Herb Makes "Discoveries"

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Captain Bacardi

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I saw the new Discoveries magazine today, and inside was a report of how Herb Alpert items are the hottest thing on eBay. They even mentioned the $425 paid for the S.R.O. CD recently, as well as the prices paid for other out-of-print CDs, along with a cardboard replica of Herb. This is the second time in the past couple of weeks that Discoveries has mentioned - and lamented - about how little of Herb's output is available to the public.

I guess this is a good news/bad news thing. The good news is that there seems to be a lot of interest in Herb's music, and maybe a certain someone will think about reissuing these gems in the not-too-distant future. The bad news is that people will probably start jacking up the prices more on eBay until the reissues actually do happen.


Capt. Bacardi
 
I agree with Captain Bacardi (by the way, love the name) about the interest there is out there in Herb Alpert's music; hopefully this will mean good news to some, for example me, who have been trying to get together a couple of re-issues on a couple of labels Im associated with; the fact that prices for out-of-print CDs are going so high will hopefully convince the big suits upstairs to give the project a green light. I believe that a good, say double CD of selected material from the Tijuana Brass years with a crystalline remastering and some good photos and design, could not only please us long-time fans but open the doors to a whole new generation of ears who have never had a 'taste of honey'! I for one am quite enthusiastic about sharing good music to anyone who is willing to listen and learn, so I think re-issuing these gems would be fantastic! Sure, the prices for the existing rarities would go crazy on ebay, but I don't particularly believe in having a gem not wanting it to come out just because I have it and want to be the only one in this world to own it...I'd rather more people share in the fun.
 
Stephen Vakil said:
...........and waht happened to the unreleased TJB masters Herb was working on earlier this year?

I'm guessing that these things take time, and figure that some Christmas buying season some year will see some releases.

Harry
...patient, online...
 
I also fully agree with Captain Bacardi.
And let me take for example 2 nights ago when the auction at e-bay of the CD "Herb Alpert - Fandango" ended: The price started at USD$ 49.99 and, within minutes, the price raised (and ended at) to USD$ 275.00. At that moment, I firmly decided to stop bidding because I thought that it is kind of weird giving such amount of money for a CD which originally costed around USD$ 12.00 !!!.
On the other hand, I hope as well that the top guys at Universal take a look on these kind of auctions and realize that there is a faithfull public around the continent which still want the good music to take over... again.

Warm wishes.
 
Yeah - when I think of and listen to the TJB, it does make me think of summer, sunshine, California,etc. Especially when you live in Northeast Ohio. Beautiful southern California weather around here is somewhat uncommon - particularly from about mid-October till the end of April.(Actually, I think our best months around here are May and September).So,I always find a little southern California atmosphere when I listen to TJB.I think it is summertime music - next spring would be a good time to see TJB releases. :)
 
Hey speaking of whatever happened to...I thought I heard a TJB version of "Love Will Keep Us Together", many years ago. I only heard it once on the radio and that was it! This was the band that had Dave Frischberg in it. Was I dreaming?
 
They may have accompanied the Captain & Tennille during their joint Midnight Special appearance, but I don't recall it that way... The only "joint performance" I recall is Herb's intro to Billy Preston on the same episode of MS...

--Mr Bill
 
Naw. It would be an actual record by The Brass of that song. I thought it might be a dj copy that never got released because that travelling version of the TJB broke up soon after. I think it followed "El Bimbo", "Fire & Rain" & "Whistle Song", which weren't on LP. I got those on 45. My time line might be off. It could have been much like the earlier BMB dj copy of "Can You Dig It". That took me 30 years to find. I heard that once around 1970 or so and remembered the melody all those years.

Well, Bill, thanks for your quick response. I probably was dreaming. Although I dreamt a pretty good arrangement! :wink:
 
You're right about it being a good arrangement. It's one song I could easily see the 70's era brass covering.

As for the three non-LP cuts you mention, "Fire & Rain" was the B-side of "Last Tango..." which preceded the You Smile -- The Song Begins LP by about a year. The other two, "El Bimbo" and "Whistlestar (Whistlesong)" came after the Coney Island LP and, it is assumed, would have been featured on that TJB incarnation's third LP. There's been much speculation in this group as to whether or not that third LP was even recorded. Based on The Midnight Special appearance and other tunes performed at the time, we generated a list of tunes that likely would have appeared on that LP. This is being recrafted from memory from the old forum, so bare with me:

1-El Bimbo (post-Coney single)
2-Whistlestar (Whistlesong) (post-Coney single)
3-Desert Dance (from Midnight Special)
4-Neverland (from Midnight Special)
5-Somewhere (from West Side Story, performed on the Dinah Shore show shortly before Herb disbanded the TJB (again))
6-Fire And Rain (possibly but not likely -- or Herb would've put it on one of the previous 2 LPs)
7-TJB Medley (popular in concert as recently as his ALMOSounds related concerts, but supposedly uncomfortable for Herb in the studio).

Fellow regulars, any I've forgotten? Any other tunes that were performed in concert during the Coney Island tour?

--Mr Bill
 
What about "The Me In You"...throw in "Come Whatr May" and you'd have almost enough for an album...BTW, the correct usage of the phrase is "BEAR with me...", NOT "BARE with me..."I don't want to get into THAT...




Dan
 
Herb did "The Lady in My Life," as a B-side to...some single as a solo artist. I forget which one...

Don't forget "Whistle While You Work" and "California Girls" (vocals by The Merry-Go-Round) from the TV specials (OK they weren't great, but he did put 'em on oxide)...

The Union Oil song, posted right here on the Forum...

"Amajour", a very TJB like cut on Airto's "Touching You...Touching Me"...
 
DAN BOLTON said:
...correct usage of the phrase is "BEAR with me...", NOT "BARE with me..."I don't want to get into THAT...

Indeed. Beastiality or homosexuality... Tough Choice! :wink:

--Mr Bill
venturing into FAO territory (NP: TJB "Talk To The Animals")
 
Herb did "The Lady in My Life," as a B-side to...some single as a solo artist. I forget which one... Don't forget "Whistle While You Work" and "California Girls" (vocals by The Merry-Go-Round) from the TV specials. The Union Oil song, posted right here on the Forum...

Sure, but I was speaking of the "new" 1973-5 era TJB. I guess we'll have to wait until Herb and Larry Levine finish remastering the whole catalog to see what goodies we're going to get on reissues (IF they ever happen).

--Mr Bill
who is convinced the discontinuance of the catalog with the exception of Deaf Hits is part of a carefully orchestrated plan...
 
Wow! I used to think I knew some things about the TJB! But many of these I haven't heard. I had forgotten "California Girls". That would make a good record. I didn't realize that was the Merry-Go-Round.

When I heard The Brass in the early eighties here, Herb played Lani on stage for a vocal of a Lionel Richie tune. I can't remember the name of it right now. It's just my morning attack of C.R.A.F.T. I wonder if they recorded that? Anyway, maybe there's something left to look forward to.

That was a great concert. It was a big outdoor venue in Hoffman Estates, Il. that has since been torn down. They had an artist come on stage and in the time it took to play (an extended version of) "Fandango", the guy threw paint all over the place but came up with a beautiful huge portrait of Herb. What a creative idea!

That band had Vince Charles on percussion and they let Julius play his marimba feature on "Sunrise, Sunset"
 
The tour with the "artist" on stage was the BULLISH tour. It's possible Vince Charles played the venue you attended, but he was not part of the complete tour, as Wechter, Pisano, Edmondson and Findley were were. AT that time the late Mr Charles was employed by one of the Cruise lines or was playing for Neil Diamond. In fact, if Mr Diamond was playing in the same area at the same time as the "Bullish" tour it is even likely Vince made a surprise appearance...

--Mr Bill
 
It was the Bullish tour. I've got the program somewhere. It was Poplar Creek in Hoffman Estates. Nick Ceroli was the drummer. Thanks.
 
Sounds more like the title of a porno flick to me.... :wink:

-= N =-
 
Art is usually tested with the crucible of time, and within this tough acid-test, the worthiest is esteemed by it's durability, and the beauty of A&M productions is that they transend time itself, and a astounding example of such timelessness are the superb productions by the Tijuana Brass. Here one finds music that sounds right at home in the present...that is to say that T.J.B. recordings don't sound 'dated', and belong in the here and now, just as they were contemporary during the 60's. It's for this very reason that a complete re-issuance of 'Brass' gems is appropriate. Put simply, the Magic Man put so much sheer quality into his albums, that all these decades later, that they retain their original sense of merit. Wonderful tracks such as "T.J.Taxi", "What Now My Love", "Mexican Shuffle" et al are as fresh an appealing as the day they were released, and so it is that a youngster, hearing a 'Work Song' for the very first time, right now in '02 will gain the very same joy from it, as yours truly did back in '66, so again, it's plain and simply natural to bring these fabulous recordings back.These are true classics, in every respect of the word, and although Herb Alpert had moved with the times, and introduced masterpieces throughout the years (one only has to mention the lovely " Manhattan Melody", or the excitement of "Red Hot"...the soulfull "True Confessions", or the primitive "8-Ball" which neatly crosses the Theme from 'Rocky' and "Helter-Skelter" into a little treasure. but in the end, it'll always be ¡Olé! for "El Solo Toro"...and that smile that just happens everytime some cool d.j. plays "Spanish Flea", and those groovy album tracks such as "Bo-Bo", "Blue Sunday", "Zazuera" amongst the many that I've adored for what now seems like forever; tracks that are just begging to be enjoyed via the digital domain, and all because those vintage T.J.B. don't sound 'old'...lol they're way cool!:cool:
Warm Wishes,
Steve
 
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