didn't wanna come on here yesterday. I felt compelled to but couldn't quite face it. RIP Paco! There's nothing I can add. All a bit surreal really...What happens now???
Poor Paco. He must have been scared in his last moments not knowing what that cold chill in his throat was. At least it was quick. He had stopped smoking 20 days before (having smoked 2 packs a day for years). Last sentence of the article is especially chilling. I wonder if all this is true. _____________________________
"Paco había dejado de fumar hace 20 días después de años fumándose dos paquetes diarios. ..."
So goes the irony, doesn't it, that after smoking and drinking for many years, the shock of quitting could kill you.
"...el frío de esa garganta que siempre quiso cantar y no pudo le heló para siempre el corazón."
Indeed, Shroomy a daunting end to that article, that nearly makes you feel the frightening cold breath of death... "A chill in his throat that always longed to sing but couldn't, forever froze his heart.
Poor Paco. He must have been scared in his last moments not knowing what that cold chill in his throat was. At least it was quick. He had stopped smoking 20 days before (having smoked 2 packs a day for years). Last sentence of the article is especially chilling. I wonder if all this is true.
This **** is just exploitative, let the man keep some dignity. But guess the press will always be like this.
Posts: 233
Joined: Apr. 7 2005
From: Adelaide, Australia
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to avimuno)
Tio Sabas is the tune that keeps going around my head - as a composition on par with anything from any time or place. I thought about listing all my favourites but the list is so long. The sheer quantity of his high quality output really sets him apart - so many have one or two great albums. When students ask me which of Paco's albums to listen to I really don't know where to start.
Poor Paco. He must have been scared in his last moments not knowing what that cold chill in his throat was. At least it was quick. He had stopped smoking 20 days before (having smoked 2 packs a day for years). Last sentence of the article is especially chilling. I wonder if all this is true. _____________________________
"Paco había dejado de fumar hace 20 días después de años fumándose dos paquetes diarios. ..."
So goes the irony, doesn't it, that after smoking and drinking for many years, the shock of quitting could kill you.
"...el frío de esa garganta que siempre quiso cantar y no pudo le heló para siempre el corazón."
Indeed, Shroomy a daunting end to that article, that nearly makes you feel the frightening cold breath of death... "A chill in his throat that always longed to sing but couldn't, forever froze his heart.
ABC is the Spanish version of Daily Mirror or the Sun. They will write whatever and boom it out of dimensions. If you want to honor Paco dont quote articles from that sh*t media.
Posts: 1531
Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Anders Eliasson)
Perhaps, Paco Pena's words concluding his eulogy (posted on his FaceBook page) should replace the tabloid's take.
Paco Peña Options for this story PACO DE LUCIA | 1947 - 2014 "... Por el momento quiero deciros que mi espíritu está devastado por la pérdida de nuestro mejor artista flamenco entre todos, a una edad tan cruelmente temprana. Nos quedaba tanto más que recibir de su mente, increíblemente prolífica, y de su corazón generoso, de su pasión incontenible, de la flamencura esencial que emanaba de su ser. Paco… cuánto te debemos…" [February 27, 2014]
Posts: 113
Joined: Nov. 22 2010
From: The Hispanic Kingdoms
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Guest)
I was so concentrated into this song that when Paco comes in singing I couldn't control some tears. Specially the part: "¿pa' que quiero llorar?, si ya no tengo a nadie quien me oiga..." "Why do I want to cry? if I have no longer anyone who can hear me..." at min 4, 5:
Full lyrics:
Las cuerdas de mi guitarra y estan llorando, lloran por seguiriyas... ay ay ay por mi mare, por mi Lucia...
¿pa' que quiero llorar?, si ya no tengo a nadie quien me oiga ay ay, ay mi mare, ay mi Lucia....
_____________________________
La pureza no se puede perder nunca, cuando uno la lleve dentro de verdad...
Posts: 3463
Joined: Jan. 20 2004
From: Austin, Texas USA
RE: Paco de Lucia has passed away (in reply to Guest)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Shroomy726
Very interesting and intimate interview on Paco performed by his daughter, Casilda (a bit short). Details I had never read before about himself and his childhood:
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