Gloria Estefan got her Latin rhythm from Gerry and the Pacemakers’ ‘bolero’ tune

Cuban singer Gloria Estefan has revealed she got her Latin rhythm from Gerry and the Pacemakers.

The Conga and Rhythm is Gonna Get You singer was struck with inspiration after first hearing the Scousers’ “bolero” tune - Ferry Cross the Mersey.

Gloria, 62, has previously said she fell in love with the song at the age of six, and was delighted when frontman Gerry Marsden attended her gig at the Echo Arena in 2009.

Now, she has described how much of an impact their music and its Latin roots had on her after she first heard Ferry during a car journey.

“The hairs stood on end on my arms,” she says. “I still remember sitting there mesmerised. I wouldn’t get out of the car. That song moved me deeply.

“Only in retrospect did I realise that it’s a bolero. It’s got the bongos and this Latin beat. I heard this British accent singing what I recognised was Latin music.”

The singer distinctly recalls that she first heard the track while sitting in her mum’s car outside a laundrette.

“To this day, whenever I hear that song I smell laundromat,” she says.

The Get On Your Feet singer has also said listening to the group - one of her favourite musicians - helped her learn English.

Speaking during a virtual talk with Samira Ahmed, titled How I Found My Voice, Gloria said other groups including fellow Liverpudlians The Beatles were inspired by Latin music.

Their influence also moved her so much, she bought a microphone used by the stars at a charity auction.

“I snatched it out of Phil Collins’ hands,” she laughs, of a Prince’s Trust event. “The first thing they recorded on that mic was Besame Mucho as a demo for EMI. They were listening to Latin music back then just like they were listening to Chuck Berry and Elvis.

“They were enamoured by that sound - and that sound was home to me.”

Are you a fan of Gloria Estefan? Let us know in the comments below.

More On

Gerry MarsdenGloria EstefanEMI