The Baja Marimba Band

The Baja Marimba Band was a popular musical group led by marimba player Julius Wechter. Initially formed by producer Herb Alpert to cash in on the "south of the border" craze started by his own Tijuana Brass, the Baja Marimba Band outlasted the Tijuana Brass by several years thanks largely in part to TV producer Chuck Barris, who featured the group's music on his game shows through the mid-1970s.

During his youth, Julius Wechter took up several percussion instruments including the vibes and marimba. In 1956 his group the Julius Wechter Quartet released a jazz album entitled Linear Sketches.

In 1958, Julius joined Martin Denny's band where he played marimba (replacing Arthur Lyman) as well as numerous other percussion instruments. Four years later he was paid $15 as a session man on Herb Alpert's debut album, The Lonely Bull. Wechter soon composed "Spanish Flea" for Alpert, which became a hit for him. Alpert encouraged Wechter to form his own group, The Baja Marimba Band, to help cash in on the faux-Mexican popularity of Albert's own Tijuana Brass.

In 1962, the Baja Marimba Band was formed using session men to supplement Wechter. These musicians included, at one time or another, Roy Caton, Pete Jolly, Lew McCreary, Nick Ceroli, Hal Blaine, Tommy Tedesco, Leon Russell, and Emil Richards.

The band hit the charts with its first single "Comin' in the Back Door" and recorded a dozen albums for A&M, as well as being Alpert's support act. The main lineup from 1965-1971 was Bernie Fleischer on reeds, Ervan "Bud" Coleman on guitar (replaced upon Coleman's death in 1967 by Charlie Chiarenza), Frank DeCaro on rhythm guitar, Dave Wells on trombone, Lee Katzman on trumpet, Curry Tjader on percussion, Mel Pollan on Fender bass, and Frank DeVito on drums. Most if not all of the band's musicians were seasoned jazz musicians who performed with such artists as Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Don Ellis, Terry Gibbs, Buddy DeFranco, Charlie Parker, and Dizzy Gillespie.

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