The Monday, Monday thread: Defend your favorite unappreciated TJB songs

[Mike Blakesley]

I love "Freckles" as well, in fact I made a "my personal TJB favorites" CD one time, and I used that song as the opening track.

 

[DeeInKY]

“Tangerine” is one of my favorites. My dad knew the lyrics and used to sing it.

 

[abstract_fan]

My nominee for under-appreciated TjB song goes to "Mae". Here was the song that was issued as a single after "Whipped Cream", as the a-side. And yet is doesn't ever show up on any best-of's or retrospectives. The only place to find it is on GOING PLACES or that long-forgotten 45. It's a lovely song and probably exemplifies the very best of Herb's playing abilities.

I like how the 45 label says: Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass With Strings.

 

[Aaron Bitman]

Huh. I have the "Mae" single and I never noticed the words "with STRINGS" before.

Now I wonder: why did that line of singles have the "forget me nots" logo on them? What was that supposed to mean?

 

[Harry]

why did that line of singles have the "forget me nots" logo on them? What was that supposed to mean?

Forget Me Nots was a series of single re-issued by A&M in the 70s and 80s. There were a couple of different designs for the labels, one with the orange and green stripes, one with a finger with a string tied around it, and there was also a Memories version. These were issued for those who wanted to freshen up their record collection without buying albums.

The original "Mae" single was on a standard ochre label.

 

[abstract_fan]

Forget Me Nots was a series of single re-issued by A&M in the 70s and 80s. There were a couple of different designs for the labels, one with the orange and green stripes, one with a finger with a string tied around it, and there was also a Memories version. These were issued for those who wanted to freshen up their record collection without buying albums.

The original "Mae" single was on a standard ochre label.

I brought up the "WITH STRINGS" because its reminded me of the Beatles' "Get Back" 45 RPM single which lists The Beatles With Billy Preston. I don't think the Tijuana Brass records gave extra billing on any other record.

 

[abstract_fan]

Lots of choices! I'll pick one each from a handful of albums here.

"Desafinado" -- despite Herb claiming he wasn't a jazz musician back then, here he is trading fours on a current Bossa Nova hit with (presumably) Julius Wechter.

"A-Me-Ri-Ca" -- a continuously time-shifting tune from West Side Story gets totally reconfigured as a straight-up Latino number. (And who else could open up this tune with a quote from "Jingle Bells?") There are a few on Volume 2 that I feel, like the album, have been shuffled off to the side over the years.

"Salud, Amor y Dinero" -- long a favorite from SOTB. The arrangement, the instrumentation, the melody. All good. Other gems similar to this one are why I like this album.

"Green Peppers" -- An intereting tune with a lot happening in its minute and a half time. "Bittersweet Samba" gets more of the attention, but I like both. Cal Tjader covered this tune on Along Comes Cal (featuring an arrangement by the legendary Chico O'Farrill).

"Mae" -- A tune I always look forward to on Going Places. It showcases Herb's trumpet quite well. "And the Angels Sing" is another I like in a similar mood.

"Memories of Madrid" -- I think this made it onto a compilation, but I don't see it mentioned here as often. The melody wins me over on this one.

"Blue Sunday" -- It's probably the minor key of this one, and the bridge in the middle, that take this one over the top. One of the very few tracks I like on the album, actually.

"The Love Nest" -- Interesting arrangement.

"Monday Monday" -- I'll side with Mike on this one. The start/stop arrangement is the icing on the cake.

"Girl Talk" -- Lush four-part trumpet work and the lavish arrangement backing make this tune for me.

"Good Morning, Mr. Sunshine" (aka "La Bikina" everywhere else on the planet) -- A traditional Mariachi-type song. I like the strings on this one (thanks to Shorty Rogers) but without, it is probably the most Mariachi-themed tune the group ever recorded. I heard a genuine Mariachi band from decades ago do this tune, and the TJB version is very close in feel.

"Ratatouille" (aka "Coisa No. 1" by Moacir Santos) -- Interesting rearrangement of a Brazilian tune into something that would have been overheard in the French Quarter.

This is a good thread because it shows how many songs might have become hits.

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Forget Me Nots was a series of single re-issued by A&M in the 70s and 80s. There were a couple of different designs for the labels, one with the orange and green stripes, one with a finger with a string tied around it, and there was also a Memories version. These were issued for those who wanted to freshen up their record collection without buying albums.

The original "Mae" single was on a standard ochre label.

It's interesting how much MORE information there is on this 45 label (not only "with strings" but also the source info on the song) than there was on the album.

 

[Rudy]

It's interesting how much MORE information there is on this 45 label (not only "with strings" but also the source info on the song) than there was on the album.

And the "source" is misleading as the song was probably featured in a film, but not the TJB version. But back then, that was more the norm.

 

[Harry]

That photo came from Discogs - I just quickly grabbed it. My actual Monarch pressing 45 looks a bit different, though all the same info is there:

 

[Harry]

Another old TjB track that struck me recently is "Winds Of Barcelona". Usually I'd pick the "El Presidente" version of the song to listen to, but the more basic "Winds" has its charms too. It was never issued as a single, and was essentially an album cut on VOLUME 2. It appeared on the jukebox EP of Volume 2 as well, and on a few of the early releases in other countries, like those SOUNDS TIJUANA albums.

As it was contained on VOLUME 2, it's had only sporadic releases on CD. A&M released VOLUME 2 for awhile back the 80s/early 90s, them it went out of print. That mastering was fairly bright - which was likely the reason Herb called it "metallic" when it was skipped over by Shout on the initial CD releases from them. It later was issued as downloadable files on iTunes through Shout and was remastered to tone down the highs, so in contrast it sounds just a bit on the muddy side.

That toned-down mastering also appeared on the Herb Alpert Presents version of the CD. One other place to find the original brighter mastering is on the Rondor CD of PORTRAIT OF HERB ALPERT.

 

[martin]

The TJB did Winds Of Barcelona quite a lot on live and TV appearances back in the day, so I guess it could be considered a "hit", even if it was not released as a single.

- greetings from the north -
Martin

 

[Michael Hagerty]

The TJB did Winds Of Barcelona quite a lot on live and TV appearances back in the day, so I guess it could be considered a "hit", even if it was not released as a single.

- greetings from the north -
Martin

Well, let's not go redefining "hit".

 

[abstract_fan]

That photo came from Discogs - I just quickly grabbed it. My actual Monarch pressing 45 looks a bit different, though all the same info is there:

That's one of the things I like about Discogs. On this pressing you need a magnifying glass to see "with STRINGS"

 

[martin]

Well, let's not go redefining "hit".

My point is that Herb and his people must have had some faith in "Winds Of Barcelona" when they performed it, for instance, at the Dean Martin Show in 1965 along with "Bittersweet Samba" and it was still on their concert repertoire even as late as the final 1969 tour...

 

[martin]

My point is that Herb and his people must have had some faith in "Winds Of Barcelona" when they performed it, for instance, at the Dean Martin Show in 1965 along with "Bittersweet Samba" and it was still on their concert repertoire even as late as the final 1969 tour...

Of course today it is much simpler, you can get your Spotify streaming numbers at a touch on your keyboard, which I do myself... somewhat harder in the past...

 

[Michael Hagerty]

My point is that Herb and his people must have had some faith in "Winds Of Barcelona" when they performed it, for instance, at the Dean Martin Show in 1965 along with "Bittersweet Samba" and it was still on their concert repertoire even as late as the final 1969 tour...

May just have been a favorite of Herb's. Not only was it never a single, it was from (up until WARM and THE BRASS ARE COMIN'), the poorest-selling album in the catalog (VOLUME 2).

 

[abstract_fan]

May just have been a favorite of Herb's. Not only was it never a single, it was from (up until WARM and THE BRASS ARE COMIN'), the poorest-selling album in the catalog (VOL in

 

[abstract_fan]

I think it's correct to say that Volume 2 is nobody's favorite Tijuana Brass album.

 

[abstract_fan]

PS Michael I'm sorry I accidentally cut the end of your post above.

 

[Harry]

I think it's correct to say that Volume 2 is nobody's favorite Tijuana Brass album.

I don't know about that...

Back when Shout Factory skipped over it, you'd have thought it was the most popular album ever based on some of the posts we got here.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

Back when Shout Factory skipped over it, you'd have thought it was the most popular album ever based on some of the posts we got here.

Because we're completists by nature...not representative of the general music-buying public.

VOLUME 2 did not chart on release in 1963. The week VOLUME 2 peaked in Billboard (April 16, 1966), on the coattails of TJB-mania, it was still the poorest-selling of all five TJB albums then in print.

1. GOING PLACES
3. WHIPPED CREAM AND OTHER DELIGHTS
6. SOUTH OF THE BORDER
14. THE LONELY BULL
17. VOLUME 2

It dropped to number 40 the following week. GOING PLACES and WHIPPED CREAM held their positions, SOUTH OF THE BORDER slipped to 11, and THE LONELY BULL inched up from 13 to 14.

 

[David S]

Song for Herb. A quintessential Herb Alpert sounding tune.

Love Without Words. My favourite track from Bullish.

I Can’t Stop Thinking About You. Like this slower version from North on South Street.

 

[Harry]

One of the many old threads and discussions when VOLUME 2 was skipped by Shout:

The semi-official VOLUME 2 thread

:?: Any word on the release of Vol. II :?: Must haves from Volume II that need to be re-issued. 1.) The Great Manolete (best bull fight song next to "Lonely Bull") 2.) Winds of Barcelona 3.) Green Leaves of Summer 4.) Marching Thru Madrid

forum.amcorner.com

 

[Aaron Bitman]

I think it's correct to say that Volume 2 is nobody's favorite Tijuana Brass album.

Since this thread is all about defending the unappreciated, I'll mention that I actually liked Volume 2 even more than I did the Lonely Bull album. For what Volume 2 lacked in professionalism, I feel it more than made up in sheer fun.

(Heck, I might even have liked it more than SRO and Herb Alpert's Ninth.)