Herb Alpert & Lani Hall At Gates Concert Hall

Herb Alpert & Lani Hall
Gates Concert Hall
Denver, CO
October 14, 2023

Last Saturday, jazz trumpet legend Herb Alpert accompanied Lani Hall, his wife of 50 years, for a sold-out show at the University of Denver's Newman Center, Gates Concert Hall. They've performed together since 2006. Their musical chemistry and shared love were fully displayed at this delightful concert, framed by a back screen showing Alpert's colorful abstract art and videos. "I love to play the horn at these concerts, paint, and sculpt, and I'm married to an angel—what more can I ask for?" declared Alpert. At 88, he's still touring and recording.

Alpert began his professional career in 1957, writing for Jan & Dean, Sam Cooke, and others before he began his own chart success with the Tijuana Brass. As a vocalist, he had a Number 1 hit in 1968 with "This Guy's In Love With You." Wish Upon A Star (Herb Alpert Presents), his 49th album, was released a few weeks ago and debuted at Number 1 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Albums Chart!

Lani Hall is a Grammy Award-winning vocalist and the original lead singer for Sergio Mendes' group Brasil '66. Hall and Mendes have recorded three albums together.

The evening began with a vintage video of Louis Armstrong playing "What a Wonderful World," with Alpert accompanying him on the trumpet. It was a heartwarming salute to his friend and personal musical hero and set the tone for the concert.

From the start, Alpert announced it would be a casual evening and asked if the audience had any questions or memories. The crowd wasn't shy, and some shouted out the times when they met him or how his music touched their lives. "I have something to tell you," exclaimed a lady in the front row who had a long story about her Aunty Dorothy's taste in music. When Alpert tried to bring her tale to a close, she continued, "So, anyway..." Alpert smiled and remarked this happens all the time and segued into a medley of his hits.

Alpert and Hall were accompanied by a talented trio featuring Bill Cantos (keyboards), "Prince" Hussain Jiffry (bass), and Ricardo "Tiki" Pasillas (drums/percussion). Each band member took separate solos during the concert: Cantos did a call-and-response with Alpert, Pasillas' drum solo included a pair of squawking rubber chickens, and Alpert and Jiffry paired off for an improvisational piece.

When Alpert paid tribute to composer Burt Bacharach, with an image on the screen behind him, he explained the origins of "This Guy's in Love With You." "We were doing a special for NBC when producer Jack Haley, Jr suggested I sing a song because he was tired of filming me playing the trumpet," recalled Alpert. The trumpeter reached out to Bacharach for a tune. Alpert said he nailed the vocal track in one take. Two weeks after its release, it went Number 1. He asked the audience to sing along with him, joking, "What key would you like?"

Alpert admitted he didn't have the same vocal luck with "Close To You" and gave the song to The Carpenters, which was their breakthrough record. Images of The Carpenters were among the montage of scrapbook photos and music videos from his career on the screens surrounding the stage.

Lani Hall took center stage and performed moving renditions of "Just Like A Star" and "Seasons of Love," along with a medley of Sergio Mendes hits on which she sang.

The most open-book moment for Alpert and the audience came midway through the show. He mentioned a difficult time in his life when he experienced problems playing the trumpet after a divorce. But that all turned around when he met Carmine Caruso, a New York trumpet teacher known as "The Troubleshooter."

"The trumpet is just a piece of plumbing, an amplifier...," Caruso explained to Alpert, ..."and you're the instrument, and the instrument comes from within you." Alpert said, "He gave me the brass ring, and I try to share that wisdom with young players I meet." This kind spirit was evident throughout the stories, music, and interactions on stage among the musicians.

Overall, the Herb Alpert and Lani Hall concert experience was more than just an evening of greatest hits medleys—it was an intimate look at both iconic musicians who have contributed so much throughout their careers. Alpert remarked that they try to make each show unique, not just a cookie-cutter presentation. Adding, "It's all improvisation."

He mentioned his merch for sale in the lobby, calling it "a lot of stuff you don't need," adding that he donates any money he makes from it to charity. When was the last time you heard that at a concert?

Setlist What a Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong cover); Work Song (Nina Simone cover); What Now My Love (Gilbert Bécaud cover); Tim Dom Dom; One Note Samba; Herb Alpert Medley: Rise / Whipped Cream / The Lonely Bull / The Mexican Shuffle / Tijuana Taxi / A Taste of Honey; This Guy's in Love With You (Burt Bacharach cover); Just Like A Star (Corinne Bailey Rae cover); Lani Hall Medley: The Look of Love / Fool on the Hill / Like a Lover / Never Say Never Again / Mas Que Nada; Ladyfingers (Toots Thielemans cover); I'm Yours (Jason Mraz cover); Seasons of Love (Jonathan Larson cover); Ain't No Sunshine (Bill Withers cover); Piano improv, drums and bass solos; Fly Me To The Moon (Bart Howard cover).

Encore Putting On The Ritz (Irving Berlin cover); We've Only Just Begun (Roger Nichols and Paul Williams cover); On the Sunny Side of the Street (Jimmy McHugh cover); Copacabana (at the Copa) (Barry Manilow cover)