60s instrumental experts: Need your help in ID-ing a song

[Amerigo Vespucci]

It is similar in tone to these songs:

"Soulful Strut" by Young-Holt Unlimited

"Grazing In The Grass" by Hugh Masakela

If it weren't the damned Internet I could hum it for you. It has a "hook," a horn figure, similar to "Soulful Strut" that goes "Da da da da DA, da da da da DA DA DA DA DA DA..." Helpful, I know, but...the horn figure is repeated throughout the track, so it's more than a standard "chorus." It's the kind of song that would have fit perfectly on one of the "Austin Powers" soundtracks, like Sergio Mendes' "Mas Que Nada," which was featured in the first film.

Please share the names of any and all horn-based instrumental tracks from the late 60s you can think of. It's close in feel to the two songs above. It is NOT "T.S.O.P" by Love Unlimited Orchestra and has no disco overtones at all...it is more of a mid-tempo jazz swing feel. It's not a Philly soul instrumental.

Thanks.

:toast:

[LeftyFingerPop]

1. Green Onions

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-7QSMyz5rg

[Amerigo Vespucci]

2. Thanks for trying, but no...

...I'm familiar with Green Onions.

The song I'm thinking about is pretty much carried by the horns. Definitely not a Booker T organ/guitar dynamic.

:toast:

[LeftyFingerPop]

3. OK...I've heard it done by someone horn based...I'll keep looking. n/t

[LeftyFingerPop]

4. Java

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5iZk_ALlcU

[Amerigo Vespucci]

5. Nope...that's too "Lawrence Welk."

I know the song I'm thinking of made it onto at least a couple of 60s/70s movie soundtracks.

It had that "Hef's Pad," Valley of the Dolls sleazy kind of swing, almost a big-band sound but not quite.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

6. The notes in the main riff:

A-A-C-G-E-D-C-B,

D-C-B-A-A-A-C-G-E

And if you go HERE:

http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks2/music/piano/sax.htm

And select "Saxophone," you can play it and hear it.

:toast:

[BlueJazz]

51. Can you give some note values to the notes or put something like..

...short A. longer A and also put the notes in scale: A2 A2 A2 C2 ??

[Tuesday Afternoon]

7. something by Herb Alpert, maybe

:shrug:

"Bittersweet Samba" Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LV50GNmTV6I&feature=related


on edit: never mind, looks like you found it above. :)

[Amerigo Vespucci]

14. No, I'm still looking

I basically played the melody from my head on the guitar, transcribed the notes, and posted a link to the online midi keyboard where you can play them to hear it. I'm still looking for the song.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

17. is it 4/4 time?

I played it and it sounds familiar but I can't get the rhythm of it in my head.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

18. I've forgotten a lot of my musical training...

...but I don't think it's 4/4. The tempo is similar to "Grazing In The Grass" but a little faster, a little punchier...especially those three "A" notes. The distinctive part of the riff is the sustained "E" in the first section and those three stacatto "A" notes.

The rhythm is somewhat like this

AACGE

played rapid-fire, with E sustained

DCB

played moderately

AAA

played a little faster, even tempo

CGE

played moderately

:shrug:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

19. I think that is 3/4 time... let me go try that

that is neat gizmo link btw.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

20. did you search my thread about instrumentals?

it might be in there.

I am still searching.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

22. I did, but it's not any of those.

This thing got played to death. When I finally figure it out I'm gonna want to kick myself for it being so obvious.

:rofl:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

24. surely not Tequila ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXBLHTq390k

or Apache
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3_A-eor3rE&feature=related

[Amerigo Vespucci]

25. Nope

There's gotta be an 800 number where you can call up and hum stuff in an emergency, right?

:rofl:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

26. yeah, don't I wish.

I do this to myself all the time. Drives me nutz. ;)

not Ghost Riders In The Sky

what about some Henry Mancini stuff ... Peter Gunn, maybe?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSEleg17T4w&feature=related

[Amerigo Vespucci]

28. No, it's really, really close to "Grazin' In The Grass."

Same kind of feel.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

31. Alley Cat

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGiaPK3eA_o

[Amerigo Vespucci]

33. No, that's back in the Lawrence Welk direction

Definitely not Alley Cat. And the one I'm looking for is driven by the horn section. If it's got keyboards, they're in a rhythm role only.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

36. could it be

Chuck Mangione - Feels So Good

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7dg8vRDM68

[Amerigo Vespucci]

37. Nope.

My favorite part of Chuck's career was his guest appearance on "King Of The Hill," where he got blown up at the Mega-Lo-Mart.

The song I'm looking for isn't quiet storm happy jazz. It's cool like when Clint Eastwood was cool, making the original Dirty Harry movies. But not "Dead Pool." That was just "getting on in years" Clint making one more Dirty Harry movie than he should have. Let's just say Clint in "Play Misty For Me" and leave it at that.

:rofl:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

39. I give up

let me know when you find it. good luck :)

[Moondog]

8. "Classical Gas" by Mason Williams

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z9nl3T31wI

[Amerigo Vespucci]

11. No, I know Classical Gas, this isn't it, and I don't think the song had any guitar

My guess is that it was a jazz act slumming for a pop hit.

[Moondog]

15. Two last thoughts, by artist, not by piece.

Chuck Mangione did a lot of stuff on flugelhorn in that period - perhaps one of them.

And your big band - jazz group looking for pop crossover comment made me think of Burt Bacharach.

That's it - I'm tapped out.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

16. It's somewhere in that realm...

...and the reason I named the Austin Powers flicks is that the song is VERY much in the same ballpark as the music selected for those films.

[trof]

27. Dude! Classical Gas was ONLY acoustic guitar.

The Mason Williams version anyway.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

29. No, I know that, I mean the song I'm looking for has no guitar

I only heard "Classical Gas" about three gafrigginzillion times back in the day.

:rofl:

"The song I am looking for has no guitar."

:-)

[Moondog]

41. Nope, lots of horn riffs after a while. n/t

[LeftyFingerPop]

9. Jesus, it sounds like this, bit I don't know what this is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNg0oPpwlOk

[Amerigo Vespucci]

10. Nope, this was fast-tempo, like "Grazing In The Grass."

:toast:

[LeftyFingerPop]

12. Take Five

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGEMbloUzi4

[Amerigo Vespucci]

13. Nope...I know that one too.

The song I'm looking for is along the lines of Sergio Mendes or Hugh Masakela...those kinds of songs from the late 60s / early 70s.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

21. Third Man Theme -?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtIGi7tAkco&feature=related

[Amerigo Vespucci]

23. No, this was a kick-ass, high energy song

da da da da DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

da da da...

da da da

DA DA DA

da da da...

Just aggressive. Hard to explain.

[old mark]

30. How about this:

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsbO5NnuBlQ

"The Horse"...it was a disco/dance tune, and it was played around 2 thousand times a day on every station I could get. I really hated it, but could not escape hearing it.

I think this may be it.

mark

[Amerigo Vespucci]

32. Thanks, but that was one of the ones I checked...

...that has a little too much of the "Blues Brothers gallop"...the one I'm looking for definitely doesn;t have the guitar stuff going on in the background and it's got a little smoother, "crusing down the Pacific Coast Highway" feel to it.

Thanks anyway!

:toast:

[johnnie]

34. Is it any of these?

http://www.the60sofficialsite.com/jukebox/60s-Best-Instrumental-Hits.html

[Amerigo Vespucci]

35. No, thanks...I found that and worked my way down the list.

Maybe this one isn't as famous as I thought. Maybe I just remember it as being famous. But I remember it being EVERYWHERE!

Arrrrrgh.

:rofl:

:toast:

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

38. Wadin' in the Water - Ramsey Lewis Trio

my two cents.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

45. Nope...that's another keyboard-driven track.

Thanks anyway.

:toast:

[bananas]

40. Ask Irwin at WFMU

You've listed a dozen songs it's not.
Time to call in the professionals.
http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/IC

[Amerigo Vespucci]

56. "Your email was sent to Irwin!"

Thanks...we'll see if he responds.

:toast:

[Amerigo Vespucci]

60. Looks like I stumped Irwin

He sent back a nice reply but said that he's not an expert in the genres that I listed. Suggested I try Gaylord or Bob Brainen.

:toast:

[Mr. Ected]

42. Probably not Watermelon Man by Herbie Hancock

Doesn't line up to all your da da DA DA's.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

46. No, I know that one too.

And Watermelon Man is more of a laid-back groove, while the song I'm looking for is a bit more in-your-face (albeit still in a laid-back way, if that makes any sense).

:toast:

[ornotna]

43. Music to Watch Girls By

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ_WgrAAsBI

[Amerigo Vespucci]

49. No, that's got a Pink Panther kind of vibe...I know this song too and it's not the one.

This would be a whole lot easier if I were looking for a song with LYRICS.

:rofl:

Thanks.

:-)

[Tuesday Afternoon]

44. dang you AV ....grr

Afrikaan Beat By Bert Kaempfert
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGmR2dJSDvo&feature=related

or

Bert Kaempfert - Happy Trumpeter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gqdTS14rVY&feature=related

[Amerigo Vespucci]

47. Nope + Nope...sorry

:-)

[abq e streeter]

48. Noticed you hadn't replied yet to post #43...maybe you didn't notice it?

I was thinking we may have a winner(???) That's one of the few already listed here I hadn't thought of. And if it's not, this is starting to drive me about as nuts as it's apparently driving you.
Don't know if you were a Married With Children fan, but there was an episode revolving around Al remembering just a snippet of a song and going crazy trying to figure out what it was.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

50. Just saw it and that's not it either, just replied.

At one time or another I think I must have seen every episode of MWC but don't remember that one...

...the best clue I can give would be the songs I mentioned in the original post...it has that vibe. The songs posted in this thread are all 1960s instrumental classics, to be sure, and I know them all, but none of them have that vibe. It's a swagger, it's cool, it's jazz, it's...

...a damn song I can't get out of my head!

:rofl:

:toast:

[The Midway Rebel]

52. The Mar-Keys - "Last Night"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX5T9GvSnbY

[Amerigo Vespucci]

53. No, another classic, but that's not it

"Last Night" has a bot of the "Peter Gunn" vibe to it...cool song, but not the same vibe as the one I'm looking for.

Thanks for trying.

:toast:

[WinkyDink]

54. Theme from "Zorba the Greek" (Herb Alpert). Or---Post below!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSMaRSMvp94

[The Midway Rebel]

55. Archie Bell and the Drells - "Tighten Up"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wro3bqi4Eb8&feature=related

[WinkyDink]

57. Hey! I'll bet this IS it!

[Amerigo Vespucci]

58. No...the one I'm looking for is basically a cool jazz song with a pop hook, but...

...it is also pretty much devoid of any funk overtones. A little bit of soul, maybe, but funk, no. Although one more classic song has been added to the list...thanks!

:toast:

[Dr Morbius]

59. I don't know what song you seek, but

try going to youtube and entering "Herb Alpert". Or "Maynard Ferguson".

It might be early Chicago, very heavy on the horns.

Good luck.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

61. I haven't tried Maynard yet...I'll do that.

Herb, I don't think so...I'm familiar with most of his hits and this song doesn't seem like his style. Chicago, definitely not. I suspect that this is a jazz artist who went for a crossover pop hit with a simple, horn section driven hook.

:toast:

[Art_from_Ark]

62. How about "Time is Tight"

by Booker T. and the MG's?

Or maybe "Glissamba" by Ray Bryant?

[mikeytherat]

63. Soul Finger - Bar Kays

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzP-Sh0qTsQ

:shrug:

mieky_the_rat

[Art_from_Ark]

64. Maybe something by Al Hirt?

Java, perhaps?

[MilesColtrane]

65. I've been wracking my brain to no avail on this one.

Could it be something by trumpeter Donald Byrd, or maybe an instrumental by the Ray Charles Orchestra?

[Tuesday Afternoon]

66. I am beginning to suspect this

as an elaborate hoax :D

:shrug:

[MilesColtrane]

67. Musical snipe hunt?

Amerigo, WhyIAughtta!!

[Amerigo Vespucci]

72. No, it's really a song, and it's stuck in my head

No hoax, I promise!

:-)

[Boudica the Lyoness]

68. Summer madness

by Kool and the Gang.

[BlueJazz]

69. Could the tune be "Pick up the pieces" by the average white band ??

[Amerigo Vespucci]

73. No, I know the AWB's stuff, and it's not them

Thanks anyway...

:toast:

[HEyHEY]

70. Walk don't run or bethoven's fifth.

[HEyHEY]

71. SOrry, noticed you want horns.... well, could be Spanish Flea, or honey

[Amerigo Vespucci]

74. Nope, none of the usual "horn hit" suspects

I grew up with all of those songs...this was either a one-hit wonder or a jazz artist slumming for a pop hit.

[HEyHEY]

75. Damn you! Okay, ummmm..... what kind of horn? Trumpet?

I tend to know the weird ones if I hear em.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

76. Not sure, but if you look back at my original post...

...the three songs I named are very, very close to the one I'm looking for. It's right in that neighborhood.