Saturday, February 1, 2014

Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass "The Brass are Comin'" 1969


                I feel like almost every vinyl collector has a few Herb Alpert records in his or her collection.  And rightly so, Herb’s music is so easy to dig that it’s easy to see how it became such a phenomenon.  It’s light hearted, but complex.  It’s airy, but not light weight.  It sounds great in the background, but doesn’t disappoint when you get the headphones on.  It is also the kind of vinyl that is extremely easy to find.  You seriously can go to almost any thrift store in America and find a copy of something he released.  Not all of it though.
                “The Brass Are Comin’” was the last album Herb did with the Brass before he took a much needed break.  He had done a ton of work and had a ton of success, but the Brass was losing a bit of steam in terms of sales.  As a result, this record is harder to find than much of his earlier work.  It’s quite delightful though, and has a lot of songs and rhythmic feels that show Herb trying to expand his ever expanding sound. 
                The opening number “The Brass are Comin’” is one of my Top 5 Herb Alpert songs.  The combination of the snare drum mixed with the banjo and trumpet is titillating.  It sounds like nothing I have ever heard.  I have expressed in the past my love of fast songs that are played softly, and this only deepens my love for them.  The doubled trumpet has a few notes at the end of the phrases where the notes don’t match up perfectly.  Herb probably didn’t mean for them to fall out of sync at the end, but I am glad he did.  It makes the concept of a doubled horn part played by one man seem much more human.  For you music nerds out there, there is a bridge that has an interesting line based on the whole tone scale (one of my favorites).  After this, the song suddenly pauses and then when it returns, it doesn’t do so with a large cymbal crash.  The entrance back into the verse feels more like the letting go of a deeply held breath.     
                “Good Morning, Mr. Sunshine” has all the elements of a great Herb Alpert song, but also includes a delightfully woody sounding string section.  Dig how the melody is played at first by the trumpet, then by the strings, then by both.  Some superb trombone counterpoint can also be heard if you concentrate. 
                Another gem which shows up is “Country Lake.”  It has an intriguing solo that sounds like it is played on a B-Bender Telecaster.  I cannot confirm it, but I would bet my wristwatch that it is Clarence White playing the solo.  A B-Bender guitar was first used by Clarence in his work with the Byrds.  It is a very distinct sound that he was known for.   He uses it here to great effect over some well placed chord changes.  While looking for Clarence’s name in the huge list of names on the inside, I also saw that Carol Kaye (most famous for playing bass on “Pet Sounds”) is listed.  I met her once, and she was just about the kindest, most open person I have ever met.  I’ll give you the full story on her another time though. 
                When I heard him start to sing “Sunny,” I thought Herb was going for another “This Guy’s In Love with You.”  To be 100% honest with you, I never really liked "Sunny," and when I heard how slow he was taking the pace, I was a bit nonplussed.  However!  Herb came through for me.  The vocal only starts the song.  Then, the drums kick in and pick up the pace in a major way.  The song really cooks.  The melody is played (once again) by the classic doubled trumpet, but you can also hear a non lyrical vocal by Herb underneath it.  I have always liked the sound of Herb’s voice even though it isn’t a super strong one.  He never tries too hard, and as a result, never overextends himself or shows off.  It’s just good old Herb, walkin’ down the street singing a little tune and enjoying life.  I actually think this is one of the best songs on the album, and the melody, when treated this way, is infectious.  I even like the beginning vocal now.  If I was "nonplussed" when I first heard it, then now I am just good old fashioned "plussed".  Ya did it, Herb.  Ya won me over on “Sunny.”
               

Tones:  I wouldn’t say there are a ton of new tones that have never been heard on his other records.  You get the standard trumpet, marimba, brass, and guitars that are up to their usually high standards.  There is a cool sounding electric piano/harpsichord on “Country Lake,” but I am not sure what it is.  It’s sort of a muffled popping chime.  Anybody know what that is?  Also, the mixing on this album is great and offers some great stereo panning that only the late 60’s can provide.  

Cover note:  I would describe the overall color scheme as psychedelic sepia.  The way the border is colored, kind of reminds me of the marker like inks on the cover of Paul McCartney’s “Ram.”  I also love the western outfits mixed with the horns the guys are carrying. 

Price Paid: Are you ready?  Are you sure?  Here it is.  I paid 25 cents for this record at the crummy bookstore at the library.  It was in almost mint condition except for the fact that all of the paper on the spine was taken off.  How does that even happen?  The bookstore had some characters in it too.  You think record collectors are strange?  Hardcore book readers/seekers are even stranger.    

Bottom line:  I distinctly remember hearing my wife say, “That’s pretty,” as I played this album.  I also made a few little videos of my boy running around while this record was playing in the background.  It ended up being a pretty surreal video scored to this music.  My boy seemed happy as it and he played though.  I think the reason I like this album so much is that it has a familiar sound, but it hasn’t been overplayed.  I’m not sure if this is rare, but I certainly haven’t seen it often.  It’s definitely worth $5.00 or even a little more.  If you don’t have any Herb, this is probably not the best place to start.  However, if you like Herb, just go for it. 


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