Music Of Peru, The 1960’s – Various Artists CD 400

Description

CD 400

A broad spectrum of Peruvian popular music from the 1960s, originally issued on a small Peruvian label, Discos Smith. The criolla music of the coastal region is represented by the marinera, vals criolla, bolero, cumbia, tango, alcatraz, festejo, polka, and even rock & roll styles. The Andean region is represented by the huayno, huaylash, muliza, passa calle, costumbrista, carnival, taquirari, and cachiripunta styles. These recordings represent a time when large groups of people from the mountains and other regions migrated to urban centers bringing their music with them and also adopting styles from others.

1. El Contrapunto – Los Mensajeros De La Libertad
2. El Inmenso Altiplano – Los Kcollas
3. El Penado – Jorge Barssy
4. Separacion – Los Tupas
5. Soy Trujillanita – Banda Sinfonica Sunicanha
6. Manana Me Voy – Solitaria Andajina
7. Ayhuala – Banda Filarmonica Andajina
8. Te Quiero Porque Me Quieres – Beto Boachet
9. Mi China Lola – Conjunto Cachicadan
10. El Pelicano – Blackie Coronado
11. El Serranito – Los Ases Del Ande
12. El Alcatraz – Blackie Coronado
13. Que Viva El Santo – Conjunto Los Chiroques
14. Cachirpunta – Conjunto Virgen De Natividad De Cajamarquilla
15. Ingrata Huancay Bambia – Los Canarios Del Peru
16. El Proletario – Conjunto Los Condores De Parinacocha
17. Pretenciosa Huancauynita – Trio Los Andes
18. Gorrioncito – Picaflor De Los Andes
19. Vicunita De Ancahuasi – Conjunto Costumbrista
20. Ardorosa Pasion – Conjunto Alma Jaujina
21. Ayacuchana – Conjunta Lira Folklorica Del Peru
22. Vicunitas De Altas Punas – Conjunto San Cristobal De Bishongo
23. La Ultima Copa – Alberto Jara
24. “039” – Tito Avila
25. El Consuelo De Llorar – Los Yungas
26. La Pampa Y La Puna – Los Dandys
27. Soy Criollo – Los Monarcos

REVIEW

“This album is a pure joy, and an education. Compiled from the archives of Discos Smith, a record company that flourished in Lima from the late 1950s to the early 1970s, it is a wonderful hodgepodge of Peruvian styles. There are pure, ancient Andean songs, and smooth boleros, waltzes and tangos. From the mountains come ähighly energetic village brass bands like the wonderfully named Banda Sinfonica Sunicancha, as well as traditional Andean dances with updated instrumentation, the parts that used to be played on zamponas (pan pipes) now being executed by a harmonica or a full saxophone section. From the coastal towns come musics that are less specifically Peruvian, popular latin and Caribbean dance styles played with an adroit mix of guitars, mandolins and horns, Mexican-influenced vocal trios, and Beto Boachet’s pleasantly archaic rock ‘n’ roll band. Discos Smith, like many older record companies, recorded any music they thought they could sell, without trying to steer the sound in any particular direction. The result is an astonishing variety of musics, reflecting the varied tastes and origins of Lima’s population at a time when mountain people were flooding into the city in search of work and the local upper and middle classes were open to a wide range of outside influences, from the old European styles to the latest Latin American crazes. Some of the music also reflects Peru’s African population, which, as in so much of the Americas, was far more influential than its relatively small numbers would suggest. Unlike the typical folk collector who might dismiss a bolero or cumbia as not sufficiently Peruvian, Discos Smith was happy with anything that made the people dance. John Cohen, who edited this album, has followed this example, going for quality and variety and doing an admirable job on both counts. One does not need the ear of an ethnomusicologist to appreciate the flair and swing of these songs, and rarely if ever has a single CD from a South American country displayed so many different styles. The cover suggests yet another Andean excursion, but the musical smorgasbord presented here is unique.”

(Sing Out!)