The Official !!GOING PLACES!! comments thread and poll

[Numero Cinco]

Well, somebody had to vote for "Spanish Flea." Let it be me.

No, it's not the lushest arrangement: honors there go to "And the Angels Sing." Nor is it the most haunting melody: for me, that's "More and More Amor" (on which notice the difference the vibes make instead of the usual marimba). Neither is it the most creative cover of someone else's baby: there, a three-way tie between "The Third Man Theme," "Walk, Don't Run," and "A Walk in the Black Forest."

"Spanish Flea" is classic TJB: no more, but certainly no less. An infectious, unforgettable melody with a delightful bridge: Julius Wechter's best composition, which Herb made all his own. I also admire the simplicity of its arrangement: Except for Bob Edmondson's two-bar answer in the bridge and that killer use of tack-piano on the third go-round—whoever played it nailed those saloon trills cold—all you have is bass, guitar, creative use of drums, and Herb doubling Herb. And for this song, that's all you need.

I guess my vote is also sentimental: "Spanish Flea" was the only 45 single I ever owned, and I have it to this day. I love its jacket and may love Larry Levine's engineering of it even more. In an album of unalloyed delights, for me this 2:07 track remains the most delightful.

 

[thetijuanataxi]

SPANISH FLEA would have been my second choice behind TAXI and for the same reasons as mentioned above. Quintessetial TJB. These two songs were TJB anthems in the mid 60's and were the surprise sleepers on the album. Originally Herb had no intention of releasing either either as a single. Hence, why neither is listed on the front jacket synopsis of song titles. I also think CINCO DE MAYO would have been a hit if they had released it as a single. I love the whole album, but those three are the essence of what was happening to the TJB at this point. Making as strong or stonger original tunes as the popular songs they gave exciting makeovers to.

David,
who is drifting off to sleep now with GP, WNML, SRO, LT, and WCAOD on random play in the changer to remove the day's stress............

 

[Harry]

That pilot has always reminded me of Jerry Moss, though I now doubt it is he...

--Mr Bill

I was under the impression that it was Jerry Moss as well. Here's a blowup from the booklet photo from the new release, stripped of the blue coloring and focused as well as I could with my equipment (so pardon the fuzzies).

It could be Jerry Moss - it could just as well be Nick Ceroli for that matter!

Harry
...wondering how on TV and in movies when they zoom in on pictures, it always ends up in razor sharp focus, online...

 

[Numero Cinco]

Harry: In spite of its fuzziness, thanks for the enlargement of the pilot's face in that photo.

Now, could you please do the same for her legs?

Appropriately, as I type this, I am listening to Herb's cover of "And the Angels Sing."

 

[Mr Bill]

I suppose it could be Moss -- it wouldn't be the first time he'd appeared on an A&M front cover! He's definitely on the first BMB, possibly on the second and definitely (in the form of an illustration) the third...

As for the "sharpening" effect you see in movies and TV with CSI-style "image-enhancement," yeah, the real thing doesn't work that way at all. You did a good job with what you have. BAout the only thing that high-end programs would do is eliminate the moire effect and "simulate" an enmhancement based on known human bone structure. But once that gets to court it's as easily shot down as "circumstantial evidence."

Not to go off on a tangent here, but back in the Rodney King riot era the two different parts of the comapny I worked for were doing enhancements of the Reginald Denny beating -- one for the defense of the hoodlums and one for the prosecution. In the end two very different video clips existed -- one showing the brick enter the cab's driver's side window and impacting Denny, the other completely missing the cab. Both were extracted from the same original homevideo clip.

So hard to tell what to believe these days thanks to technology...

--Mr Bill

 

[bob knack]

I think it's Jerry Calona... Just kidding.

 

[daveK]

Speaking of "Flea" and "Taxi" becoming hits despite not being released as A-side singles, GOING PLACES has to be Herb's most hit laden album. Nearly half of the tracks ("Taxi", "Flea", "Mae", "3rd Man", "Zorba") charted as singles regardless of whether they were A or B sides. On Billboard there was one top 20, two top 30, three top 40, and four top 50 hits. In addition, "Mae" bubbled under the Hot 100.
I voted for "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" as my favorite from an album that contains 6 of my most favorite TJB tunes.

 

[Ed Bishop]

Now about that singles comp....

 

[Larry]

I think this is a very good sounding CD. Much better sounding than the Japanese import CD. I have to say "More and More Amore" is my favorite tune. Least favorite is "Zorba The Greek". First purchased the LP in spring of 1966 for under 4 bucks. As far as favorite TJB albums goes it's #3, with WNML 1st and SOTB 2nd, although it's a pretty close 3rd.

Larry B.

 

[alpertfan]

Too bad I could only vote for one favorite . I like "Tijuana Taxi" for that horn, and just the fun tempo the song has. "Getting Sentimental Over You" is a great jazz number. (The finish, for some reason, reminds me of a Mardi Gras). "3rd Man Theme" is cool! That's all I can say about that one. Those electric guitar licks! Of course, "Spanish Flea". "Cinco De Mayo" has real Mexican flavor to it. "A Walk In The Black Forest" is another one. Last, but not least, "Zorba the Greek" (God, I wish I could do that dance like Anthony Quinn! )

Thanks to original TJB mastering engineer, Bernie Grundman, for superb remastering .

 

[Rudy]

I still can't pick a favorite! "Tijuana Taxi" is a great album opener. And yet I think the 1-2 punch of "3rd Man Theme" and "Walk Don't Run" has always been a favorite part of the album for me--I was always anxious to flip the LP over as "3rd Man" was ending! And as a kid, I also liked "Zorba" since it was fast and furious. "Mae", too...that lush arrangement gets me every time.

 

[daveK]

As with every Shout Factory reissue so far, there are several songs on GOING PLACES that I'm hearing in a new light this time around. "More And More Amor", "Walk Don't Run" and "Felicia" all have subtle nuances revealed in the new mastering that I've never noticed before.
With headphones I can still hear slight dropouts in "Taxi" but it's hardly noticeable otherwise.
I think this is a fantastic remastering job!

 

[Ed Bishop]

Maybe we should do a 'survivor' thing like Joey does over at SH and CRF....

Toss 'em out one at a time....

 

[AM Matt]

The song "Felicia" reminds me of The Beau Brummels Top 10 hit from 1965 called "Just A Little" when you hear the "aaaahhhhh" at the beginning of the song. In the middle of "Felicia" you hear the "aaaahhhhh" almost similar. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

 

[AM Matt]

Forgot to mention in the "Flintstones" episode, The Beau Brummels were changed to The Beau Brumstones. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

 

[Mr Bill]

I'm still surprised that "Tijuana Taxi" and "Spanish Flea" haven't done better here... I suspect that's because when voted (before we could see results) we decided to vote for favorites we considered "underdogs," assuming those two would be the clearcut leaders... Thatw as the case with my vote anyways...

--Mr Bill

 

[Captain Bacardi]

I suspect that's because when voted (before we could see results) we decided to vote for favorites we considered "underdogs," assuming those two would be the clearcut leaders... That was the case with my vote anyways...

Much like your political strategy, eh?


Capt. Bacardi
...with a good-natured jab online...

 

[Mike Blakesley]

I haven't voted yet because I can't make up my mind between Taxi, Sentimental, Amor, Flea, Third, Walk, Felicia, Cinco, Forest and Zorba.

 

[Rudy]

Maybe we should do a 'survivor' thing like Joey does over at SH and CRF....

Toss 'em out one at a time....

That might be fun! But I don't know if I'd do it for one album, or all the early TJB albums...it would be a hard choice!

So...is it Deacon Blues, or Rikki Don't Lose That Number?

 

[B-Dub]

In my humble opinion, "!!Going Places!!" is the quintessential, pure, undistilled TJB masterpiece. If I had been a member of NARAS back in 1966, I would've definitely voted for "!!GP!!", and not "Whipped Cream" for Best Record Of The Year 1965, in spite of the overall record sales. To me, "!!GP!!" has a much broader appeal, as well as a more creatively satisfying range of arranging and performing chops. The source material is more interesting, too, and the prominence of Mr. Wechter's marimba and Mr. Pisano's guitar (not to mention his compositions) make for a much more sonically robust piece of art. I'm impressed from beginning to end with everything about this masterpiece (certainly the peak achievement of the original TJB and crew), but I'm most astonished at the consistent quality of Mr. Alpert's arrangements. His arranging ability, I think, is his most underrated and understated talent (of a man with manifold gifts!). "I'm Getting Sentimental...", with its Dixieland middle-eight passage (bridge) is an absolutely brilliant chart, and almost unrecognizable from its source song. Allow me, please, to put my vote in for "Third Man Theme", which, along with "Zorba..." is as fine a piece of '60's pop as anything in existence (and I'm a big Beatles fan, too with Mr. Ceroli's amazing drum fills, and Mr. Pisano's rapid-fire, incendiary rhythm guitar machine, it's one of the most exciting, heart-stopping, hand-clapping, foot-stompin', hootin'-and hollerin' arrangements I've ever heard. Man, it kicks butt! "Zorba", IMHO, is the stuff of legend: I still can't believe that Messers Alpert and Kalash coordinated their parts in such explosive, meticulous triple-tonguing, against shifting time signatures, rhythmic accents, pregnant pauses, and mind-blowing tempo accelerations (not to mention those guys' yelling!). It was my understanding, too, that Mr. A. spent more time in the sessions which produced "!!GP!!" than any of his prior or successive albums, ever the tireless, perfectionistic craftsman. It shows.

 

[Mr Bill]

I still can't believe that Messers Alpert and Kalash coordinated their parts in such explosive, meticulous triple-tonguing, against shifting time signatures, rhythmic accents, pregnant pauses, and mind-blowing tempo accelerations (not to mention those guys' yelling!). It was my understanding, too, that Mr. A. spent more time in the sessions which produced "!!GP!!" than any of his prior or successive albums, ever the tireless, perfectionistic craftsman. It shows.

You may not be aware of this, but Tonni Kalash reportedly only played on tour. In the Studio Herb himself overdubbed both trumpet parts. I strongly suspect that this changed with the 1974 rendition of the brass, especially on Coney Island where Alpert's and (Kalash replacement) Findley's trumpet styles are are quite distinct.

--Mr Bill

 

[Mike Blakesley]

In the liner notes of the booklets on the reissues, there has been no mention of Bob Edmondson. I wonder if that's really him on the 'bone. Thinking of the solo "Getting Sentimental" and the work on later items such as "Very Good Year" and "Monday, Monday," I wonder if it's all him or if it's various studio players, since the styles vary so much. I've gotten more appreciative of the trombone parts of the TJB music in recent years.

 

[B-Dub]

Thanks for the clarification on the studio trumpeter(s) featured on "!!GP!!", Mr. Bill. The information you shared about Mr. Alpert overdubbing the second trumpet part himself on "Zorba..." makes me respect his amazing musical abilities even more. I wish I could've been a fly on the wall of Gold Star's Studio A during the sessions which produced "Zorba..." and the other "!!GP!!" tracks! (By the way, are there any studio session journals available for perusal, or recording session notes from those original, early TJB albums which have been published? The Beatles' biographer-scholar, Mark Lewisohn, did this with "The Beatles Recording Sessions" book, but I have not seen anything like this featuring the Tijuana Brass; perhaps someday...? ) Thanks again for the reply to my "!!GP!!" post; it is an honor and a joy to be chatting about one of my favorite groups with other fans. (I'll try to be more on top of my poor typing abilities, too, when I post a reply

 

[Mr Bill]

Your typing is fine -- I just wanted you to know you don't have to do as much work to post here like hyphenating and getting your "returns" in the right place -- just type away and the forum does the rest for you!

And again, welcome to A&M Corner. Fresh perspectives are always welcome (we're all getting stale having been around -- some of us -- for ten years)...

--Mr Bill

 

[Mr Bill]

...there has been no mention of Bob Edmondson. I wonder if that's really him on the 'bone. Thinking of the solo "Getting Sentimental" and the work on later items such as "Very Good Year" and "Monday, Monday," I wonder if it's all him...

I almost positive it's him -- especially given the "thank you" that Bob gets from Herb on the TV special as "Getting Sentimental" closes...

--Mr Bill