Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - The Brass Are Comin´ (1969)

Since many people like Herb Alpert in blogs, I will contribute another one of his works. This is an album from a TV-Special from 1969. Shortly after its release, a burned-out, personally troubled Alpert disbanded his Brass and retired from music for awhile. Indeed, stretches of this record reveal a tired group and a leader whose trumpet has lost much of its old zip. Even so, as on all TJB albums, there are several gems -- the stunning shifts in texture and tempo that enliven the worn-out "Moon River", the chugging bluegrass-tinged arrangement of Villa-Lobos' "The Little Train of the Caipira" that masquerades under the name of the title track, a haunting rendition of the Beatles' "I'll Be Back", the fast samba treatment of "Anna", which is my personal favorite from the Three Suns (you can find it on "Twilight Memories").