1954 - Mambo!

WHAT NYMITH SAYS

What a letdown. Mambo! is Yma Sumac's most accessible album and most people's favourite. Sumac herself found it a disappointment. And no wonder. In 1953 she and her husband were pioneering a new form of music, one whose emphasis on sound and texture would not be approached again until the 1970s. In 1954 she...made a mambo record. End of story.

Mind you, it's a perfectly pleasant listen. Doubtless why people enjoy it. Sumac doesn't disgrace herself at all. You may look at the track list and feel dread at titles like 'Chicken Talk,' but have no fear: Yma does not do any chicken vocalization. Nor any gopher. 'Five Bottles Mambo' is irritating, as she does stoop to singing "ching, ching, ching, ching, ching, ching." But that's the worst it gets. Everything else is brassy, unambitious mambo. But then you have to ask yourself who wants or needs an unambitious Yma Sumac? Her vocal acrobatics are never let off the leash. She's conforming. Unsurprisingly, this kills the atmosphere.

'Bo Mambo' is the best this album gets - it's the first track and the freshest. A few songs in and the shtick gets old. The arrangements aren't clever or subtle and there are no surprises along the lines of 'Incacho' or 'Karibe Taki' or 'Ataypura.' I play this album, enjoy it (except for that stupid bottle song) and promptly forget all about it. Exactly as if it's "easy listening" music which is EXACTLY what Yma Sumac is not supposed to be.

What else is there to say? She went from High Priestess of the Andes to a mysterious forest creature to dancing the Gopher Mambo. What surprises me is that she didn't just retire from the music business in disgust at this point. On the other hand, check out Harry Belafonte's Calypso and this particular sellout will sound like Beethoven's Ninth in comparison. Even here you can't see her blending into the Ed Sullivan show.

WHAT TICHARU SAYS

Mambo! is enjoyable but it didn't take much effort to produce. The previous recordings, Voice of the Xtabay and Legend of the Sun Virgin are outstanding. Mambo! was knocked off quickly and it sounds it. For her part, Yma delivers decent enough performances but obviously wasn't challenged artistically by the Billy May arrangements which occasionally sound unfinished. Only a completest should seek out this record. Would have been better if they'd spent some time rehearsing.