Voice of the Xtabay [Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

Yma Sumac | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 5, 1996)
• Original Release Date: 1963
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: The Right Stuff
• ASIN: B000002UTZ
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,070 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #13 in Music > World Music > South & Central America > Peru

Editorial Reviews

Yma Sumac's chart-topping debut release has been in print for almost 60 years, proving that her multi-octave voice and exotic musical settings still charm listeners to this day. This CD features the 1956 reissue that combined the two 10" records Voice of the Xtabay from 1950 and 1953's Inca Taqui .

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A 50's cult hit lives on...and on.. because it's cool!, October 16, 2002

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Voice of the Xtabay (Audio CD)

How ever did this exciting and exotic album see the light of day during the 50's? (You know, the era of Perry Como, Patty Paige, Dean Martin...all the sloopy, stringy-swoopy sounds of big orchestral pop hits with smooth crooning vocalists.) But this recording somehow caught the imagination of the times, perhaps as a crossover during a Latin music fad. However it came about, this CD has some of the most unusual and enjoyable songs. It's still in print--so it's gone from hit to cult.

Supposedly Yma Sumac is the daughter of the last remaining Inca King and was abducted by anthropologists, seduced by her five-octave range and incredible bird-like trills. As they fled down the mountains of the Andes with their prize, they were pursued by wildly angry natives, distraught over the loss of their Princess-Songbird (picture all this in black and white, like a B-grade movie.) Or, as some would have it, she's really Amy Camus, (Yma Sumac spelled backwards) a Jewish gal from Brooklyn with a fantastic schtick and a great voice. She is supposed to have written 5,000 songs and can sing coloratura opera. Her concerts still were selling out in the 80's, though she really was a 50's phenomenon.

What to believe? Is she Amy Camus of Brooklyn, or Yma Sumac, neé Zoila Emperatriz Chavarri del Castillo of Peru? Well, I like fairy stories, so Yma Sumac is an Inca princess, and these are genuine songs of the lost people of the high Andes. Whatever...

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the finest albums EVER!!!, October 9, 2001

By 

truthseeker1 (baltimore, maryland USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Voice of the Xtabay (Audio CD)

I love this album. Not a bad track on it! This cd contains 2 complete 10" original lps from 1950 and 1953 respectively, Voice of the Xtabay and Inca Taqui. The highest note from a human voice can be heard on Chuncho (The Forest Creatures). High Andes! is a magnificent majestic piece of music so far ahead of it's time it's not true! The songs on this album are like cinema music for the mind...you hear the most spiritual profound sounds that have such incredible vibrancy and color...the range of the voice is unheard of, the music itself is masterful (from Moises Vivanco), and there is a reason why this album has never gone out of print in over 50 years! Buy it and hear for yourself what makes Yma so special!It's truly one of the best albums -ever-!!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Unusual And Incredible, August 13, 2004

By 

Anthony Early "AEarly" (Cardiff, Wales) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Voice of the Xtabay (Audio CD)

This album is incredible. I am 15 years old, and a massive fan of hip-hop, RnB and pop, and yet this unusual indescribable album is incredible and I love it! The music and that stunning voice is completely in a league of its own. The songs are incredible; a heady mix of mambos, salsas and sambas along with steady and engaging beats. The voice itself has the 'stop you in your tracks to listen' effect as it is mesmerising and incredible; it truly has to be heard to be believed. The best song, by far in my opinion, is the incredible 'Chuncho'. The range, technique and beat in this song is unique; out-standing. This album is a musical and vocal masterpiece.