Legendary musician, artist, record label executive, and philanthropist Herb Alpert has shared a new single “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” ahead of the release of his 50th studio album, aptly titled 50, on Friday.
The Elvis Presley hit serves as the album’s oldest composition. Written in 1927, it embodies everything Alpert looks for in a tune: “simple and striking at the same time,” he says. Alpert gives the melody the most space of any on the album; his trumpet line cuts through, stark and intimate, over a bed of piano and synthesized strings.
“Are You Lonesome Tonight?” follows lead single “Dancing Down 50th Street,” a dance track mixing the flavor of his Tijuana Brass days with a modern groove, and also one of Alpert’s several brand new original compositions featured on the album.
50 will mark a milestone in Alpert’s storied six-decade music career, and will also commemorate another significant landmark as it celebrates 50 years of marriage to his wife, collaborator, and touring partner, Lani Hall, their golden anniversary.
"I am fortunate to still be exploring and having fun making music,” stated Alpert. “When I first started recording, I had a one-track wire recorder. Today I make music using digital recording with unlimited recording tracks. The one thing, for me, that has always remained the same, no matter one-track, two-tracks or 100 tracks, is that it is ALWAYS about finding a great song or melody. A great song or melody recorded on one-track will always be a great song.”
Many of the songs on 50 date back to the 1950s, including pop-vocal, rock’n’roll, and jazz favorites. It was the decade when Alpert got his start in the record industry, still a few years out from his career-making success with the Tijuana Brass, the young songwriter was learning lessons that helped him shape his signature musical voice.
Alpert is doing select concert dates through the end of the year (see below).
Track Listing:
01) Dancing Down 50th Street
02) Sh-Boom
03) Are You Lonesome Tonight?
04) Baubles, Bangles And Beads
05) Morning Mist
06) Never Too Late
07) Where Do We Go From Here
08) Sleep Walk
09) Corcovado
10) Jeannine
03) Are You Lonesome Tonight?
04) Baubles, Bangles And Beads
05) Morning Mist
06) Never Too Late
07) Where Do We Go From Here
08) Sleep Walk
09) Corcovado
10) Jeannine
ABOUT HERB ALPERT & THE HERB ALPERT FOUNDATION:
Alpert’s extraordinary musicianship has earned him 9 GRAMMY® Awards (the latest from his 2014 album Steppin’ Out), 15 Gold albums, 14 Platinum albums and has sold over 72 million records. Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass propelled his sound into the pop music limelight, at one point outselling the Beatles two to one. Alpert has a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts by Barack Obama in 2013. Alpert also has a second career as an abstract expressionist painter and sculptor with group and solo exhibitions around the United States and Europe.
As an industry leader, Alpert’s commitment to artists with personal vision guided A&M Records (with partner Jerry Moss) from a Hollywood garage operation into one of the most successful independent record labels in music history, with stars including Janet Jackson, Quincy Jones, Cat Stevens, The Carpenters, Carole King, Sheryl Crow, Peter Frampton, The Police and scores of others.
Through the Herb Alpert Foundation, Herb and Lani have dedicated their lives to philanthropy, funding programs that help bring creativity to young students and keep creativity alive for all the arts, for artists young and old, including jazz education and programs that teach compassion and well-being. May 2022 marked the 28th anniversary of the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts celebrating 140 awardees over the past 28 years. 2021 also brought the opening of the newly remodeled Harlem School of the Arts at the Herb Alpert Center, funded entirely by Herb and Lani Alpert. During the pandemic, the foundation dramatically increased its emergency funding to artists in need through organizations such as Chrysalis, the Jazz Foundation, the Good People’s Fund and Artists Relief.
Tour Dates:
10/08 - Folsom, CA @ Harris Center
10/09 - Campbell, CA @ Campbell Heritage Theatre
10/10 - Walnut Creek, CA @ Lesher Center for the Arts
10/12 - Santa Barbara, CA @ Lobero Theatre
10/13 - Scottsdale, AZ @ Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts
12/10 - Nashville, TN @ TBA
12/11 - Chattanooga, TN @ TBA
12/13 - Atlanta, GA @ TBA
12/14 - Metairie, LA @ TBA
12/15 - Houston, TX @ TBA
02/11 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ TBA
02/12 - Sarasota, FL @ TBA
02/13 - Orlando, FL @ TBA
02/15 - Augusta, GA @ TBA
02/16 - Charlotte, NC @ TBA
10/09 - Campbell, CA @ Campbell Heritage Theatre
10/10 - Walnut Creek, CA @ Lesher Center for the Arts
10/12 - Santa Barbara, CA @ Lobero Theatre
10/13 - Scottsdale, AZ @ Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts
12/10 - Nashville, TN @ TBA
12/11 - Chattanooga, TN @ TBA
12/13 - Atlanta, GA @ TBA
12/14 - Metairie, LA @ TBA
12/15 - Houston, TX @ TBA
02/11 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ TBA
02/12 - Sarasota, FL @ TBA
02/13 - Orlando, FL @ TBA
02/15 - Augusta, GA @ TBA
02/16 - Charlotte, NC @ TBA
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