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Herb Alpert has quite a bit to celebrate this spring.
The trumpet-playing legend turns 90 on March 31. He released his 50th studio album last fall, and in April his chart-topping breakthrough album with the Tijuana Brass, “Whipped Cream & Other Delights,” turns 60. That gave him plenty of reason to put the band — albeit a new version of the Brass — back together for a tour to commemorate those landmarks.
And its stop Tuesday night, March 25, at Detroit’s Masonic Cathedral was delightful in every way as Alpert and company enraptured a packed crowd with an hour and 50 minutes of memories, both played and spoken. The troupe smoothed its way through 23 songs, mostly from the Tijuana Brass catalog (five from “Whipped Cream…), while accompanying, vintage videos for nearly every one reminded fans what a ubiquitous presence Alpert has been in the entertainment scene — movies and television, too — for more than six decades.
The show had an undeniable sweetness as well, with Alpert, sporting a maroon suit and black t-shirt, amiable and conversant, opening the floor for questions and song “suggestions” and offering generous anecdotes about his life and career, including collaborations with the late Burt Bacharach and the machinations of his A&M Records label with his late partner Jerry Moss. He referenced playing Cobo Arena back in 1974 and quipped that “I love coming to a place that’s older than me” as he gazed around the nearly 100-year-old Cathedral Theatre.
One of those stories was about being convinced to sing on his 1968 Bacharach/Hal David-written single “This Guy’s in Love with You,” which he used as an introduction for his wife, Lani Hall, who performed three songs.
Alpert choked up while talking about meeting Hall when she was part of the late Sergio Mendes’ Brasil ’66, and she was equally emotional in describing her relationship with both men.
Alpert received an impromptu “Happy Birthday” from the Masonic crowd after “A Taste of Honey,” joining in with his trumpet at the end. And he used a rendition of Charlie Chaplin’s “Smile” to pay tribute to Moss, Bacharach, Mendes and Karen Carpenter, one of his hands-on signings to A&M.
It was hardly an old guy sitting (and standing) around telling tales, however. Alpert’s chops are still sharp from practicing every day, and the current Brass was in tight sync throughout the night, complementing Alpert’s performances with spot-on recitations of instrumental pop favorites such as “The Lonely Bull (El solo toro),” “Whipped Cream,” “Spanish Flea” (aka “The Dating Game” theme song), “Ladyfingers,” “Lollipops and Roses” and more. Bill Cantos provided textures on piano, marimba and occasional background vocals, and a few lengthier selections — a cover of the Clovers’ “Love Potion No. 9,” Alpert’s 1979 hit “Rise” and Mikis theodorakis’ “Zorba’s Dance” from the film “Zorba’s the Greek” — gave the group a chance to stretch out and pass the musical ball between all six members.
During one of his discourses Alpert spoke about the joy he gets from making people happy with his music. On Tuesday he could certainly add the couple of thousand at the Masonic to that list of the pleased.
