🎵 AotW Classics Herb Alpert & TjB CHRISTMAS ALBUM SP-4166

[122intheshade]

I was just thinking the same thing (about the intros) while listening to the Christmas Album on the way to work! Those ooo-ooo-ooo-ooohs are interminable. I love your pic, Marty, because I also had the SRO CD with me to see if Herb might have purloined his intro to "Jingle Bell Rock" from his intro to "Wall Street Rag". You gotta admire a guy who can reach back decades to find something obscure and totally make it his own (not unlike the Doors doing "Alabama Song").

 

[Captain Bacardi]

I was in a convenience store today and heard "The Bell That Couldn't Jingle" playing. Usually this store has a Golden Oldies radio station playing (I'm assuming it's an XM or Sirius thing) so this was a surprise to hear. I actually stayed in the restroom a little longer just to listen. Of all the songs on this album this was an interesting choice to play. Nice to hear, though!



Capt. Bacardi

 

[Mike Blakesley]

I always thought that song would make a good basis for a kids' aniimated TV special.

 

[KeithH]

I voted "Jingle Bells", though "My Favorite Things" is a close second. "My Favorite Things" is the track on this album that I have heard the most on the radio over the years. I also noticed that Starbucks had it playing as part of their holiday music loop this year. Stabucks released a Christmas compilation CD this year. Maybe "My Favorite Things" is on the CD and that's why I keep hearing it in their stores?

 

[Rudy]

I don't know if I'd vote it as my absolute favorite on the album, but "The Bell That Couldn't Jingle" is one of the favorites since it is a unique song: it's not about Santa, snow, etc. It's a story song about a single Christmas bell. Always glad to hear it after endless different versions of all the other holiday songs out there. I like Bacharach's version as well.

 

[DAN BOLTON]

I don't know if I'd vote it as my absolute favorite on the album, but "The Bell That Couldn't Jingle" is one of the favorites since it is a unique song: it's not about Santa, snow, etc. It's a story song about a single Christmas bell. Always glad to hear it after endless different versions of all the other holiday songs out there. I like Bacharach's version as well.

I never really thought about that until now, but you're right. It's a song about cooperation between the forces of nature and folklore...usually, there are conflicts between Santa and Jack Frost or the elves or some other plot device designed to scare the little children, or at least pique their interest in the latest TV movie of the week. But, in this song, everybody is on the same side. Neat.

I used to sing this song to the kids at church, always got a big smile from them.

It doesn't hurt that it's also one of Herb's better vocals, and tailor -made for his talents.



Dan

 

[Captaindave]

I like Sleigh Ride the best. I like the arrangement.

I like the contrast in the middle where the trombone takes a solo, but the rhythm continues to keep the beat going. And the way it gradually picks up back to the original tempo after that bridge.

The whole album is full of nice contrasts and nicely created and executed arrangements. The arrangements give the songs a new lease on life, even though some of them have been around a long time.

And, of course, hearing these songs with the TJB style and sound makes them seem new and original.

 

[Mike Blakesley]

I always thought that song would make a good basis for a kids' aniimated TV special.

I just realized I said the same thing back in '08. Well, I'm gonna repeat it every year until some famous TV producer takes notice!

I gave this album my annual top-volume end-to-end listen on Christmas Eve while driving to meet my wife to go visit her mom for Christmas. I think I'm gonna change my least favorite song to "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring." For some reason this year, my previous least-fave, "Sleigh Ride," sounded better to me. It's still not up there with the album's best in my book -- IMHO you can't top the 1-2-3 punch of the first three songs -- but it's a good version of the classic tune.

 

[Mr Bill]

I don't remember which tune I voted for when this poll first appeared, but like Mike, my favorite track varies by mood and year to year.

I enjoy "The Bell that Couldn't Jingle" simply because it is so different than any other tune on the CD. I also like the somberness of "Jesu..."

"Winter Wonderland" and "Jingle Bell Rock" seem to have been tailor made (to my ears anyway) to be a double A-side single as opposed to my two least favorite tunes which DID get the double A treatment -- "My Favorite Things" and "Christmas Song." I'll refrain from my usual rave as to the mystery of "MFT" being a Christmas song or my natural dislike of "TCS" no matter who (yes, even Mel Torme) is performing it...

--Mr Bill
at least "WW" & "JBR" sort of got special "back to back" treament by virtue of their inclusion on !i! Something Festive !i!

 

[Harry]

It looks like I never voted in this poll from a few years ago and I still don't know which one would be a favorite - they're all great in my book.

That video that Mr. Bill and others refer to is still on YouTube:



Giving this one a spin right now.

Harry

 

[abstract_fan]

Herb created a Christmas album which (similar to how he approaches his recent American songbook work) isn't just some pop star (who is not a great record producer like Herb) playing/singing a bunch of songs.

His creativity is at his usual high level.

Vocals:
1) caroling interspersed throughout
2) shoo-be-dooby Mel Torme scatting on Jingle Bells
3) nicely arranged intro singing on Bell That Couldn't Jingle
4) reverent singing on Jesu
5) Herb's vocals are terrific, terrific

Choice of songs:
1) Las Mananitas (Mexican birthday song); with the BMB
2) Bell That Couldn't Jingle (good work from his buddy Burt; should be better known)
3) Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Herb reverently plays a religious Bach chorale)

Arrangements:
1) Let It Snow anticipating Kenny G
2) Jingle Bell trumpets on Bell That Couldn't Jingle
3) the march segment on Sleigh Ride
4) unusual tempos (which is usual for Herb)

And, if that weren't enough, how about that cover?

 

[Harry]

One of my favorite Christmas albums that just keeps giving, year after year.

Merry Christmas. all!

Harry

 

[alpertfan]

My favorites on this album are "Las Mananitas", "The Bell That Couldn't Jingle", and the arrangments of "Winter Wonderland" and "Jingle Bell Rock" (especially Bob Edmondson's "haaa!" ay the end).

 

[A&Mguyfromwayback]

By the way, apparently the first Christmas recording of "My Favorite Things" was by Jack Jones in 1964, pre-dating Streisand by three years and even the movie as well (1965)....and I agree, no idea why it's considered a Christmas song...

 

[Rudy]

By the way, apparently the first Christmas recording of "My Favorite Things" was by Jack Jones in 1964, pre-dating Streisand by three years and even the movie as well (1965)....and I agree, no idea why it's considered a Christmas song...

It has a few Christmas references in the song...sometimes that is enough of a stretch. Plus, the holidays are all about our "favorite things" like getting together with friends and family, etc. It's close enough for me--it fits!

 

[Rudy]

It looks like I never voted in this poll from a few years ago and I still don't know which one would be a favorite - they're all great in my book.

I actually can't vote on it either...too many are favorites! Although I could make a case for "Winter Wonderland" since it is like watching the opening minute or two of a favorite movie.

 

[A&Mguyfromwayback]

Well, as far as brown paper packages tied up with strings - someone else mentioned that might not even mean presents, more like when people bought meat from the butcher in olden times; snowflakes, sleigh bells, silver white winters, OK. No matter what, Merry Christmas everybody!!!

 

[Rudy]

Well, as far as brown paper packages tied up with strings - someone else mentioned that might not even mean presents, more like when people bought meat from the butcher in olden times; snowflakes, sleigh bells, silver white winters, OK. No matter what, Merry Christmas everybody!!!

Our meat now comes in a reddish brown paper, sealed with the barcoded sticker from the scale. Now we need someone to make that into a song.

 

[mikeargo]

Our meat now comes in a reddish brown paper, sealed with the barcoded sticker from the scale. Now we need someone to make that into a song.

"Pretty paper, pretty barcodes of blue . . ."

I hope everyone is having a great Christmas, spicily flavored with your music of choice!

Mike

 

[Charles H.]

I like everything about the delightful TJB Christmas album except the fact that it has only 10 tracks. One or two more would make listening even merrier!

Charles

 

[MJM 64]

In the first 30 years of being a fan, I kind of avoided this album as part of the collection. I don't like Christmas albums. However, in the last 10 years or so, this album has become irreplacable to me. I mean, Nick Ceroli DOMINATES on this....way cool!

 

[Harry]

The 2023 Christmas music season is upon us, and like so many years before, it's the Tijuana Brass CHRISTMAS ALBUM that I've dug out first. And over the past year, I've learned a few things about it that have made it sound better and even more special.

The gritty details. Apparently, I-heart media requested that Herb put out a video of "The Bell That Couldn't Jingle", and his people obliged putting up a pleasant lyric video of the song. When our Steve S. tipped us off that it was live on YouTube, I happened to give it a listen on my headphones. Something bugged me a little about the sound, and yet it sounded just as it always did. But in my headphones, I detected that Herb's lead vocal sounded unfocused - like it wasn't balanced in the middle where I thought it should be. Having had a good amount of experience over the past few years with the HAECO-CSG phenomenon that was in use at A&M, I wondered if that might be the problem. There was never a mention of CSG on the album itself that I could find, but I'd also seen some records that had it, without labeling it as such.

Digging out my Audacity + Phasebug tools, I set about twisting the phase of the two channels, the left channel at a +45° and the right at a -45°. As long as the channels got the 90° alteration, it doesn't matter how it's distributed, at least that's been my experience. So after making the change, the song's stereo soundstage came into focus. Herb's lead vocal was now properly centered, and I could hear that the Brass' backing vocals were spread a bit across the stereo, and they were brought into focus as well. Suddenly the song sounded so much better to me than it ever did - and this year I've finally voted it as my favorite track on the album.

The rest of the story. Thinking I'd solved all of the album's problems, I felt satisfied that I'd been able to fix that one song. But why would just one song get the HAECO-CSG treatment and not any others? Well, it turned out that even THAT is not totally true. While none of the other songs on the album were totally HAECO-CSG'ed, I managed to detect that ALL of the Shorty Rogers choral openings were tacked onto the TjB songs and the choral openings were effected with the processing. Remember that around this time, A&M was just beginning to mess around with it. SP-4160, FOOL ON THE HILL by Brasil '66 was totally CSG'ed, and this album, SP-4166 had to be in process around the same time. So, again, I edit the songs within Audacity and used Phasebug on only the choral openings of "Winter Wonderland", "Jingle Bells", "My Favorite Things", and "Sleigh Ride". These vocal opening were already spread across the stereo soundstage with the CSG, but when that was neutered, the chorale sounded more focused. The left and right singers stayed where they were, but any middle singers now sounded properly centered and the group just sounded better.

Herb was quoted in the Shout! reissue that the TjB stuff was recorded first and that he called upon his friend Shorty Rogers to do the choral framing of some of the songs, adding a Christmas-y sheen to the whole project. (That's also probably why the "Winter Wonderland" track didn't have the chorale on the SOMETHING FESTIVE compilation. The track was probably already done on that comp.) Why they chose to use the CSG processing on only the choral parts is anyone's guess, but that's the way it was done.

I have to say that if you're just a casual listener of these songs on this album and aren't concentrating on stereo placement, you'd probably never notice any of this. Heck, for better than 50 years, I never noticed. But for those of us who love to delve into the details, it's an exciting discovery.

 

[rockdoctor]

I remember buying this album back in the early 70's in the Christmas bins for less then $3.00 I had it for a number of years and then it got lost and went out of print and just a couple of years ago, I picked up a very clean copy in a thrift store for less then $2.00. It will get played a few times this season as it did in the past. I voted "My Favorite Things" as best selection.

 

[Bobberman]

I voted for "Let it Snow Let it Snow Let it snow" for me it is so hard to pick just one favorite as the whole album is very special I remember getting my first experience with this in November 1980 as the vinyl reissue SP 3113 appeared to be a New Reissue not knowing at the time what the original cover looked like until much later but I Loved it all especially Las Mananitas and Sleigh Ride I was already Familiar with My Favorite things as I had the Greatest hits volume 2 LP since August of that same year and it said on the cover the Christmas album was " No longer available" but a few months later it became available again I was one happy kid back then And I'm still enjoying all of it even moreso today.

 

[rockdoctor]

I voted for "Let it Snow Let it Snow Let it snow" for me it is so hard to pick just one favorite as the whole album is very special I remember getting my first experience with this in November 1980 as the vinyl reissue SP 3113 appeared to be a New Reissue not knowing at the time what the original cover looked like until much later but I Loved it all especially Las Mananitas and Sleigh Ride I was already Familiar with My Favorite things as I had the Greatest hits volume 2 LP since August of that same year and it said on the cover the Christmas album was " No longer available" but a few months later it became available again I was one happy kid back then And I'm still enjoying all of it even moreso today.

The copy I found at the thrift store was the original release. I like the full cover picture. I do not like it when a re-release changes the cover art.