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Sounds like Herb Alpert, but it grooves in ways that we hardly expected – playful, creative, and filled with so many more rhythms than just the Tijuana groove we might have thought! There's a real deepening sense of instrumental pop going on here – as Herb explores some of the darker strains brought into the market by younger groups and artists on the scene, and through some of the cross-cultural recordings that were opening up as the global music market expanded in the mid 60s. The Brass still get in plenty of their jaunty licks in the set, but there's also more of a sense of Herb as a standout man of his own – a mature, all-adult sound that's got some great brooding emotion from time to time. Titles include the great sample cut "Treasure Of San Miguel", "Casino Royale", "Wade In The Water", "Shades Of Blue", "Bo Bo", "Lady Godiva", "Town Without Pity", "Gotta Lot Of Livin To Do", and "The Charmer".

They certainly got the title right on this one – as the album's overflowing with earlier hits by Perez Prado, re-recorded here for the hi-fi generation, with really swinging RCA sound! The numbers include some perennial Perez favorites – including "Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White", "In A Little Spanish Town", "Caballo Negro", "Mambo Jambo", and the legendary "Mambo Number 5". A nice way to get all of his best stuff on wax!

A very unusual album from Russ Garcia – one recorded with a vocal choir singing (mostly) wordlessly on the tunes! The style isn't scatting so much as it is a precursor to modes that would be used more heavily on later soundtracks – an approach that's jazz-based, and often colored with some great blue tones – really hitting some especially eerie notes on the best numbers. There's a sad, almost spooky feel to the record that's really great – with some of the female voices hitting theremin-like passages – and although most tunes are familiar, the arrangements are plenty inventive. Titles include "Wow", "Ill Wind", "Blue Blue Blue", "Painting The Town Blue", "Music City", and "Sounds In The Night".

A great record of African pop from the late 50's, featuring groups like The Country Jazz Band, "The Sharpetown Swingers, The Melotone Brothers, and Elias and His Jazz Flutes. The cover's got a Kodachrome image with primitive dancers, but the sound on the tracks is fairly modern.