TjB Albums, and their singles

[Harry]

I was curious as to the strategy and numbers of singles from the various TjB albums. For the purposes of this post, I'm only considering actual 45s released in the USA and at the time that the TjB was active, so no Memories or Forget-Me-Nots releases. And I'm only considering the "classic 12" albums from THE LONELY BULL through THE BRASS ARE COMIN'. By my count, there are 57 single sides, A and B, of tracks lifted from albums. I'm not counting anything from the Christmas album, or the Spanish versions or non-album tracks.

From THE LONELY BULL, there was only 1 A side and 4 B sides.
- A: The Lonely Bull
- B: Acapulco 1922, Struttin' With Maria, Let It Be Me, A Quiet Tear

From VOLUME 2, there were 3 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: Spanish Harlem, Marching Through Madrid, Mexican Corn
- B: The Great Manolete, A-me-ri-ca

From SOUTH OF THE BORDER, there were 2 A sides and 4 B sides
- A: South Of The Border, Mexican Shuffle
- B: Up Cherry Street, El Presidente, All My Loving, Numero Cinco

From WHIPPED CREAM AND OTHER DELIGHTS there was 1 A side and 2 B sides
- A: Whipped Cream
- B: A Taste Of Honey*, El Garbanzo
* A Taste Of Honey was popularly flipped to an A-side hit.

From GOING PLACES there were 3 A sides and 2 B sides*
- A: Zorba The Greek, Mae, Third Man Theme
- B: Tijuana Taxi, Spanish Flea
* Zorba and Taxi were in reality a double-A side release, Third Man Theme was relegated to a B-side by A Taste Of Honey, and Spanish Flea became a hit in its own right.

From WHAT NOW MY LOVE there was 1 A side and 2 B sides
- A: What Now My Love
- B: So What's New, Plucky

From S.R.O. there 3 A sides and 3 B sides
- A: The Work Song, Mame, Flamingo
- B: Our Day Will Come, Mexican Road Race, Wall Street Rag

From SOUNDS LIKE there were 2 A sides and 3 B sides
- A: Wade In The Water, Casino Royale
- B: Town Without Pity, Treasure Of San Miguel, Miss Frenchy Brown

From HERB ALPERT'S NINTH there were 3 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: A Banda, The Happening, Carmen
- B: Bud, Love So Fine

From THE BEAT OF THE BRASS there were 2 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: Slick, This Guy's In Love With You
- B: Cabaret, She Touched Me

From WARM there were 4 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: Without Her, Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da, Zazueira, To Wait For Love
- B: Marjorine, Sandbox

From THE BRASS ARE COMIN' there were 2 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: You Are My Life, The Maltese Melody
- B: Good Morning Mr. Sunshine, Country Lake

Notes: there were two releases scheduled for release that were given catalog numbers but were never actually were pressed. These included Monday Monday from THE BEAT OF THE BRASS and Girl Talk from WARM. Several tracks were released as single sides more than once, like Without Her, Zazueira and She Touched Me.

 

[rockdoctor]

I have all the TJB albums through Greatest Hits on lp.
Occasionally I hear some of the singles being played on a local station and it is always great to hear them.
In my younger days, I remember hearing Zazueira before any of the other singles from Warm.

 

[Harry]

I have all the TJB albums through Greatest Hits on lp.
Occasionally I hear some of the singles being played on a local station and it is always great to hear them.
In my younger days, I remember hearing Zazueira before any of the other singles from Warm.

The orders of the singles posted are only roughly in order by position on their respective albums.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

I was curious as to the strategy and numbers of singles from the various TjB albums. For the purposes of this post, I'm only considering actual 45s released in the USA and at the time that the TjB was active, so no Memories or Forget-Me-Nots releases. And I'm only considering the "classic 12" albums from THE LONELY BULL through THE BRASS ARE COMIN'. By my count, there are 57 single sides, A and B, of tracks lifted from albums. I'm not counting anything from the Christmas album, or the Spanish versions or non-album tracks.

From THE LONELY BULL, there was only 1 A side and 4 B sides.
- A: The Lonely Bull
- B: Acapulco 1922, Struttin' With Maria, Let It Be Me, A Quiet Tear

From VOLUME 2, there were 3 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: Spanish Harlem, Marching Through Madrid, Mexican Corn
- B: The Great Manolete, A-me-ri-ca

From SOUTH OF THE BORDER, there were 2 A sides and 4 B sides
- A: South Of The Border, Mexican Shuffle
- B: Up Cherry Street, El Presidente, All My Loving, Numero Cinco

From WHIPPED CREAM AND OTHER DELIGHTS there was 1 A side and 2 B sides
- A: Whipped Cream
- B: A Taste Of Honey*, El Garbanzo
* A Taste Of Honey was popularly flipped to an A-side hit.

From GOING PLACES there were 3 A sides and 2 B sides*
- A: Zorba The Greek, Mae, Third Man Theme
- B: Tijuana Taxi, Spanish Flea
* Zorba and Taxi were in reality a double-A side release, Third Man Theme was relegated to a B-side by A Taste Of Honey, and Spanish Flea became a hit in its own right.

From WHAT NOW MY LOVE there was 1 A side and 2 B sides
- A: What Now My Love
- B: So What's New, Plucky

From S.R.O. there 3 A sides and 3 B sides
- A: The Work Song, Mame, Flamingo
- B: Our Day Will Come, Mexican Road Race, Wall Street Rag

From SOUNDS LIKE there were 2 A sides and 3 B sides
- A: Wade In The Water, Casino Royale
- B: Town Without Pity, Treasure Of San Miguel, Miss Frenchy Brown

From HERB ALPERT'S NINTH there were 3 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: A Banda, The Happening, Carmen
- B: Bud, Love So Fine

From THE BEAT OF THE BRASS there were 2 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: Slick, This Guy's In Love With You
- B: Cabaret, She Touched Me

From WARM there were 4 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: Without Her, Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da, Zazueira, To Wait For Love
- B: Marjorine, Sandbox

From THE BRASS ARE COMIN' there were 2 A sides and 2 B sides
- A: You Are My Life, The Maltese Melody
- B: Good Morning Mr. Sunshine, Country Lake

Notes: there were two releases scheduled for release that were given catalog numbers but were never actually were pressed. These included Monday Monday from THE BEAT OF THE BRASS and Girl Talk from WARM. Several tracks were released as single sides more than once, like Without Her, Zazueira and She Touched Me.

The tricky part with albums from the 60s, not just from A&M, is that singles often came many months prior to an album and it was never clear whether the intent was for the single to be part of the album or not. A lot of artists only included the single in the next album if it was a hit. If it stiffed, it was gone.

 

[Mike Blakesley]

I'm surprised you didn't count Summertime in the tally, although I guess it was as much a compilation as an album. "Jerusalem" was a chart record, though, wasn't it?

 

[Harry]

I've always considered SUMMERTIME as after the classic Tijuana Brass period and more belongs to the 70s T.J.B.

 

[Bobberman]

I've always considered SUMMERTIME as after the classic Tijuana Brass period and more belongs to the 70s T.J.B.

Me too and that makes perfect sense as it was 1971 when Summertime was released

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Well.... sorta. The musicians on Summertime were probably (at least mostly) the original band members, not the group that was convened in '73, so to me it belongs more with the original bunch; plus the cover still says Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, as opposed to "the T.J.B." But it doesn't really make much difference at the end of the day, considering Summertime's sales.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

I may be completely off base, but I always considered WARM and SUMMERTIME to be post-TJB albums that just said "and the Tijuana Brass". That belief was reinforced for me by the fact that neither album had photos of anyone other than Herb.

 

[Harry]

It's a real grey area as to just when to conclude the classic TjB era. I used THE BRASS ARE COMIN' as the last album as that one featured all of the Brass in the TV special, and then afterwards, I'd read that the group was disbanding. SUMMERTIME just sort of popped up out of nowhere, and much of it didn't really sound like the classic Brass. "Hurt So Bad" and "Darlin'" did, maybe "Montezuma's Revenge", but most of the rest of the album didn't.

WARM had a lot more classic Brass sound in it to my ears. "Marjorine", "Girl Talk", "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da", "The Continental", "Warm", "Sandbox", which is more than half the album.

 

[rockdoctor]

It's a real grey area as to just when to conclude the classic TjB era. I used THE BRASS ARE COMIN' as the last album as that one featured all of the Brass in the TV special, and then afterwards, I'd read that the group was disbanding. SUMMERTIME just sort of popped up out of nowhere, and much of it didn't really sound like the classic Brass. "Hurt So Bad" and "Darlin'" did, maybe "Montezuma's Revenge", but most of the rest of the album didn't.

WARM had a lot more classic Brass sound in it to my ears. "Marjorine", "Girl Talk", "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da", "The Continental", "Warm", "Sandbox", which is more than half the album.

WARM was my favorite back in the day and still is from the classic era. I also feel that The Brass are Comin to be the end of the classic era. Summertime sounded more of a solo type from the first time I heard the Summertime single.

 

[abstract_fan]

We must agree to disagree on Summertime.

 

[Michael Hagerty]

It's a real grey area as to just when to conclude the classic TjB era. I used THE BRASS ARE COMIN' as the last album as that one featured all of the Brass in the TV special, and then afterwards, I'd read that the group was disbanding. SUMMERTIME just sort of popped up out of nowhere, and much of it didn't really sound like the classic Brass. "Hurt So Bad" and "Darlin'" did, maybe "Montezuma's Revenge", but most of the rest of the album didn't.

WARM had a lot more classic Brass sound in it to my ears. "Marjorine", "Girl Talk", "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da", "The Continental", "Warm", "Sandbox", which is more than half the album.

Given how long it takes to write, shoot, produce, and post-produce a TV special, I have to wonder if some or any of THE BRASS ARE COMIN' (both album and TV special) was in the can or at least on paper prior to WARM. I'm thinking the special was probably greenlit in the afterglow of BEAT OF THE BRASS.

SUMMERTIME has always sounded to me like a few new things ("Summertime", "If You Could Read My Mind") along with some tracks that might have been on the shelf for a while ("Darlin'" was an early '68 hit for the Beach Boys, and "Hurt So Bad" was summer of '69 for the Lettermen---and, of course, before that, for Little Anthony and the Imperials---and "Martha My Dear" was a cut from the Beatles' late '68 White Album).

 

[Rudy]

Summertime has also been described as a "compilation" of sorts, combining tracks from different sessions recorded over time while Herb was recovering his "lip" (overcoming his issues with playing trumpet).

 

[Bobberman]

Summertime has also been described as a "compilation" of sorts, combining tracks from different sessions recorded over time while Herb was recovering his "lip" (overcoming his issues with playing trumpet).

Exactly that's how I see it i remember reading somewhere that it has been nicknamed somewhere to the effect that it could be called "The first Lost sessions album".

 

[abstract_fan]

Each song on Summertime would be at home on Warm. I don't hear them fitting on any solo album.

 

[abstract_fan]

I should have said non - Tijuana Brass album. And to me it's a classic.

 

[Nemily]

I was always under the impression that the TJB disbanded in 1969. The 1971 Summertime is a release of previously shelved arrangements. Am I getting that wrong? TJB ran its highly successful course through the sixties and the shift was happening by 1970 to a newer fusion rock leaning sound by Carlos Santana (love him). Also, Herb was assuredly moving on after The Brass are Comin'. I am also a big fan of Herb's later ventures, although for the purpose of TJB I thought 1969 was the end.

IMO Herb’s had his best timbre with TJB is on Whipped Cream and Other Delights. My favorite singles are from the vital and classic mariachi middle years ’65 and ’66:

"Tijuana Taxi"
"The Lonely Bull"
"Ladyfingers"
“Spanish Flea”
“A Taste of Honey”
“What Now My Love”
“Memories of Madrid”
“So What’s New”
“Tangerine”
“Freckles”
"The Shadow of Your Smile"

 

[Nemily]

Correction: "The Lonely Bull" is the inaugural record from 1962. I believe this song launched A&M.

 

[Bobberman]

I was always under the impression that the TJB disbanded in 1969. The 1971 Summertime is a release of previously shelved arrangements. Am I getting that wrong? TJB ran its highly successful course through the sixties and the shift was happening by 1970 to a newer fusion rock leaning sound by Carlos Santana (love him). Also, Herb was assuredly moving on after The Brass are Comin'. I am also a big fan of Herb's later ventures, although for the purpose of TJB I thought 1969 was the end.

IMO Herb’s had his best timbre with TJB is on Whipped Cream and Other Delights. My favorite singles are from the vital and classic mariachi middle years ’65 and ’66:

"Tijuana Taxi"
"The Lonely Bull"
"Ladyfingers"
“Spanish Flea”
“A Taste of Honey”
“What Now My Love”
“Memories of Madrid”
“So What’s New”
“Tangerine”
“Freckles”
"The Shadow of Your Smile"

You are Correct Nemily the Summertime was mostly shelved recordings and a few newer studio arrangements keep in mind Herb used various studio session musicians to get the sound he was after in addition to several TJB members who also were regulars on the Records but again The original TJB touring group Came to an end in 1969.

 

[AM Matt]

Was guitarist John Pisano the first to leave in late 1969 or early 1970??

 

[abstract_fan]

My first post should have led with that Harry started an excellent well documented thread. Like many of you on to this forum, I remember buying Summertime when it came out (in my case at EJ Korvettes department store in Brooklyn, New York). It was exciting to see another Tijuana Brass record. There were no solo albums, and Jerusalem played often on the radio prior to the release. However Herb assembled the songs, it was a Tijuana Brass labeled album. Maybe we can even make a case that South of the Border begins the hugely successful Tijuana Brass classic sound; sophisticated, smooth, playful etc.; different and certainly more successful than Volume 2. Personnel-wise, the first albums were not the popular line-up either. Maybe some of the songs on Summertime are "leftovers" (I know I could have lived without Montezuma's Revenge) but as we saw with Lost Treasures, Herb being an album-oriented artist, vs. other artists who put out "Bootleg" series albums of a bunch of leftovers (e.g., Miles Davis, Bob Dylan), Summertime flows nicely and ends with the wonderful Strike Up The Band (how ironic!).

 

[bob knack]

I played Strike Up the Band on a Chicago juke box long before Summertime was released. (Jeri's snack shop on Lincoln and Montrose) Are the recording dates and personnel available for these tunes?

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Like many of you on to this forum, I remember buying Summertime when it came out

Same here -- I think my first copy of it was on 8-track. Although the first two TJB albums I bought were on LP (because they were meant to be played on our home "hi-fi" phonograph, I bought a bunch of the other albums first on 8-track, because I had a portable player in my room but didn't have a turntable yet. I didn't start collecting the records until around 1973 or so. I remember my first time seeing the LP version of Summertime and being disappointed that it wasn't a gatefold cover, after the fancier packaging on Beat of the Brass, The Brass Are Comin', and even Greatest Hits.

 

[Harry]

I recall acquiring the "Jerusalem"/"Strike Up The Band" single a fairly long while before I got SUMMERTIME. One of the Discogs entries has a radio station date stamp of October, 1970.

I also see one that is labeled 1225 and one with 1225 Stereo (without the -S). My 45 was a stock label with the 1225-S designation. This may have been the first time I'd encountered a Herb Alpert Tijuana Brass single in stereo, and with two full stereo tracks, I wasn't really desperate to get a new album, and didn't think there'd be one.

One day, sometime in 1971, my dad said he heard Herb's "new" record called "Summertime" but that it sounded nothing like the Gershwin tune he'd remembered. And he was disappointed that it was another vocal. But it sent me on a task to find the new single or album.