Hollywood Bowl – July 5 2026
I mentioned this one to Julie and since she was going to be in town, we decided to give it a shot. We did not have high hopes. The last time we saw Herb Alpert it was at the Soraya at CSUN. He did a quick medley of Tijuana Brass and then the evening devolved into sappy show tune duets with his wife Lani Hall. We didn’t stay for the whole show. I think it’s only the second show we didn’t make to the end, and we have seen A LOT of shows.
This was my first time trying out the new formerly-Culver-City bus line but now Baldwin Hills bus line. Santa Monica is just so bad – it’s at least an hour on the bus to get to the Bowl and then you have to walk through the tunnel to get back to the bus after the show. My husband was not thrilled about me being at Crenshaw Plaza at 11:30pm by myself, so this seemed like a good opportunity to try it with a friend. I have to say it was totally fine. It’s in the parking lot of the permanently closed Macy’s so the only people there are people who are going to the Bowl. The same guys from Culver City are there and after all these years they know me. Since I don’t have to inch my way down La Cienega to the train station, it took me about the same amount of time as the Culver City location, even though it’s a bit farther.
There was no opening act. The show opened with an extended montage of Paul Williams moments, which was entertaining. And then Paul Williams came out on stage to introduce Herb Alpert. He spoke for several minutes about what Herb Alpert has meant to him and ended with a story about his brother, whom Herb also hired as a songwriter at A&M.
Herb came out with a jaunty little step and then sat in an office chair for the duration of his set. He’s 91. He can go in bursts. He still managed to play the entire set. There were a few tough runs that he left to the very capable chops of Kris Bergh. The band was fantastic and all the songs sounded just like I wanted them to sound. He did them all – The Lonely Bull, Whipped Cream, Spanish Flea, Tijuana Taxi…He even sang This Guy’s In Love With You. All the while they showed clips of a very young Herb Alpert and Tijuana Brass. I was surprised at how much footage they had from a time when music videos were not a thing. Julie kept saying he was just so handsome, so maybe that’s why. At one point the imagery changed to beautiful artwork. I found out later that it was Herb’s art. The man is multi-talented!
This show was everything we had hoped the other show would be. I’m so glad we decided to give Herb another chance.