TIJUANA TAXI different mixes

[daveK]

For some reason, I had been thinking that the single mix of "Tijuana Taxi" was on the mono version of the "Going Places" LP but listening to it just now, realized that instead of extra horn honks, like the 45, it has one less honk than the stereo LP version. Why do you suppose there were so many different mixes?

 

[thetijuanataxi]

The extra taxi horns were probably added for novely effect during radio play. As for why the horn is missing in the middle of the mono version, I haven't a clue. Though I remember as a child, getting the mono version of "Million Dollar Sound Sampler", which also has no taxi horns in the middle, and exchanging it because I thoiught it was defective. You may also notice that on the mono version of "Going Places" that the last bridge of "Spanish Flea" has more instrumentation and louder maracas than the stereo version. Also, one stereo copy of GP I have has a faint graqe note added to the begining of "Walk, Don't Run"

David,
who has had many copies of "Going Places"

 

[Harry]

Yes, there are at least three mixes of "Tijuana Taxi", the 45 mono mix, the mono album mix, and the stereo album mix.

One thing that's recently been learned about these is that Larry Levine was responsible for the mono mixes while Herb himself did the stereo versions. Larry's influences from his wall-of-sound days with Phil Spector is clearly evident on the "Tijuana Taxi" 45 mono mix, with the reverb, extra honking, and overall excitement that the mix gives - all designed to sound great on AM radio station processors.

In our recent AOTW thread on the DEE JAY SAMPLER album, that the 45 mono mix was used on the LP, along with its flip side of the shortened "Zorba The Greek."

Harry
...thinking about one honkin' good record, online...

 

[Brasil_Nut]

I guess this was common practice back then? I mean, different mixes to suit stereo vs. mono? My 45 copy of "Constant Rain" sounds so much different than the stereo version. For one, it fades sooner and the Sitar seems to overwhelm the intro. The stereo version seems to blend so much better than the mono.

Jon

...who wonders if he's hearing things, online...

 

[Rudy]

Yep, mono and stereo were usually different mixes made at different times. It was too unpredictable to just "sum" the channels together (called a 'fold-down'), since the phase differences between instruments could cause some strange cancellations. Usually for A&M it was just a matter of mono/stereo, but in a few cases the 45RPM mix would have something different. My guess that different 45RPM versions existed to sound better for public play (on the radio, on a jukebox, etc.). This could be something that had a lot of processing like the "Tijuana Taxi"/"Zorba" single, or an added part like on "The Great Manolette" where the bass guitar part was doubled with a mandolin.

If you think about it, sitars were really "in" back then, so it's no surprise someone would kick them up in the single mix. (A few Beatles songs, Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black", etc.)

 

[daveK]

Has anyone heard the TJB tracks on the "Matchstick Men" soundtrack? I was wondering if "Tijuana Taxi" has the same drop outs that it had on "Definitive Hits".

 

[Harry]

Has anyone heard the TJB tracks on the "Matchstick Men" soundtrack? I was wondering if "Tijuana Taxi" has the same drop outs that it had on "Definitive Hits".

No, the dropouts are gone. The recordings on the Varese Sarabande Matchstick Men soundtrack for "The Lonely Bull" and "Tijuana Taxi" are different from the ones on Definitive Hits. To me, they sound like they were lifted from the old Greatest Hits disc, with "The Lonely Bull" being the wider stereo version where Herb's overdubbed trumpet is totally isolated in the left channel and the old mono mix plays out isolated in the right channel. "Tijuana Taxi" is the standard stereo album version, sounding great without the dropouts.

Currently $13.99 at amazon.com

Harry
NP: "Matchstick Men" soundtrack