There were Playtape cartridges by the TJB and BMB - in fact, I have several. You can still find them from time to time on e-Bay for not a lot of money.
Which Tijuana Brass Song Got You Hooked?
- Thread starter Steven J. Gross
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toeknee4bz
Well-Known Member
Tijuana Taxi
Tony
Tony
Steven J. Gross
Well-Known Member
Steve Sidoruk said:
I had some too..
Captain Bacardi
Well-Known Member
For me "The Lonely Bull" got me hooked on the sound of the TJB. Since I was a kid in the mid-60's I was just listening to the bubblegum music of the time (Monkees, Cowsills, 1910 Fruitgum Co., etc) and then the TJB was on "The Hollywood Palace" playing "Lonely Bull", and I remembered looking up from a Look magazine I was thumbing through saying "what is this sound?" My dad soon bought the What Now My Love album for my mom, and I played it repeatedly. A couple of years later the Greatest Hits LP came out and I recognized many of the songs that I became a fan for life. But "Lonely Bull" and "Mexican Shuffle" were my first memories of the sound.
Capt. Bacardi
Capt. Bacardi
CherryStreet
Member
Steve Sidoruk said:
Our neighbors down the street growing up had a Volkswagen that had a built in PlayTape player! I guess it was a factory option for a while.
Some interesting PlayTape facts:
"The rock n roll category includes such names as the Beatles, the Animals, the Supremes, the Lovin' Spoonful, the Grateful Dead, the Mamas and Papas, the Righteous Brothers, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder.
Also in the PlayTape inventory were the standards - Herb Alpert, Sergio Mendes and an assortment of current Country music hit artist. The total number of artists available on PlayTape at the beginning of 1968 was over 3,000!
A big boost to the PlayTape format was a contract in April of 1967 to license the entire Motown catalog. Previously, Motown had only once licensed their entire catalog to Ampex in the open-reel format. Another boost was a contact with Pepsi to promote the youth market. Pepsi offered a PlayTape unit for $12.95 plus 6 cork liners from Pepsi bottles. The Pepsi promotion increased the sale of PlayTape cartridges almost twofold."
Michael Hagerty said:
I'm with Michael H. Though my earliest memory is from 1965 or 66 and my mom playing the WC&OD album often on our livingroom Hi-Fi and making a playful, door-knocking motion for me during Hal Blaine's bass pedal build-ups on A Taste of Honey, Lollipops and Roses has done it for me, moved me, inspired me, over and over again, for decades. What a heavy, intense, deceptively complicated arrangement of an otherwise mediocre pop ballad. After over 40 years, it still gets repeat plays whenever I have the album on. It's a quick punch of sexy, sophisticated swinging west coast jazz/pop whose brevity has always been part of its magic for me. Leaves me wanting another verse or bridge. It is simply sublime.....and I feel so fortunate that I had the chance to share that with Herb after one of his shows last year.
John-NJ
Well-Known Member
Steve Sidoruk said:
Interesting... Sounds like my parents went shopping at the wrong store.
Part of the problem, for me at least, is that I got "hooked" close to the time the TJB disbanded. As a result, I had great difficulty finding LPs as I grew older other than "The Lonely Bull" and "Whipped Cream". I struck gold some time later when I came across the A&M "Music Box" compilation LP at a supermarket. I managed to snag the "Four Sider" while on vacation one year. (Imagine being on vacation, yet not being able to wait to get home to play the LP!)
In later years, finding "Coney Island" and "Rise" were easy finds because they were recent releases at the time.
Come to think of it, ALL of my LP purchases to this day were A&M, and only one was not Herb.
John
My Dad got me hooked on “A Taste of Honey” when he was repairing a neighbor’s studio console in 1966. I was only 12 but was amazed at the instrumental “Rock” approach to the tune, it was unique. I more or less forgot about the TJB until I heard its music on commercials and “The Dating Game.” It was if music from the TJB could be heard in the background everywhere. The cheerleaders did a dance routine to “Flamingo” and the student body went nuts. But what really hooked me was “This Guys in Love with You.” I had a crush in the 8th grade on a beautiful red haired girl and I didn’t dare speak a word to her, I wasn’t in her league. But that song seemed to bridge the gap in my psyche.
Steven J. Gross
Well-Known Member
These are some great stories!
Skeeterbytes
New Member
I'd have to say "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You". I remember listening to Tommy Dorsey Orchestra recordings on the hi-fi at my grandma's house over breakfast waiting for CBC television to come on the air. That song was one of her favorites and of course I told her it was my favorite too (because it was Grandma's favorite, it had to be mine too, right?!)
She must have told my dad because after we got home, he played the TJB version. I was only 6 at the time but it made a major impact. That song was SWINGING and seeping with energy and adrenaline. After that, he dragged out the rest of the TJB catalog. The only one that didn't have a jacket was Whipped Cream. According to mom, "that record didn't have a jacket".
So, jump from 1976 to now: that same song is still killer, the CD "Whipped Cream and other Delights" comes with a fold-out poster of the cover and my dad's vinyl is still missing the jacket.
She must have told my dad because after we got home, he played the TJB version. I was only 6 at the time but it made a major impact. That song was SWINGING and seeping with energy and adrenaline. After that, he dragged out the rest of the TJB catalog. The only one that didn't have a jacket was Whipped Cream. According to mom, "that record didn't have a jacket".
So, jump from 1976 to now: that same song is still killer, the CD "Whipped Cream and other Delights" comes with a fold-out poster of the cover and my dad's vinyl is still missing the jacket.
Steven J. Gross
Well-Known Member
Cool Skeeterbytes- and WELCOME!
KentTeffeteller
Well-Known Member
When I was a toddler, I first heard "Going Places" and "Whipped Cream & Other Delights" at a neighbor's house back in Alcoa, TN. Fell in love, 3 days later, he bought me copies and I began collecting records. I still am even now!
Having thought it over and dug back into the old memory banks, I think the first TJB related events in my life were:
1. Hearing WHIPPED CREAM on a 4-track tape in our friends' boat
2. Seeing whichever TV special featured the GOING PLACES music
3. Buying the GOING PLACES LP for my mom for Mother's Day and driving the whole family crazy playing it every day
4. Buying the WHAT NOW MY LOVE album and repeating the process
5. Getting an 8-track portable player for Christmas and starting to collect the various TJB tapes
6. Finally coming to my senses in high school and investing in a decent stereo, and beginning to build the TJB album collection.
7. Several years later, joining A&M Corner!
1. Hearing WHIPPED CREAM on a 4-track tape in our friends' boat
2. Seeing whichever TV special featured the GOING PLACES music
3. Buying the GOING PLACES LP for my mom for Mother's Day and driving the whole family crazy playing it every day
4. Buying the WHAT NOW MY LOVE album and repeating the process
5. Getting an 8-track portable player for Christmas and starting to collect the various TJB tapes
6. Finally coming to my senses in high school and investing in a decent stereo, and beginning to build the TJB album collection.
7. Several years later, joining A&M Corner!
Squeezeboxdood
New Member
I think it was Flamingo.
I was a kid during the 60s. When I was 13, in '66, I started accordion lessons, unusal time to play the accordion, I know. I learned a number of their songs. I kind of felt like an outcast, a pimply teenager who played the accordion and listened to the Tijuana Brass, especially when all the other kids were listening to the Beatles, the Mamas and the Papas, The Monkees and all the other groups.
We had an 8-track tape of Whipped Cream and Other Delights. I'd sing my heart out to those songs over and over again (no words of course just la-las and da-das, you get the idea).
I've just recently downloaded some of my favorites to my iPod and they make greart songs to listen to while running.
I was a kid during the 60s. When I was 13, in '66, I started accordion lessons, unusal time to play the accordion, I know. I learned a number of their songs. I kind of felt like an outcast, a pimply teenager who played the accordion and listened to the Tijuana Brass, especially when all the other kids were listening to the Beatles, the Mamas and the Papas, The Monkees and all the other groups.
We had an 8-track tape of Whipped Cream and Other Delights. I'd sing my heart out to those songs over and over again (no words of course just la-las and da-das, you get the idea).
I've just recently downloaded some of my favorites to my iPod and they make greart songs to listen to while running.
I was in a similiar situation, Squeeze. I was in high school, the Brass was hot, but I was in a musical group playing rock songs such as Gloria, House of the Rising Sun, Wipe Out, Pipeline, etc. I was drummer.
I would've given my right arm and old '56 Ford I had then to have that group get horns and play the TJB songs! When we weren't playing rock "noise", I was with the stereo drumming along with Mr. Ceroli!
I would've given my right arm and old '56 Ford I had then to have that group get horns and play the TJB songs! When we weren't playing rock "noise", I was with the stereo drumming along with Mr. Ceroli!
Squeezeboxdood
New Member
Honda, I was so into them I considered starting my own group only our niche would have been the Island sound, Caribbean style. Unfortunately, I didn't play an instrument that translated into it real well.
Well, I've been trying to contribute positively here, but I still can't think of any one song or album... I went through periods of listening to and making a favorite of one album for a few weeks at a time, then would move on. And it wasn't necessarily new music either--I'd put something like Volume 2 onto the rekkid player for a few weeks in a row (not repeating the same day, but playing once a day along with other albums), then I wouldn't even give it a thought for several months.
Based on what I listen to today, that hasn't changed much either. With the new Robert Plant "Band Of Joy" album out last week, I've been spinning his "Manic Nirvana" and "Shaken 'n' Stirred" albums quite a bit lately. (Which is odd since I haven't been in my usual summer "rock 'n' roll" mood this year.)
I went through periods of listening to and making a favorite of one album for a few weeks at a time, then would move on. And it wasn't necessarily new music either--I'd put something like Volume 2 onto the rekkid player for a few weeks in a row (not repeating the same day, but playing once a day along with other albums), then I wouldn't even give it a thought for several months.Based on what I listen to today, that hasn't changed much either. With the new Robert Plant "Band Of Joy" album out last week, I've been spinning his "Manic Nirvana" and "Shaken 'n' Stirred" albums quite a bit lately. (Which is odd since I haven't been in my usual summer "rock 'n' roll" mood this year.)
Usually I'll go thru a TJB "phase" in the summer, but I haven't really listened to them much this year. I played the SUMMERTIME and THE BRASS ARE COMIN' albums for sure, and I remember giving WHAT NOW MY LOVE and SOUNDS LIKE a spin but other than that, I've only heard them when they come up in shuffle mode on the iPod. Maybe it's because of the new Sergio coming out, I've been listening more to him this year.
The last couple of days I've been listening to a new Jack Benny compilation from Radio Spirits -- it's called NEIGHBORS and collects a bunch of the shows where he had Ronald and Benita Coleman as guests. Classic stuff!
The last couple of days I've been listening to a new Jack Benny compilation from Radio Spirits -- it's called NEIGHBORS and collects a bunch of the shows where he had Ronald and Benita Coleman as guests. Classic stuff!
Being born in Denmark in 1958 I didn't quite join the Herb Alpert fan-group from the beginning of the 60s. Actually - even though I had heard and enjoyed songs like Tijuana Taxi and Spanish Flea - it wasn't until 'The Brass Are Comin' tv-special was shown in Danish television that I was hooked on Herb Alpert. And the song that immediately stuck in my head was Good Morning Mr. Sunshine - and to this day it is my absolute favorite (together with Bud from Herb Alpert's Ninth). I 'recorded' the sound from the tv-special through a microphone on my reel-to-reel tape-recorder, so my first copy of Good Morning Mr. Sunshine was not that good. Luckily my parents had mercy on me and bought The Brass Are Comin' vinyl album for my 12 years birthday in 1970. It's still on my record-shelf, but I am waiting and hoping for a cd-release of the album!!!
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