Last post of the season and last post in our series of Tijuanabees today, this record is perhaps the most common of the Christmas Herb Alpert ripoffs I see in the racks at thrift stores. Pretty sure even my parents had a copy when I was growing up, though I never paid any attention to it at the time. And curiously enough, all the tracks are instrumental versions of ten of the songs from that last Tijuanabee share by Tijuana Voices. I guess they were saving money by releasing two different versions of the same thing under two different names. Nothing that a budget label does surprises me anymo ..read more

One of my favorite Tijuanabee records is this one right here. Why is that? I dunno, hard to say, but I think I like the voices on this one, something that the others seem to lack. (If you don't like the voices, just stay tuned...) The cover art doesn't disappoint either. This is a remastered version of the record I shared back in 2006, so I'm sure it sounds just a little bit better than it did back then. One more thing, a close reading of the credits seems to indicate that the person behind all this sound is Bugs Bower, a trumpet player with a lot of kiddie records to his name for this same b ..read more

   Who knew there were so many Herb Alpert imitators out there? Well, you would have if you'd taken a look at my Discogs list where I linked to all of them that I know of. Up next is a new one to the blog, something I haven't shared before. I seem to remember this one being shared out at The 'Fa way, way back in the day on one of the forums there. But that was a long time ago, so I'm sharing my record and my rip with you today. This is Monterey Brass-Christmas Brass (Diplomat SX1722, Stereo). Lots of unique songs on here that may or may not be Christmas related, but they make for a m ..read more

Next up is another LP credited to The Mexicali Brass. No idea who they are, but they made some festive Christmas music. I've seen a couple different versions of this record, all featuring the same cover but with slightly shorter track listings. Far as I can tell, this is the version with all the tracks. At least one of the others is still called Winter Wonderland, but omits that track for some reason. Budget labels live in a strange world. For what it's worth, this is a remaster of something I first shared back in 2006. Please download and enjoy The Mexicali Brass-Winter Wonderland (Crown CST ..read more

For the second installment of today's series of Tijuanabee records, I'm giving you two different releases of the same music. You can download whichever one or both, up to you. Some people always want the version they had when they were kids, and I guess I can understand that. First up is a remaster of something I first shared back in 2006 for a short time. This is The Mexicali Brass-Christmas With The Mexicali Brass (Crown CST-10, Stereo, 1964). Lots of people like this one just for the cover, and who can blame them. Hard to find a good one, they've all been snapped up by folks who like to ha ..read more

Well, I think today is Epiphany, the twelfth day of Christmas, and that means the end of this year's sharity. It's been a really busy year, but it's been a lot of fun and I hope you enjoyed it. I've got a handful of records to share with you today, most of them remasters, then that'll be it. But stick with me today as I walk through a large collection of Herb Alpert imitators or as I call them, Tijuanabees. This first one is a remaster of something I first shared back in 2012. I believe it turned out to be something that's come out in a lot of countries under a lot of names, and was originall ..read more

Here's another record where I'm stepping on some very important toes, but I wanted to throw my hat into the ring. This record was introduced to me by The King Of Jingaling via a share at his wonderful website FaLaLaLaLa.com several years ago. At the time I'd never seen or heard a copy and I thought it was really good stuff. Here we are years later and I snagged a sealed copy last year at some point and figured I'd try to get a rip of it this year. Well, even though it was sealed, it still wasn't pristine, but I think it's still pretty listenable. And if you're not familiar with it, then I'll ..read more

When I first pulled this record out of the stacks, I thought it was a reissue of his 60's album on RCA, but when I got the two records together and compared the tracklisting, I quickly discovered I was wrong. Even though they share the same name, this LP is a newer and different recording from the classic RCA version. And if the name Floyd Cramer doesn't ring a bell with you, this is a piano player that showed up on many of the country records of the 60's and 70's. If Chet Atkins put a guitar lick on it, then Floyd Cramer put a piano piece on it. And for you Christmas listening (next year may ..read more

I think I said I was done with the lists at Discogs last week, but I thought of a good new one and finished populating it yesterday. I searched through and found all the records that feature either a song or voice greeting for the Marine Corp Toys For Tots promotion. I'm sure you remember hearing these songs as bonus tracks on the Ultra Lounge Christmas Cocktails CDs, as well as comps by Nat King Cole and Peggy Lee. But there are also versions of the song out there by Red Simpson, Vic Damone, Nancy Wilson & Tennessee Ernie Ford. And the great Buck Owens wrote a different song with the same ..read more

We're running out of time and shares around here, but I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve. This next record is short, and not quite as sweet as I'd first hoped. (I also know that my friend Stubby shared it out a few years ago so I hope he doesn't mind that I took a stab at it, too.) As near as I can tell, this is just some guys fooling around in the studio making some Christmas music. I wish it was a lot better than it is, but you'll have to take it for what it's worth, I guess. If you like that cheesy 80's sound, then this is for you! This is The Rolling Snows-Crystal Christmas For The ..read more