Herb Alpert Songs Ranked
Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter who led Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in the 1960s. During the same decade, he co-founded A&M Records with Jerry Moss. Throughout his career, Alpert has recorded 28 albums that have landed on the Billboard 200 chart, five of which became No. 1 albums ; while also achieving 14 platinum albums and 15 gold albums. Alpert is the only musician to hit No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 as both a vocalist (“This Guy’s in Love with You”, 1968) and an instrumentalist (“Rise”, 1979). Alpert has reportedly sold 72 million records worldwide. He has received many accolades, including a Tony Award, and eight Grammy Awards, as well as the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2006, he was inducted as into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Alpert was awarded the National Medal of Arts by Barack Obama in 2013. Here are all of Herb Alpert songs ranked.
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10. A Banda (Ah Bahn-da) (Herb Alpert’s Ninth, 1967)
“The A-Side is a low key shuffling repetition of melody interspersed with two “fun” sounding trumpet stabs that alternate along side one another within the song’s lone resolving transition. Overall this track showcases a very reserved and restrained groove. While there is nothing terribly exciting concerning this track, it’s not all that bad either.”
9. What Now My Love (What Now My Love, 1966)
“Herb and the guys were the only group to record WNML at an uptempo pace. The arrangement is simple but the musicianship superb…Herb’s haunting trumpet, Nick Creole’s drumming and John Pisano’s guitar solo make this song one of the best if not the best the group ever recorded”
8. Flamingo (S.R.O., 1966)
“The song travels along a lot of the familiar footing found on previous TB releases, but it also breaks some new ground as well in that it features the use of sleigh bells into its backing rhythm track. This deceptively innocuous addition does much to help accentuate a much needed light touch that works perfectly well against the dark and moody bass horn part that dominates the song.”
See more: Herb Alpert Albums Ranked
7. Spanish Flea (Going Places, 1965)
“The B-Side provides an overall upbeat repetition of its main melody on the trumpet while a guitar and mandolin fill up the extended space in the mix whenever the occasional shrieking vocal becomes silent, but the song is not amongst the band’s better material.”
6. Zorba the Greek (Going Places, 1965)
“As great as this song is, I can’t believe this song was picked to be the A-Side. I mean this song is great, don’t get me wrong, it’s just not as great as its B-Side in my opinion. This song works best as the final song to the album Going Places.”
5. A Taste of Honey (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965)
“Until someone can prove to me otherwise, this A-Side is probably the best cover version of this song. Just classic. I love the simplicity of Hal Blaine’s footstomping, steady kick drum that brings the band back into the song for each new verse. Those time changes are abrupt and tricky, but each one diffuses itself expertly, just great feel.”
See more: Abraxas Songs Ranked
4. The Lonely Bull (The Lonely Bull, 1962)
“I don’t know why I like this tune so much but I do. It feels up lifting and optimistic and can make me smile. Herb Alpert’s trumpet carries the load but the reverb guitar by John Pisano mixes well and adds much to this recording.”
3. Diamonds (featuring Janet Jackson and Lisa Keith) (Keep Your Eye on Me, 1987)
“Hey, this wasn’t exactly earthshattering, but it was good to see Herb in the charts again, Janet puts in a decent performance here, and it ends up being a nice, upbeat single. This is one that has evaporated into obscurity, I’m afraid.”
2. This Guy’s in Love with You (The Beat of the Brass, 1968)
“Featuring an unusually expressive vocal for a non-singer, this once-‘uncool’ housewife’s favourite now ranks as one of the more elegant and understated melodramas in pop. For a guy best known for his trumpet playing and instrumentals, he turns in a stellar vocal here.”
1. Rise (Rise, 1979)
“The video for this song really captures its essence perfectly: Herb Alpert dancing down white hallways and sunset beaches while followed by a seemingly endless entourage of disciples in various states of fashionable undress, like a yuppie Kokopelli, ever moving towards some cool, sophisticated, vaguely funky horizon. The Macy’s furniture section as a vision of paradise.”
