Herb Alpert

Alpert has married twice. He married Sharon Mae Lubin in 1956. The couple had two children, Eden and Dore. They divorced in 1971.

In December 1973, Alpert got married to recording artist Lani Hall. The couple has produced many hit albums together. They have a daughter, Aria Alpert, who is an actor.

Herb Alpert was born on March 31, 1935, in Los Angeles, California. His parents were immigrants of Jewish origin. Alpert’s father, a tailor, was also an accomplished mandolin player. His mother was a violinist, and his elder brother was a drummer. Born into a family of musicians, young Alpert was drawn toward music from childhood.

Alpert started taking trumpet lessons at the age of eight. While in high school, he received classical training from Benjamin Klatzkin. As a teenager, he often played at dances.

Alpert graduated from ‘Fairfax High School’ in 1952. Thereafter, he joined the ‘US Army’ and performed regularly at military events. Although he had also ventured into acting, he soon found out that his true talent lay in music. Alpert was a member of the ‘USC Trojan Marching Band’ for two years, while attending the ‘University of Southern California.’ He also made an uncredited appearance as the ‘Drummer on Mt. Sinai’ in the 1956 movie ‘The Ten Commandments.’

In 1957, Alpert began his career as a songwriter for ‘Keen Records.’ Songs such as ‘Baby Talk’ by Jan and Dean and ‘Wonderful World’ by Sam Cooke, which were co-written by him, became instant hits. In 1960, he started working as a vocalist with ‘Dot Records,’ as “Dore Alpert.”

Alpert found a good friend in another musician, Jerry Moss. In 1962, the duo teamed up to form their music company, ‘A&M Records.’ The company had a humble beginning, and in the initial days, Alpert’s garage doubled up as his recording studio. Over the years, ‘A&M’ attained huge success and became one of the biggest independent labels of the country.

While attending a bullfight in Tijuana, Mexico, Alpert happened to hear a local “mariachi” band. He was highly inspired by the lively brass music and the charged-up atmosphere, and tried to incorporate it in his music. This led to the creation of ‘The Lonely Bull,’ the debut album of ‘Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass.’ The album was a big hit and climbed up to No. 6 on the ‘Billboard Pop Singles’ chart.

Initially, ‘Tijuana Brass’ consisted of only Alpert, overdubbing his own trumpet. However, after the success of its first album, there was a growing demand for live performances of ‘Tijuana Brass.’ In 1964, Alpert hired a team of session musicians and formed his band, which became one of the highest-paid bands of the time.

In 1965, ‘A&M Records’ released two albums, ‘Whipped Cream & Other Delights’ and ‘Going Places.’ These albums were among the most popular releases by the company. Many tracks from these albums were frequently played on the radio. ‘A Taste of Honey’ from ‘Whipped Cream’ won a ‘Grammy Award.’ In 1966, ‘Tijuana Brass’ sold over 13 million records, outperforming ‘The Beatles.’

Herb Alpert has won nine ‘Grammy Awards’ in his career. In 2007, he won the ‘Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.’ He has fourteen “platinum” albums and fifteen “gold” albums to his credit.

Alpert has a “star” on the ‘Hollywood Walk of Fame’ for his contribution to the recording industry. In 2006, his name was included in the ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’ for his exceptional work with ‘A&M Records.’

In 1966, Alpert’s name was included in the ‘Guinness Book of World Records,’ as he set a new record of having five of his albums featured among the ‘Top 20’ on the ‘Billboard Pop Album’ chart simultaneously.