The Baja Marimba Band was formed by marimba player Julius Wechter and producer Herb Alpert of the Tijuana Brass fame to capitalize on an emerging "south of the border" trend in the early 1960s. The band dressed like banditos to perform live, complete with panchos and horse-hair mustaches. They played on many variety shows in the mid 60s, and their music remained popular through the 70s as it was used as background music on many popular game shows.