There are truly few in the music business like Herb Alpert. A trumpet player, songwriter, label co-founder, sculptor and philanthropist - Alpert is all these things and more, and they're all due to be on display in a forthcoming documentary, appropriately titled Herb Alpert Is..., slated to premiere October 1.
Just one day later, a new overview of his storied musical career is due. The box set Herb Alpert Is..., to be released through his own Herb Alpert Presents label, will compile 63 tracks from his storied studio output - those legendary early years with The Tijuana Brass all the way to various strengths in the '70s and '80s through today. Available on either three CDs or five LPs, the set comes with a deluxe 180-page booklet featuring photos, credits and an extensive essay by critic Bud Scoppa - all packaged in a custom-designed slipcase with a "screen-printed, smoked acrylic window."
Born and raised in Los Angeles to a family of musicians, Alpert was a member of the fabled University of Southern California's Trojan Marching Band, and shortly thereafter got a job on the Paramount lot. (Look closely and you might find him as a drummer on Mt. Sinai in Cecil B. DeMille's 1957 adaptation of The Ten Commandments.) From there, he became a staff songwriter for Keen Records, co-penning hits for Jan & Dean ("Baby Talk") and Sam Cooke ("Wonderful World"). In 1961, after a brief stint attempting to break out as a vocalist, Alpert and record promoter Jerry Moss decided to go into business together with their own label. Working out of a combination office/recording studio above Alpert's garage, the label was intended to bear the name Carnival Records but renamed after the duo's initials. A&M Records had an out-of-the-gate smash with Alpert's own mariachi-influenced "The Lonely Bull," a No. 6 hit in 1962. He quickly assembled a crack team of session players as The Tijuana Brass, and became a certified hitmaker with a series of instrumental jazz records, most notably 1965's landmark Whipped Cream & Other Delights.
Alpert had an incredible knack for pushing the talents of others beyond his own; not long after Whipped Cream's hit "A Taste of Honey" took home a Grammy Award for Record of the Year, Alpert signed Sérgio Mendes & Brasil '66 to A&M. In 1968, he scored a solo No. 1 hit with Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "This Guy's In Love With You" (which he had introduced on the CBS television special The Beat of the Brass). It was the songwriters' first joint No. 1 on the Hot 100 and Alpert's first vocal to chart. Two years later, in 1970, Alpert sent another song by the duo, (They Long To Be) Close To You," to a recent A&M signee: the Carpenters. Their rendition was the second best-selling single of the year. Since then, A&M has been home to blockbuster artists including Joe Cocker, The Captain & Tennille, The Police, Peter Frampton, Styx, Squeeze, Sheryl Crow, Soundgarden, and many more.
Through it all, Alpert kept recording, scoring another chart-topper with the disco instrumental "Rise" in 1979. His last major Top 5 hit was 1987's "Diamonds," a duet with Janet Jackson, A&M's newest star at the time (with writing and production from longtime collaborators Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.) After years of independence, Alpert and Moss sold A&M to Polygram in 1987 for a reported $500 million; since then, the duo created another label, Almo Sounds, which became Alpert's recording home for several years. He continues to record and tour, often alongside Brasil '66 singer Lani Hall - his wife since 1973 - and also devotes time to sculpture and donating a significant portion of his fortune to music education programs, including UCLA and CalArts. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside Moss in 2006, Alpert continues to add trophies to his collection, including two big ones in 2013: a National Medal of the Arts and his eighth career Grammy Award for the album Steppin' Out.
Herb Alpert Is... will be available October 2. Full pre-order links and track info are below.
Herb Alpert Is... (Herb Alpert Presents, 2020)
3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
5LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
Disc 1 (all tracks with The Tijuana Brass)
- The Lonely Bull
- Winds Of Barcelona
- Mexican Corn
- South Of The Border
- Mexican Shuffle
- All My Loving
- A Taste Of Honey
- Green Peppers
- Bittersweet Samba
- Whipped Cream
- Tijuana Taxi
- I'm Getting Sentimental Over You
- Spanish Flea
- 3rd Man Theme
- Zorba The Greek
- What Now My Love
- Memories Of Madrid
- So What's New?
- Magic Trumpet
- Brasilia
- If I Were a Rich Man
- Work Song
- Mame
- Flamingo
- Bo-Bo
- Town Without Pity
- Treasure Of San Miguel
- Casino Royale
- A Banda
Disc 2 (Tracks 1-6 with The Tijuana Brass)
- Panama
- Slick
- This Guy's In Love With You
- The Sea Is My Soil
- Hurt So Bad
- Jerusalem
- You Smile - The Song Begins
- Up Cherry Street
- Skokiaan (with Hugh Masekela)
- Rise
- Rotation
- Beyond
- The Factory
- Fandango
- Route 101
- Keep Your Eye On Me
- Diamonds (with Janet Jackson & Lisa Keith)
Disc 3
- My Abstract Heart
- Just a Dream Away
- I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face
- Second Wind
- Sneakin' In
- Magic Man
- Puttin' On The Ritz
- La Vie En Rose
- Night Ride
- Human Nature
- I'm Yours
- Strike Up The Band
- The Lonely Bull
- Whipped Cream
- A Taste Of Honey
- Wade In The Water
- What a Wonderful World
Disc 1, Track 1 from The Lonely Bull (A&M, 1962)
Disc 1, Tracks 2-3 from Volume 2 (A&M, 1963)
Disc 1, Tracks 4-6 from South Of The Border (A&M, 1964)
Disc 1, Tracks 7-10 from Whipped Cream & Other Delights (A&M, 1965)
Disc 1, Tracks 11-15 from !!Going Places!! (A&M, 1965)
Disc 1, Tracks 16-21 from What Now My Love (A&M, 1966)
Disc 1, Tracks 22-24 from S.R.O. (A&M, 1967)
Disc 1, Tracks 25-28 from Sounds Like... (A&M, 1967)
Disc 1, Track 29 from Herb Alpert's Ninth (A&M, 1967)
Disc 2, Tracks 1-3 from The Beat Of The Brass (A&M, 1968)
Disc 2, Track 4 from Warm (A&M, 1969)
Disc 2, Tracks 5-6 from Summertime (A&M, 1971)
Disc 2, Tracks 7-8 from You Smile - The Song Begins (A&M, 1974)
Disc 2, Track 9 from Herb Alpert/Hugh Masakela (A&M, 1977)
Disc 2, Tracks 10-11 from Rise (A&M, 1979)
Disc 2, Tracks 12-13 from Beyond (A&M, 1980)
Disc 2, Tracks 14-15 from Fandango (A&M, 1982)
Disc 2, Tracks 16-17 from Keep Your Eye On Me (A&M, 1987)
Disc 3, Tracks 1-2 from My Abstract Heart (A&M, 1989)
Disc 3, Track 3 from Midnight Sun (A&M, 1992)
Disc 3, Tracks 4-5 from Second Wind (Almo Sounds, 1996)
Disc 3, Track 6 from Colors (Almo Sounds, 1999)
Disc 3, Track 7-8 from Steppin' Out (Shout! Factory, 2013)
Disc 3, Track 9 from Come Fly With Me (Herb Alpert Presents, 2015)
Disc 3, Track 10 from Human Nature (Herb Alpert Presents, 2016)
Disc 3, Tracks 11-12 from Music Volume 1 (Herb Alpert Presents, 2017)
Disc 3, Tracks 13-16 from Music Volume 3: Herb Alpert Reimagines The Tijuana Brass (Herb Alpert Presents, 2018)
Disc 3, Track 17 from Over The Rainbow (Herb Alpert Presents, 2019)
Robert Lett says
The box set season is upon us, so many good ones coming out.
Joe Marchese says
Absolutely! I couldn't be more thrilled about this long-overdue collection. And I'll keep holding out hope that Herb will one day give the deluxe treatment to Lani Hall's A&M catalog, as well.
BillyD says
Looks good with whipped cream on top.
I have lots of his stuff on lp. Especially Tijuana Brass as it's easily found in thrift stores.
His music during the early 80s was good, but seemed out of place. He had a blip of popularity with Keep Your Eye On Me & Diamonds. After that I think he was recording music just for himself.
I looked forward to his latest xmas cd, but that was a disappointment with his wife singing on several tracks.
Kevin says
Look for the British TV documentary on Herb Alpert. It is excellent and may change the opinion of doubters
Galley says
Looks great but… $100? Seriously?
wesmont says
You took the words out of my mouth. $100 for three CDs of previously released material, essentially. Needs to be $49, not $99
Ben in Colorado says
It would be great to pick up the three disc set. But not for 100 bucks. That’s absolutely nuts. This would be a no brainer if it was under $50, but as it is, no way. It’s a shame too because he such a great talent and the price will keep so many people from discovering him.
Joe Marchese says
I could be wrong, but I suspect the price on Amazon will go down before the release.
Douglas Richardson says
Odd. In terms of music, nothing new on here. No unreleased tracks. Big Herb fans likely have everything.
But it’s overdue. Nice looking set.
And I agree. Amazon’s pre sale prices stink anymore. It’ll go down.
Joe Marchese says
Indeed. The quality of the material on "Lost Treasures" was so strong that I hoped this set would make room for a few more rarities. It wasn't to be, but maybe down the road...
Jason Michael says
The 5 vinyl LP set is a bargain at $322.
RecordSteve says
Ditto to what our Pal Joey said....
Robbert says
The set comes with a deluxe 180-page booklet featuring photos, credits and an extensive essay by critic Bud Scoppa – all packaged in a custom-designed slipcase with a “screen-printed, smoked acrylic window.”
So you pay for the book!
Zubb says
It would have been great for his label to have released a companion DVD set of all of the Herb Alpert and the TJB TV specials restored and remastered. Still hoping.
R. Michael Cox says
Looks good but "no go" for $100. I agree with others it should be around $50.
James Bruzzese says
I wonder the cd's will featuring Mono or Stereo mixes?
Rudy says
The pricing is indeed curious on this set. $299 for the vinyl works out to...way too much. Even if you consider it's a nice coffee table book bound into the album (maybe worth $50 if sold separately?), that's still over $40 for each record in the set.
I already have everything, including all of Herb's recent reissues in Hi-Res and the half dozen vinyl releases that went along with it. Since it's music I already own, why buy it all again just to get a very, very expensive book? Maybe during the holidays or after the new year, the price will be more reasonable. It's a nice set, but there are so many more things I could buy for that much coin.
There is the accompanying documentary that is premiering later this week, and it will be available on DVD or BluRay shortly. That will be interesting--it's his first full documentary film, so I'm hoping it will have some history that I am not already aware of. Looking forward to it!