Skip to main content
At 88, Herb Alpert still plays the trumpet like the perky wunderkind who, leading the Tijuana Brass, made the title track of The Lonely Bull a Top 10 hit in 1962. Oh, and the record also kicked off a career that led to eight Grammy Awards and a National Medal of the Arts from President Barack Obama.
After selling 72 million records worldwide, Alpert has earned the right to brag about his artistic vision, but he’s charmingly chill about his new studio album, Wish Upon a Star (his 49th). “I don’t have a master plan,” Alpert tells WW. “I just pick up songs that touch me. I’m a melody guy.”
On Oct. 18, Portlanders can hear those songs (the album includes everything from “On the Street Where You Live” to The Beatles’ “And I Love Her”) when Alpert plays Revolution Hall with his wife, vocalist Lani Hall. As he geared up to bring his signature sound to the Rose City, he spoke to WW about the new album, his epic career, and why he almost walked away from the trumpet in 1969.
WW: You once said, “The real instrument is me, the emotions, not my lip, not my technique.” Can you talk about the emotion behind the new album?
Herb Alpert: I think of myself as a vocalist. I try to play the lyrics through the horn. I try not to improvise anything that distracts from the beautiful melody that the song originally has. All the arts are a feeling—painting, sculpting, acting, poetry. I don’t think you really connect with the arts intellectually. Trying to analyze a solo by Louis Armstrong or Miles Davis or any of the greats, you can’t do it. You can just say, “Well, I like the way it feels.” And that’s about it.
You are a painter and a sculptor, as well as a philanthropist. I’m curious if you think that’s made you a better musician.
I can’t put my finger on that one, but I’m passionate about what I do. You do it for the right reasons—not because you want to be famous or you want to make money or you want to attract girls. And I think I was born to play the horn.
The horn has taught me a whole life lesson. Because when I was 8 years old, I was an introvert—still am a card-carrying introvert. When I finally started making a sound out of that trumpet [at age 8], it was talking for me. It was saying things that I couldn’t get out of my mouth. It’s been a tremendous friend of mine over the years, and I try not to abuse that friendship.
There was a four-year period, starting in 1969, when you stepped away from the trumpet. Did you need to refresh the friendship?
I was going through a divorce and my emotions got the best of me and I was stuttering through the instrument. I heard about this trumpet teacher in New York City [Carmine Caruso], and he would teach students from all over the world who had problems on brass instruments.
When I met him, I asked if maybe I should change my mouthpiece or change the trumpet. He said, “Look man, this trumpet’s a piece of plumbing. You’re the instrument. The sound comes from within you. And that trumpet’s just an amplifier, a megaphone.”
When I think of your voice as a trumpet player, I think of “Acapulco 1922″ from The Lonely Bull—the joy, the enthusiasm, the vibrance.
It’s amazing that you mention “Acapulco 1922.” The Lonely Bull took off like a rocket ship in 1962. The distributor in Washington, D.C., called and he said, “You guys got a monster. That ‘Acapulco 1922′ is a hit here.” I said, “Man, you’re on the wrong side. It’s ‘The Lonely Bull.’” But my point is that it’s timing. There’s a little bit of luck in this thing called success.
GO: Herb Alpert and Lani Hall play Revolution Hall, 1300 SE Stark St., #203, 971-808-5094, revolutionhall.com. 8 pm Wednesday, Oct. 18.