[Hatter313]

Ok fine, let's start this one now.

Thread for all things Yma Sumac, Les Baxter, Martin Denny, Arthur Lyman, Esquivel! and more.

[Mateo Sanboval]

You beat me to it. Well played.

[ScoJo]

Dropped Eden's Island on some of the faithful brethren.

Today's good work is done.

[Hatter313]

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[inksb]

Dropped Eden's Island on some of the faithful brethren.

[ScoJo]

I'm still on an Exotica kick since last night's fun, though I've strayed into the offshoot 70s easy listening bangers with this one.

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If you 'aint familiar, Mandingo was the pseudonym for light entertainment leader Geoff Love & His Orchestra's blaxpo-funk library side outfit. As problematic as all of the exotica stuff is (and this one can arguably lay claim to a prize on that front!), there are some incredible tunes on this - check out the first two tracks, the title cut and Black Rite. They'll light a helluva fire under you for sure!

[Hatter313]

I'm still on an Exotica kick since last night's fun, though I've strayed into the offshoot 70s easy listening bangers with this one.


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If you 'aint familiar, Mandingo was the pseudonym for light entertainment leader Geoff Love & His Orchestra's blaxpo-funk library side outfit. As problematic as all of the exotica stuff is (and this one can arguably lay claim to a prize on that front!), there are some incredible tunes on this - check out the first two tracks, the title cut and Black Rite. They'll light a helluva fire under you for sure!

oh man that looks nuts haha

[havershaw]

ahhhhh ok there’s an exotica thread.

I need to check the “unread posts” tab more often.

[havershaw]

One thing I’m starting to have a problem with about this stuff is that when the vinyl is clean and in great shape, the fidelity is just unreal.

This is leading me to have a pretty low tolerance for any kind of surface noise, pops, clicks, etc., on these types of records specifically.

Got everything cleaned today and I’m still feeling like I need new copies of Caribbean Moonlight and African Jazz.

IThe 2-fer stayed overnight in the warp fixing machine, whatever that is, so I won’t know how that turned out.

So far all of my other exotica is suuuuper clean and quiet, thankfully. Still have a few more coming.

I’d love some more Lyman recommendations (or any others actually).
I have an Eden’s Island en route, as well as Baxter’s Tamboo! and Lyman’s Pele. What else do I *need*?

[Hatter313]

Tamboo is great, I need a good copy of that and the only on on cogs that was coming up for me was “fair” and to your point the fidelity of these is so unreal that it’s not worth it to fool around.

Did you dive into Yma Sumac yet? She was a Peruvian vocalist with some sort of insane octave range, did an album with Baxter and a bunch of others, all sort of faux Incan (and maybe a bit of legit) chants and folk songs. Her first three or four are really great. Not as jazzy but ethereal and vibey as all hell.

[ScoJo]

Did you dive into Yma Sumac yet? She was a Peruvian vocalist with some sort of insane octave range...

I kinda hate to be the one to break it to you about this intel @H-man, so I will just say this - consider it a spoiler, and if you really don't want to know the truth about Yma and her origins.... just say the word. I respect the magic of ignorance :)

[inksb]

Did you dive into Yma Sumac yet? She was a Peruvian vocalist with some sort of insane octave range...

I kinda hate to be the one to break it to you about this intel @H-man, so I will just say this - consider it a spoiler, and if you really don't want to know the truth about Yma and her origins.... just say the word. I respect the magic of ignorance :)

You talking about the rumors of her being from Brooklyn? Were those ever proven? Amy Camus

[Hatter313]

Did you dive into Yma Sumac yet? She was a Peruvian vocalist with some sort of insane octave range...

I kinda hate to be the one to break it to you about this intel @H-man, so I will just say this - consider it a spoiler, and if you really don't want to know the truth about Yma and her origins.... just say the word. I respect the magic of ignorance :)

Lol no yeah I know there’s some ‘controversy’ there, I couldn’t remember the details so I just left the “official” version in there. As far as I can tell that was always just a rumor but who knows...

[ScoJo]

Did you dive into Yma Sumac yet? She was a Peruvian vocalist with some sort of insane octave range...

I kinda hate to be the one to break it to you about this intel @H-man, so I will just say this - consider it a spoiler, and if you really don't want to know the truth about Yma and her origins.... just say the word. I respect the magic of ignorance :)

Lol no yeah I know there’s some ‘controversy’ there, I couldn’t remember the details so I just left the “official” version in there. As far as I can tell that was always just a rumor but who knows...

Haha, I was just joshing old bean - we all know by now all that Amy Camus stuff was all white imperialist hipster bullcrap :D

The Big Lebowski is such a killer soundtrack, I do wonder whether it sent a buncha new peeps in the direction of Sumac and Moondog in particular (not to mention the mighty Autobahn....)

[CrossedPete]

So I’ve been Streaming some Exotica for a bit now and today I’m going to hit up a couple record stores. I’m excited because before today I don’t think I’ve ever looked in the exotica section so what ever I find will be a surprise. I’ve been listening to a lot of Baxter and Denny so if I see anything I’m going to pick it up. Question are there any other releases that I shouldn’t hesitate on pulling the trigger if I see it? Or the reverse are there albums I should avoid? Or is it all pretty much gold?

[Hatter313]

I’m sure I first heard both of those first in Lebowski and didn’t even realize it. And then later got really excited about both of them.

Sumac I first jammed on after watching “secret of the Incas” the movie that largely inspired Indian Jones

And I had a boss in college who showed me moondog. Shit are we gonna have a moondog convo now! Hell yeah

[phantomnoir]

Are there any goods books on exotica? Or any good biographies on Martin Denny, Les Baxter, Yma Sumac and the likes?

I've just readd this great Martin Denny interview on Dana Countryman's blog: http://www.danacountryman.com/Denny/Denny1.html

Interesting to note he "had a lot of ghosting done":

DC: And that started in the '60s?
MD: Yeah, I was traveling quite a great deal at that time and the product had to keep coming out. Of course, Liberty Records was using my name and I really didn't have too much choice about that. The management made those decisions and they always dangled that reward at the end of the road. They said "you gotta do it", so I had to go along with it.

DC: Do you recall what album the ghosting might have started with?
MD: Well, I'm looking at one of them, "Spanish Village". I personally never would have approved of a thing like that. They used saxophones and the like. Some of the albums were done very well. They were formulated with the idea that this was "Martin Denny". I'm not really happy about that part of my career.

DC: How involved were you in the "Exotic Moog" album?
MD: Well, I attended some of the sessions. You know some of those were done in New York City with a studio band. I haven't discussed this phase of my career with anyone.

DC: Well, I really appreciate you sharing the honest truth with us. A lot of your fans have expressed interest in learning more about that particular period of your career. You know, that "Exotic Moog" albums is considered one of the most highly collectable Martin Denny albums.
MD: I know, it was my idea, but I was never too enthusiastic about that particular medium. It was like working for a big corporation, which Liberty became. They were determined to keep me in the groove, you know.

[Mateo Sanboval]

This is great, Phantom. Thanks for sharing!

[CrossedPete]

So I picked this up yesterday, to an inexperienced ear it sounds fantastic. I didn’t know anything about it before I bought it so I looked it up. I’m shocked to see what it’s selling for as I paid nowhere near some of these prices. Does anyone more experienced in the genre have any info on the album? All I know is it was Frank Hunter’s only album in the Exotica world.

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[Mateo Sanboval]

I know I'd like to say congratulations, but I'm struggling to see the keyboard through all these deep reds and greens. Maybe it's my glasses?

Nope. It's definitely that goddam LP. Great pickup, Pete. Been on my wantlist for ages, but I'm not willing to pay crazy prices for something I hope to find one day in the wild for far less. Top ten exotica album for me.

[havershaw]

Yeah I checked that out after you posted and daaaaamn, it’s really good.

I haven’t gotten any of Yma’s records but I’m familiar with her from Secret of the Incas, so I need to get on that.

[Mateo Sanboval]

I haven’t gotten any of Yma’s records but I’m familiar with her from Secret of the Incas, so I need to get on that.

That's what I came here to post before I saw something that made me lose time. Anyhow, here's a terrific article on Yma Sumac from a few years back by a UC Davis professor who has a familial connection to the singer. It is a wide ranging and engaging read that touches on so many aspects of her life, from cradle to grave. It's not Stepehen King-Is-Too-Big-To-Have-An-Editor-Now long, but it's not a Twitter thread either. Still, I'd encourage anyone interested in Sumac to give it a shot.

http://theappendix.net/issues/2013/7/fr ... a-identity

[phantomnoir]

There's an official website too: https://www.yma-sumac.com/

[CrossedPete]

I know I'd like to say congratulations, but I'm struggling to see the keyboard through all these deep reds and greens. Maybe it's my glasses?

Nope. It's definitely that goddam LP. Great pickup, Pete. Been on my wantlist for ages, but I'm not willing to pay crazy prices for something I hope to find one day in the wild for far less. Top ten exotica album for me.

Oh no, it wasn’t my intention to post this and make anyone jealous, please excuse my naïveté in the realm of Exotica.

[Hatter313]

Yeah I checked that out after you posted and daaaaamn, it’s really good.

I haven’t gotten any of Yma’s records but I’m familiar with her from Secret of the Incas, so I need to get on that.

You’ll dig for sure. Also my phone autocorrected Indiana to Indian in my post above and I’m only just now seeing it. I’m sure no one was thrown off by this but damn is this thing aggressive these days (also I’m a terrible typist, most writers are)