Herb Alpert - Magic Man (1981)

Note: the CD I listened to was 1990 Audio Master Plus Series version.

The third album of Alpert's late '70s comeback - instrumental pop with lots of hand claps. It worked for the hit song Rise back in '79, so maybe lightning will strike twice? [spoiler alert: it didn't] There's nothing on this album as good as anything on its predecessor, Beyond. And there was nothing on Beyond as good as Rise. You get the picture. As they mention over at allmusic.com, "The high-flying confidence of Rise and the experimental bent of Beyond began to wear off by 1981, giving way to the more relaxed but musically weaker ministrations of Magic Man." Still, that doesn't mean there's not the occasional good tune scattered among the 8 tracks. Speaking of 8 tracks:

I bought copies of the Rise and Beyond albums in 1980, but wasn't wild enough about Beyond to seek out Magic Man in '81.

Press of the time:

• Billboard: "a third exploration of urban pop/r&b rhythms"
• Stereo Review: "if you are a fan of his you won't be disappointed"
• Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide (1985): ★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #61
• Billboard Jazz: #10
• Billboard R&B: #39
• CashBox: #71
• CashBox Jazz: #15

Tracks: The title cut was released as a single and peaked at #22 on the adult contemporary chart, #79 pop. It's one of the better tunes on the album. Manhattan Melody, track 2, is an unabashed disco tune and while it would have been slightly dated in 1981, I dig it now. Then things turn a bit sour. Herb doesn't need autotune, but he doesn't exactly have a great voice. Nonetheless, when you own the record label, you can do whatever you want. In this case, he chooses to sing on I Get It From You, a cover of a wonderful tune from Pages' 1978 self-titled album. It falls flat and is exacerbated by the fact he has Pages sing back up on his version. Stick with the original version. We're also treated to lackluster covers of Besame Mucho and Alpert's own You Smile - The Song Begins. If by chance I had purchased this album in 1981, chances are quite good I wouldn't have listened to side 2 much.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Around the time this album was released in 1981, the high school band would have been starting summer rehearsals and I would have been right there in the heat and humidity of it all. Admittedly I may be remembering incorrectly, but I seem to recall having practice 5 mornings and 1 night each week for the 3 weeks prior to school. Practices focused on learning new music for the year, retraining ourselves how to march, and learning some drill so that we could entertain at halftime at the first football game. There was also a lot of "YOU WILL OBEY" brainwashing going on throughout, but that's a large part of every high school extracurricular activity's hidden curriculum. If all my close friends hadn't been in band, I'm not sure I would have endured that mess even with my love for music. Nonetheless, I tolerated such situations for four years in high school immediately followed by another four years in college so I must have enjoyed something about it back then. But summer band practice really doesn't have much to do with this Herb Alpert album other than coincidental timing and the fact Herbie and I both played trumpet, so never mind. As you were.

Previously revisited for the blog:
A Portrait In Music - Disc One (1997)
Passion Dance (1997)
Classics, Volume 1 (1987)
Beyond (1980)
Rise (1979)
What Now My Love (1966)