The Herb Alpert/Tijuana Brass Discography


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Herb Alpert Solo Discography • Page 3

Herb Alpert: Keep Your Eye On Me Keep Your Eye On Me
A&M Records CD-5125

Produced by Herb Alpert (tracks 2, 4, 7, 9)
Produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (tracks 1, 3, 6, 8)
Produced by Herb Alpert and Roy Bittan (track 5)
Produced by Herb Alpert and Shelly Yakus (track 10)
Released 1987

Track listing:

  1. Keep Your Eye On Me (Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis)
  2. Hot Shot (A. Hammond)
  3. Diamonds (Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis)
  4. Traffic Jam (Les Pierce)
  5. Cat Man Do (Roy Bittan, Herb Alpert)
  6. Pillow (Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis)
  7. Our Song (Herb Alpert, Sal Macaluso)
  8. Making Love In The Rain (Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis)
  9. Rocket To The Moon (John Barnes, Herb Alpert)
  10. Stranger On The Shore (Acker Bilk, R. Mellin)

Musicians include: Herb Alpert (trumpets, flugelhorn), Jimmy Jam (drum & keyboard programming, percussion), Terry Lewis (vocals, bass, percussion), Lisa Keith (vocals), Janet Jackson (vocals), Lani Hall (vocals), John Barnes (keyboards), Michael Landau (guitar), Jeff Porcaro (drums), Neil Steubenhaus (bass), Paulinho Da Costa (percussion), Steve Schaeffer (drums, percussion).

Back in the early 1980's, a talented self-taught musician from Minneapolis went into a studio and singlehandedly recorded a demo for Warner Brothers; a virtual unknown, Warner's signed him at his manager's insistence. Since he was able to play keyboards in addition to drums, guitar and bass, he was able to create all of the sounds on his albums, and for those instruments he couldn't play (like brass or woodwind instruments), he would emulate them on his synthesizer. Being heavily influenced by funk bands in the 70's, and particularly enamored of James Brown, he would use his synthesizer as a replacement for Brown's tight "make it funky" horn section. This use of the synthesizer came to be called the Minneapolis Sound, and this person is none other than Prince. Many of his peers joined his own band, called The Revolution, while another spin-off band was created with his friend Morris Day--the band known as The Time. The Time became an embodiment of the Minneapolis Sound, featuring a tight ensemble that had as much in musical chops as it had in sheer attitude. Two of the band's musicians, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, would depart the group just before Prince's Purple Rain phenomenon, and go on to become one of the top producing teams in popular music.

Enter Janet Jackson. In the days of the Michael Jackson Off The Wall craze, Janet was billed more as "Michael's Little Sister", and recorded two rather unremarkable albums for A&M in the early 1980's. A few years later, Janet joined with producers Jam and Lewis to create her breakthrough album "Control", representing the control she'd taken over her career. The album was wildly successful, very popular, and thanks to the immense talent of Jam and Lewis in the production and compositional roles, the music was also top notch. And still, after years had passed, the Minneapolis Sound still was the cornerstone of the production team's success.

No doubt this did not go unnoticed by Herb Alpert, who had a keen ear for hits. After all, Janet Jackson was signed to his label, and there were some interesting sounds coming from Janet's Control. It was a natural for Herb to use Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis on one of his albums, and Keep Your Eye On Me is the result. In a way, you can say that the Minneapolis Sound had come full circle: Herb's trumpet now replaces the brass licks that, by nature, the Minneapolis Sound had reproduced through the use of synthesizers.

Not only were the four Jam/Lewis tracks on this album some of the most intense Herb had ever recorded, they also assured success on the pop music charts. Labelmate Janet Jackson teamed with Lisa Keith to sing lead vocals on the song "Diamonds", which hit #5 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart; "Making Love In The Rain" would also garner enough airplay to hit the Top 40. "Pillow" slyly used co-lead vocals by Herb and his wife Lani Hall in a sexy love song. "Keep Your Eye On Me" is nothing more than pure, simple instrumental attitude, featuring random samples of dogs barking, glass breaking, a few Wechter-influenced tinkles, and vocal bits and pieces. There's no doubt that Jam and Lewis did their homework on Alpert's recordings before showing up for this project!

The other tracks on this album are not to be overlooked. The spark and vitality of the Jam and Lewis tracks appears to rub off on the others. "Our Song" is one of Herb's better slow tunes, and Acker Bilk's hit "Stranger On The Shore" gets a reverent reading. "Hot Shot" and "Cat Man Do" are remarkable uptempo numbers, the latter featuring the bombastic drumming of the late Jeff Porcaro. All told, this is arguably one of Alpert's better albums...which depends on a person's liking of the Minneapolis Sound, no doubt.


Herb Alpert: Under A Spanish Moon Under A Spanish Moon
A&M Records CD-5209

Produced by Herb Alpert; associate producer Eduardo Del Barrio
Released 1988

Track listing:

  1. Fragile (Sting)
  2. Under A Spanish Moon (A Suite in Three Movements) (Jorge Del Barrio)
    - Rumba Flamenca
    - Lamento
    - Pachanga
  3. Ancient Source (Eduardo Del Barrio, Ernesto Herrera)
  4. I Need You (Herb Alpert, Eduardo Del Barrio)
  5. My Song (Keith Jarrett)
  6. Zamba (Para La Nina Yolanda) (Eduardo Del Barrio)
  7. Hidden Angel (Herb Alpert, Eduardo Del Barrio)

Musicians: Herb Alpert (trumpets, flugelhorn), Lani Hall Alpert (vocal on "Ancient Source"), Eduardo Del Barrio (keyboards), Alex Acuna (drums, percussion), Jorge Del Barrio (piano and Rhodes on "The Suite"), Abraham Laboriel (bass and guitar), Dann Huff (guitars), Michael Landau (guitar), Sal Macaluso (piano on "My Song"), Ralph Humphrey (drums), Steve Schaeffer (drums), Ramon Stagnaro (acoustic guitar on "Zamba"), Steve Tavalione (EWI, soprano sax). Orchestra: Strings of The Pacific Symphony Orchestra, Endre Granate, concertmaster.

Under A Spanish Moon is a radical departure from the earlier funk-influenced albums Alpert recorded. However, this album is also an extension of Herb's exploration of Latin and Spanish music. This album is largely orchestral-based, and features a three-movement suite as its centerpiece. So yes, this is an Alpert album with strings...the orchestral kind. Some of the later album tracks even border precariously on becoming M.O.R., but luckily never cross that border into mushiness.

Herb Alpert tells of the story of the first track on this album. At the time, Sting was a major star on A&M Records, and his current album Nothing Like The Sun was selling well. Herb had approached Sting to write a song for him, but Sting approached Herb with a song he already had on Nothing Like The Sun that he felt would be perfect for Herb...and it was. The result is the haunting song "Fragile", recorded here with a delicate Del Barrio arrangement.

The accompanying tour for this album featured Herb Alpert and his touring band on one side of the stage, and a full orchestra on the other. Unfortunately, this concert series was not recorded. It would have made an excellent album! A new, dynamic, orchestral version of "A Taste of Honey" opened the concert. After "The Suite", the band and Herb engaged in a little playfulness with "Tijuana Taxi": the orchestra would play a few baroque-styled bars of "Taxi", followed by a boisterous funk/rock rendition by Herb's group...with Alpert looking on the entire time in amusement. Lani Hall came out and sang a hot Latin number in Spanish, followed it with a perfectly sumptuous version of "Like A Lover" backed by the orchestra, and joined Herb for "This Guy's In Love With You". It was a unique concert that unfortunately has not made it onto an album.


Herb Alpert: My Abstract Heart My Abstract Heart
A&M Records CD-5273

Produced by Herb Alpert; associate producer Eddie Del Barrio; co-producers Shorty Rogers and Niko Bolas
Released 1989

Track listing:

  1. 3 O'Clock Jump (Herb Alpert, Eddie Del Barrio, Shorty Rogers)
  2. Romance Dance (Herb Alpert, Eddie Del Barrio)
  3. My Abstract Heart (Herb Alpert, Eddie Del Barrio)
  4. Wish You Were Here (Shorty Rogers)
  5. Fun House (Herb Alpert, Mike Lang, Eddie Del Barrio, Shorty Rogers)
  6. Legs (Herb Alpert, Eddie Del Barrio, Shorty Rogers)
  7. When The Lights Go Down Low (George Merrill, Dave Ellis)
  8. Just A Dream Away (Herb Alpert, Eddie Del Barrio)
  9. Kalimba (Herb Alpert, Mike Lang)
  10. Soho (Herb Alpert, Eddie Del Barrio, Shorty Rogers)

Musicians: Herb Alpert (trumpets), Shorty Rogers (flugelhorn), Eddie Del Barrio (keyboards, bass synthesizer), Abraham Laboriel (bass and guitars on "My Abstract Heart"), Harvey Mason (drums), Paulinho Da Costa (percussion), Alex Acuna (percussion), Jimmy Haslip (bass on "When The Lights Go Down Low"), Waddy Wachtel (guitar), Michael Landau (guitar), Mike Lang (keyboards), Eric Gale (guitar), Mike Miller (guitar), Tom Canning (piano), Lani Hall (co-lead vocals), Gerald Albright (bass). Brass Section: George Bohanon, Richard Nash, Donald Waldrop (trombones), Noland Smith, Oscar Brashear, Bob Findley, Chuck Findley and Gary Grant (trumpets), John Bolivar (sax), and David Duke (french horn).

My Abstract Heart, the album, is strongly influenced by the late, great big band leader and arranger Shorty Rogers. Shorty was one of the pioneers of the easygoing "west coast" or "cool" jazz movement in the late 1950's, and was RCA's top selling jazz artist in that era. It's natural that Alpert would use him on many of his albums. Shorty's arrangements have appeared on Tijuana Brass albums like The Brass Are Comin' and Christmas Album. This album marked a full-fledged collaboration, with Shorty's flugelhorn and arranging skills gracing the "big band" tunes on this album. And astute jazz fans will note that Herb and Shorty also shared one thing in common: pianist Pete Jolly. Not only was Jolly a fixture in the classic late 50's Giants, his electric piano introduction graced the beginning of Herb's "This Guy's In Love With You", and also had his own A&M recording contract in the late 60's. (Unfortunately he does not appear on this album.) And finally, we should not overlook Eddie (Eduardo) Del Barrio, a noted keyboard player, who has also collaborated with many other artists, including Earth Wind & Fire, during their I Am album's production.

The album opener, "3 O'Clock Jump", was inspired by Alpert's admiration of Shorty Rogers' Giants; it features a hip-hop rhythms full of percussion with a brassy back-up from the horn section. "My Abstract Heart", the propulsive title track, features some amazing rhythm guitar strumming by Abe Laboriel. A quiet mood is evoked by Shorty's "Wish You Were Here", and Herb and Lani Hall are featured on the seductive "When The Lights Go Down Low". Another great project by Herb Alpert!


Herb Alpert: North on South St. North on South St.
A&M Records 75021-5345-2

Produced by Herb Alpert; associate producer Eduardo Del Barrio
Released 1991

Track listing:

  1. Jump Street (Greg Smith, Herb Alpert)
  2. It's The Last Dance (Herb Alpert, Greg Smith)
  3. Passion Lady (Troy Staton, Herb Alpert, Jay Goodman, Mike Schlesinger)
  4. North on South St. (Herb Alpert, Greg Smith)
  5. Paradise 25 (Robert Jerald, Herb Alpert)
  6. Na Na Na (Greg Smith, Herb Alpert)
  7. Funky Reggae (Jimmy B, Herb Alpert)
  8. Where's Tommy? (Herb Alpert, Jimmy B, Eddie Del Barrio)
  9. City Terrace (Herb Alpert, Greg Smith)
  10. I Can't Stop Thinking About You (Herb Alpert)

Musicians include: Herb Alpert (trumpet, vocals), Greg Smith (keyboards, programming, sampling), Joe Rotondi (acoustic piano), Kevin Ricard (percussion), Kenny McCloud (guitar), Tony Sapp (bass), Eddie Del Barrio (bass, keyboards), and others.

North on South St. is another one of those "like it or hate it" albums that many Alpert fans are apathetic about. To many, it is a rhythmic, hip-hop-heavy, disjointed, dischordant mess. Others find something to like about it. It is definitely one of the most original Alpert albums ever made, exploring hip-hop and street rhythms, using sampled instruments and voices along with Herb's trumpet to paint a very colorful canvas of sound. It is different, we'll give it that. A few highlights include the driving "Passion Lady", the party-like "Funky Reggae", and Herb's album closer ballad "I Can't Stop Thinking About You". At least Herb is able to stay above the current and lay down his trumpet parts within the busy arrangements. But as noted above, fans either like or hate this album with a passion...and it's recommended only if you have an interest in raw street rhythms and hip-hop.


Herb Alpert: Midnight Sun Midnight Sun
A&M Records 75021-15391-2

Produced by Herb Alpert
Arranged and conducted by Eddie Del Barrio Released 1992

Track listing:

  1. Midnight Sun (Lionel Hampton, Sonny Burke, Johnny Mercer)
  2. All The Things You Are(Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern)
  3. Someone To Watch Over Me (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
  4. In The Wee Small Hours (Bob Hillard, David Mann)
  5. Friends (Eddie Del Barrio, Herb Alpert)
  6. A Taste of Honey (Bobby Scott, Rick Marlow)
  7. Mona Lisa (Jay Livingston, Ray Evans)
  8. I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face (Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe)
  9. Silent Tears and Roses (Eddie Del Barrio)
  10. Smile (Charles Chaplin, John Terner, Geoffrey Parsons)

Musicians: Herb Alpert (trumpet, vocals), Frank Collett (piano), Monty Budwig (bass), Harvey Mason (drums), Larry Carlton (guitar), John Pisano (guitar), Barry Zweig (guitar). Musicians on "Friends": Stan Getz (tenor sax), Herb Alpert (trumpet), Eddie Del Barrio (piano), Monty Budwig (bass), John Pisano (guitar), Jeff Hamilton (drums).

This Herb Alpert album, his swan song for A&M Records, is a quiet, late night jazz album that features standards from jazz and popular music. It's interesting to note that two tracks here have appeared on Tijuana Brass albums: "A Taste of Honey" is from Whipped Cream, and "I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face" appeared on South Of The Border. These arrangements are nothing like the originals; here, they're quiet and reflective. The track "Friends" was recorded with tenor sax legend Stan Getz, whom Alpert produced an excellent album for (Apasionado, on A&M Records...highly recommended). Tijuana Brass alumnus John Pisano appears here on guitar. And the song "Smile" is notable for two reasons: first, it was co-composed by Charles Chaplin, better known for his slapstick, but lesser known as a music composer. And astute A&M fans can already tell what the second reason is: A&M's studio was actually Charlie Chaplin's old studio in Hollywood!

After recording this album, Alpert would lay low for a few years, doing work for the Alpert Foundation and taking trumpet lessons. And in 1996, the next chapter in Herb's history would begin.


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Discographies:   TJB Pg: 1 2 3 4 5  •  Solo Herb Alpert Pg: 1 2 3 4 5


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