FRIGHT FROM THE BINS
The Ohman Brothers
The Glorious Sound of Brass
(1967)
In the '60s, everyone was horny for the sound of Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass. Knockoff TJB albums sprung up everywhere, and now rummage sales are still vying for your confused south-of-the-border attention. "The Maraichi Brass (featuring jazz legend Chet Baker), "The Mexicali Brass," "The Brass Ring," "The Band I Heard in Tijuana" for crying out loud — they all earned their daily crust coppin' some Herb. These Ohman Brothers were no exception to the rule. This album is clearly targeted to deceive that demographic, right down to the copycat Whipped Cream and Other Delights lettering. But look at the song titles and notice there ain't a "Spanish Flea" or "Tijuana Taxi" in sight. "Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah"? "I Would Be Like Jesus"? "Come Unto Me"? Duped into buying a trumped-up gospel hornfest is bad enough, but these horn-wielding devils have the effrontery to claim they ain't apin' Alpert but rather trying to emulate General Joshua at Jericho. Lord knows how many people bought into their "lonely bull." —Serene Dominic
SCHOOLYARD VERSE
Song
I want a song
that sounds like the heavens
a song that tastes like candy
a song that makes me feel like
Kool-Aid.
— Robert Woolfolk, 6th Grade, InsideOut Literary Arts Project, Golightly Education Center
DOWNLOAD OF THE WEEK
Francisco Mora Catlett & Outerzone 2010 — "Earth Tones"
From the double-CD Andromeda-M31 (AACE) ... NYC-based (by way of Detroit, Sun Ra and his homeland of Mexico), Catlett's drum-driven, electronica-bathed nonet includes former Detroiters J.D. Allen (sax) and Craig Taborn (keys and electronics), not to mention underecorded electro-trumpeter extraordinaire Graham Haynes. —W. Kim Heron
