Track Listing

1. Monday, Monday
2. Beautiful Friend
3. Cabaret
4. Panama
5. Belz Mein Shtetele Belz (My Home Town)
6. Talk to the Animals
7. Slick
8. She Touched Me
9. Thanks for the Memory
10. Robin
11. This Guy's in Love With You

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #35745 in Music
• Released on: 2005-08-16
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .18 pounds

Album Description
In May 1968, Alpert released The Beat Of The Brass, which reached the #1 spot on the Pop Albums chart, and spent a total of 18 weeks in the Top 40. "This Guy’s In Love With You," with Herb on vocals, was a huge smash, topping both the Pop and AC singles charts.

Each album in the Herb Alpert Signature Series features meticulously remastered sound, deluxe packaging, detailed liner notes, and an intro by Herb Alpert containing personal recollections and anecdotes.

Customer Reviews

The Beat (of the Brass) Goes On...
"The Beat of the Brass" is tied with "South of the Border" as my favorite TJB albums. This one is a typical TJB formula album (covers of classics and pop tunes mixed in with originals), but the diversity is nice, and the tunes are all done well, although I could do without "Talk to the Animals".

I do agree with a previous reviewer that the music on this album diverges some from the TJB albums that came before it, but I think it's a welcome change. One such tune is "Slick", which has been a favorite of mine for years. Simple enough for me to figure out how to play it on the trumpet without music, but the little chromatic midsection is elegant with nice dissonant harmony. I love the vibraphone plonking away, and the driving rhythm section, which is also going stong on "Monday, Monday". "Panama" is another favorite of mine, as the rhythm section steals the show in that tune. The slower tunes are nice too, good for de-stressing.

The remastering is decent, although for some reason the CD sounds somewhat hollow and a bit muffled in the car, but better on the home stereo. I have a NM LP which I pulled out and plopped on the digital turntable to do a comparison. I was somewhat disappointed with the packaging. The LP has closeup cameo pictures of the band members, which are missing on the CD insert. It would have been nice to have those, and perhaps a name with each picture.

Herb Alpert and TJB in their prime
I was raised listening to the TJB so I am prejudiced toward their playing. That said, this is an excellent example of the "old" TJB type of playing--simple, bouncy, uplifting. The TJB have a style that is unique and I never tire of hearing them. I have been listening to this album since it was an LP, back in 1968, and I still pull it out every spring to listen to it again. Long live Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass!

TJB '68
Originally released in 1968, The Beat of the Brass (stereo only) might be one of the best albums from Herb Alpert and his Tijuana Brass. Most of this album is very entertaining. It contains such gems as Monday, Monday, A Beautiful Friend, Panama, Slick, The Robin and of course, This Guys In Love With You. This album just flows from start to finish.

01. Monday, Monday - 10/10 I love the Bob Edmondson trombone work here; in fact he is at his peak all the way through this album.

02. A Beautiful Friend - 9/10 All I can say is, really pretty. Herb's is superb on his horn, the flute work is gorgeous, and there's just the right amount of drums.

03. Cabaret - 9/10 Edmondson's trombone work and Nick Ceroli's drums make this work.

04. Panama - 10/10 Great work by Edmondson again and by the amazing Julius Wechter on the chimes.

05. Belz Mein Shtetele Belz (My Home Town) - 5/10 A punching the clock type number. It's alright.

06. Talk To The Animals - 2/10 This song worked for the TV special but, is a bit awkward on the album.

07. Slick- 10/10 I just love those chord changes in the chorus. A very cool tune.

08. She Touched Me - 9/10 This is a much underestimated little gem.

09. Thanks For The Memory - 8/10 Another good toe-taper.

10. The Robin - 9/10 - A fabulous instrumental that's tucked towards the back of the album.

11. This Guys In Love With You - 10/10 It was great in '68 and still sounds fresh to this day. This was the perfect blending of song and performance which produced the first number one single for Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass.

This is a classic album with great sound quality and so it gets 5 stars for the music and packaging!