Five Classic Tracks from Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass

Among boomers, the music of Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass was everywhere; it was part of a generation’s soundtrack. Through much of the TJB’s heyday, the band itself was for some time a polite fiction: in reality the Tijuana Brass on record was often Alpert plus members of the famed Wrecking Crew. It’s true as well that there wasn’t really much about the group that was authentically south-of-the-border. But Alpert’s carefree, peppy melodies and inspired arrangements made for some of the era’s best and most enduring instrumental pop.

Between 1962 and 1970, Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass landed all but one of their 14 albums released in that period onto the U.S. album charts; five of those albums reached the #1 spot, and all but one earned a Gold record. The group placed 14 of its singles on the U.S. Top 40 chart as well. Sporting one of music’s most recognizable and memorable album covers, the TJB’s fourth album, Whipped Cream & Other Delights celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. Observing that occasion, here are five essential tracks from Herb Alpert & (save one exception) the Tijuana Brass.

“The Lonely Bull” from The Lonely Bull (1962)
Trumpeter Alpert had released a string of non-album singles between 1959 and 1961, billing himself under various names (Herb B. Lou and the Legal Eagles, Herbie Alpert and His Quartet, Dore Alpert), but none of those records charted. That all changed when he cut a single for A&M, the record label just launched by Alpert and Jerry Moss. Recorded with the Wrecking Crew and sporting a Mariachi-flavored arrangement that folds in sounds meant to evoke a Mexican bullfight, “The Lonely Bull” took off, peaking at #6. The tune’s success led Alpert to rush back into the studio and record the debut album from the newly-christened Tijuana Brass.

“A Taste of Honey” from Whipped Cream & Other Delights (1965)
The TJB would typically include a few Alpert originals on each album, but the group’s stock-in-trade was recasting popular songs in the TJB’s inimitable style. The pop standard “A Taste of Honey” was written for a Broadway play, and would be covered by Barbra Streisand, exotica pioneer Martin Denny, British pop icon Mr. Acker Bilk, and another British group, The Beatles. But it was Herb’s upbeat and brassy version that soared to the #1 spot on the Easy Listening chart, and #7 on the pop chart.

“Work Song” from S.R.O. (1966)
Jazz cornetist Nat Adderley (band mate and brother of jazz legend Julian “Cannonball” Adderley) debuted his original “Work Song” on his 1960 album of the same name. Inspired by the chants heard from convict laborers, Adderley’s song quickly became a hit and a standard; over the years, countless artists in and beyond jazz have covered the tune. The Paul Butterfield Blues Band featured a fiery reading of the tune on their landmark East-West LP in 1966. That same year, Herb Alpert’s version – which opens with a rhythm closer to Bavarian “oompah” music – was a hit, too, climbing to #18 (pop) and #2 (Easy Listening).

“Casino Royale” from Sounds Like… (1967)
Looking back decades on, the music of Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass seems like a perfect fit for use in film soundtracks. Oddly enough, Alpert’s most well-known film music was almost an afterthought. Burt Bacharach had written and recorded “Casino Royale” as the theme song for an over-the-top James Bond comedy film (no, really…) but was dissatisfied with the vocal track. So he erased it and asked Alpert to overdub his trademark TJB sounds (marimba, trumpet etc.). The result was another Top 40 pop hit, and another Easy Listening #1.

“This Guy’s in Love With You” from The Beat of the Brass (1968)
Vocals didn’t figure into TJB recordings until this tune. Composed by the hit songwriting team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, “This Guy’s in Love With You” featured Herb Alpert on vocals. Herb tweaked the original lyrics to make the song more personal, dedicating it to his wife. The simple vocal melody suited Herb’s limited range, and the song was a massive hit: #1 on Billboard’s pop and Easy Listening charts, and Top 10 in Australia, Canada, Ireland, South Africa and the U.K.