At 90-years-young, legendary trumpeter Herb Alpert is still going strong.
Last fall, he released his 50th album titled, appropriately enough, “50.” And now he has returned to the stage for his first national tour since 1984, bringing his signature Tijuana Brass sound to fans old and new. “I’m going to do something that I’ve always wanted to do,” he told NPR. “I’m going to form the new Tijuana Brass featuring my beautiful wife, Lani Hall, who was the original singer with Sergio Mendes in Brasil ’66.”
The newly reimagined Tijuana Brass tour marks the 60th anniversary of Whipped Cream & Other Delights and features a setlist packed with beloved hits: “The Lonely Bull,” “Spanish Flea,” “Tijuana Taxi,” “Rise,” and “This Guy’s in Love with You.”
Recent performances at venues like Jazz at Lincoln Center have sold out, and the tour continues across the U.S., with stops in cities including Dallas, Kansas City, St. Louis and more.
“My sister is 98 years old,” he told an enthusiastic crowd at the Byham Theater in downtown Pittsburgh. “She said, ‘why in the world are you doing this?’ I’ll tell you the honest truth, it gives me energy.”
Well said, and in the true SuperAging spirit!
Herb Alpert’s remarkable career began not as a quiet prelude but as an unmistakable fanfare. In the early 1960s, Alpert co-founded A&M Records with partner Jerry Moss, and soon after, he and his band, the Tijuana Brass, created a fresh, mariachi-inspired pop sound that swept the world.
Inspired by bullfights in Tijuana, his music went on to dominate the 1960s music scene, including the popular game show “The Dating Game” and the film “Casino Royale.” In 1966, Alpert had three albums in the Top 5 simultaneously, and four albums in the Top 10, outselling even The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Frank Sinatra. “A Taste of Honey” won the Grammy for “Best Record of the Year.”
“Sometimes I was even a little embarrassed by it all,” Alpert told CBS.
As an executive, Alpert nurtured artists who shaped modern music, from The Carpenters and Sergio Mendes to Janet Jackson and The Police. A&M Records ultimately sold for $500 million in 1989.
Beyond the stage and studio, Alpert’s creative reach extended into painting, sculpture, and Philanthropy, including transformative gifts to arts Education—like his $30 million donation to UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music.
Alpert’s timeless sound has found new audiences—and new generations—on TikTok, where tracks like “Ladyfingers” have been streamed billions of times.
From topping Billboard charts in the 1960s to finding new fans on social media today, Herb Alpert’s journey shows us that artistry doesn’t simply endure—it evolves, surprises, and, sometimes, gets even better with age.
Go here for upcoming tour dates
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