“A Taste of Honey” holds a special place in Hal's ledger: it was the first of the Grammy Records of the Year he'd play on. He remembered Herb Alpert's brass as “one of the great bands around,” and the date itself as “always a fun time at Gold Star Studios in Hollywood, with Larry Levine at the console.” Hal recalled how the whole thing began — Herb coming to the players and saying that he and Jerry Moss had “chipped in a few bucks” to cut a record. That record label was A&M, and “the rest, as they say, is history.”
From the session logs
The First Record of the Year: Hal Blaine on “A Taste of Honey”
Hal Blaine played the drums on “A Taste of Honey” by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass. It was the first Grammy Record of the Year of his career — he'd go on to play on seven — and it was cut at Gold Star Studios in Hollywood with engineer Larry Levine at the console.
“This was my first Grammy-winning Record of the Year. Herb's brass was one of the great bands around, and it was always a fun time at Gold Star. What great memories.”
— Hal Blaine
Source: Hal Blaine’s own session database, in his words.
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