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Published by Capitol Records, Hollywood, 1955
Seller: Cat's Curiosities, Pahrump, NV, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. Color photography of Yma Sumac by Tom Kelley (illustrator). Not a book but a 12-inch, 33-1/3 rpm "Long Playing" (mono) vinyl record, Capitol W-684, near-mint vinyl (gray label) in original paper Capitol inner sleeve a fine glossy cardboard jacket (though previous owner has numbered the tracks in pencil to jacket verso.) As packaged by her husband and guitarist, Sr. Vivanco, the Inca princess with her unique four-octave range was surely the queen of 1950s Exotica. In 1946 the government of Peru formally supported her claim to be descended from Atahualpa, the last emperor of the Inca. She adopted the stage name Imma Sumack (also spelled Ymma Sumack and Ima Sumack) before she left South America for the United States. The stage name was based on her mother's name, which was derived from Ima Shumaq, Quechua for "how beautiful!" -- though in interviews the songstress reported it meant "beautiful flower" or "beautiful girl." Which means that contemporary rumors claiming she was actually a Brooklyn waitress named "Amy Camus" were mean-spirited at best. This single 12-inch LP now reduced from $19.