Herb Alpert
"Fandango" (Vinyl)

I'm spotting a trend.
Artists who I love and admire do weird things in the 80's.
It's not their fault, really. The production methods changed dramatically between the 70's and 80's, but also musical tastes changed and an overarching need/desire to remain relevant means you incorporate new sounds into your recipe.
For some, this helps. For others, it lessens the potency of your cooking.

I love the cheery, innocent attitude of Alpert's recordings from the 60's. I think it's genius.
But something happens in the 80's to so many of these artists: with the everyday incorporation of synthesizers into a band's line-up comes a wild veer into what sounds most like soft jazz. The glossy production that became commonplace in the 80's doesn't help.

I just can't help it. I don't like the 80's. This recording won't last in my collection.