Camarón de la Isla

Camarón de la Isla is more than just an adored musician in Spain, he's a veritable rock star and the man who brought flamenco into the modern age. Born in 1950 into a gypsy family of eight children, Camarón de la Isla has been singing since the age of five. After making his debut in Madrid cabarets, Camarón de la Isla began recording with the virtuoso Paco de Lucia in 1969. Already popular, Camarón de la Isla's 1979 album La Leyenda del Tiempo revolutionized flamenco. Recorded with Tomatito and Kiko Veneno, La Leyenda del Tiempo blends flamenco, rock and jazz, giving birth to the flamenco rock movement. Camarón de la Isla died of lung cancer on July 2, 1992, and his funeral was attended by an estimated 100,000 people. This exceptional and major artist remains alive and well in the hearts of Spaniards, as demonstrated by the chart success of San Juan Evangelista 92 - the recording of his last concert - in Spain in 2010.