Customer Reviews

Herb Alpert & Hugh Masakela

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

With the recent reissues of Herp Alpert & the Tijuana Brass albums, this one he made in conjunction with Hugh Masekela is sorely lacking. It is an absolutely fabulous album, with happy uplifting music. Skokiaan is of course an old African favorite, and Herp and Hugh do a great job on this version. 'Happy Hannah' is wonderful. On CD this album would do fantastic at happenings, cookouts where the host would like to create a pleasant stimulating atmosphere or just to play it while doing things around the house.

It is high time this album gets reissued on CD. The fact that it is actually being offered used at over $100 is indicative of the value of this super album.

I got this album on vinyl when it first came out in the late 1970s, but lost my copy (along with the equipment needed to play it) in the flooding from Hurricane Katrina. I was reminded of how much I missed it when I heard on the radio a few minutes ago a version of one of the songs from it ("Skokiaan") by local (New Orleans) trumpeter Kermit Ruffins. Ruffins is a great guy and a capable player, but his "Skokiaan" can't hold a candle to the version done all those years ago by Alpert and Masekela.

At the time I first heard this album, I was the music editor of an Atlanta publication called "Creative Loafing." In that capacity, I received dozens of free review copies of records and the opportunity to go out practically every night for club and concert performances, at no cost to me. Naturally, after a while I became as jaded about music as a prostitute probably does about sex. It took a lot to get me enthused about a record or a performance.

In that context, "Herb Alpert/Hugh Masekela" managed to get my attention and win my affection with its irresistibly infectious combination of sunny melodies and African rhythms. Not quite jazz, but not fitting neatly into any other musical pigeonhole, either, this music has the power to transport the listener to an African savannah on a cloudless day, there to watch water buffalo leisurely enjoying a watering hole while gazelles cavort nearby. There's a purity and simplicity about tunes like "Ring Bell," "Happy Hanna," and "African Summer" that makes them timeless, and they're played with an apparently effortless ease. American Alpert and South African partner Masekela (along with their stellar bandmates) simply sound as if they were born to make music together. They sound as if they were born to make THIS music together.

In a nutshell, the music on this record is a perfect respite from a world rife with economic distress and cynical political wrangling. The world truly NEEDS this kind of music right now, but no one's playing stuff quite like this these days. That's why it's criminal that this record is out of print, and used CD copies start at $78.00. (Were I to buy one of the cheaper vinyl copies available online, I'd still need to invest in new equipment to play it on.) Especially in light of Alpert, a co-founder of the record label, literally being the "A" in A & M Records, I can't fathom the label allowing this music to fade away. I hope other folks will join me in appealing to the company (e-mail them at info@amoctone.com) to reissue this, preferably in a pristinely remastered CD format. If you've heard this music, you'll know why I say that, and if you haven't heard it, you need to.

I have the vinyl of this album, bought it new, still sounds good, since I still have a turntable.

I bought it at EJ Kovettes on Long Island. Not only that, but Herb and Hugh were there and signed the record cover.

Would love to get it on CD, but not sure how much I would pay, the Amazon used price seems high for a used copy.

But I am tempted.

I first heard the song "Happy Hannah" in 1978. I was fifteen. I was transfixed. I finally managed to get it on a cassette tape. Then I re-recorded it three times into another tape. That way, I could listen to it three straight times each time. Fast forward thirty years later. It is still my favorite song! I could never find this CD. Finally, I was lucky to get a used copy on an online auction for about $40.00. Even used, it was well worth the money. I never did understand why why there are such few copies around.

Just pure, sweet, beautiful music from start to finish on this album. As another reviewer said, the world needs this kind of music right now - to lift us up and give us hope for a brighter future. My favourite song is Moonza, full of soul and funk, jazzy and brilliant (you can check it out on youtube). In truth, all of the songs on this album are beautifully crafted and utterly joyful. That these two superb musicians only made one album together is a shame but what they did make will forever stand the test of time... they really do not make music like this anymore. So, anyone hesitating to spend over $60 on this album, don't because it is well worth it.

I listened to this album when it first debuted in the 70s and it was the most amazing experience ever, interwining the music and the car race down the hill to the beach where we continued listening to it around a bone fire...maybe there was a full moon...maybe there wasn't however the music was shining throughout the memory that I still cherish. Eventually I lost the LP during my extensive travels across life and it has been one of my mid life obsessions to obtain every single album I owned throughout life. Needless to say, this one was one of my top of the list and finally I am listening to it again, digitized in Brazil...AWESOME! Alpert and Masekela are THE BEST Trumpeters ever!

I have always been a fan of Alpert. Began listening to my mother's old Tijuana Brass records in the 70's. My father got me this album for my birthday in the early 80's and just a few days ago, I got another copy. It is an amazing album and one of the best instrumentals ever. Of course you just cant find 2 finer horn blowers that these guys. Happy Anna is a great song by itself and their performance of African classic Skookian always let me semiling. Probably my favorite is African Summer. The melody takes you right there. If you like good music, you got it right here (But the price is a little high...)