Trumpeter and pop music icon
Herb Alpert
and his wife, former
Brasil '66
vocalist
Lani Hall
, have recorded and performed together a few times since meeting over 43 years ago. However, it wasn't until 2007 that the duo began touring and performing regularly. In 2009, they released the album
Anything Goes
, which found them interpreting standards and Brazilian music. They followed that album up with 2011's
I Feel You
, which continued in the jazz, Brazilian, and Latin music vein, adding in more contemporary pop songs.
Alpert
and
Hall
's 2013 release,
Steppin' Out
, also features a warm collection of songs that hit upon all the stylistic touchstones of their careers, from '60s novelty instrumentals to Latin music, Brazilian bossa nova, smooth jazz, and American popular song standards. Once again joining
here is their touring ensemble featuring pianist/keyboardist
Bill Cantos
, drummer/percussionist
Michael Shapiro
, and bassist
Hussain Jiffry
.
also reunites
with keyboardist
Jeff Lorber
, who appeared on
's 1997 album,
Passion Dance
, and who produced his 1996 album,
Second Wind
. Generally speaking,
is the most stylistically varied of the three
/
albums, moving from an electronic/dance reworking of "Puttin' on the Ritz" to the atmospheric orchestral ballad "I Only Have Eyes for You,"
's poignant interpretation of
Irving Berlin
's "What'll I Do?," a dramatic symphonic take on
Astor Piazzolla
's 1982 nuevo tango masterpiece "Oblivion," and the smooth funk of the
Lorber
original "Migration." The album even ends with
revisiting his 1963
Tijuana Brass
breakthrough hit "The Lonely Bull," this time with additional orchestral and electronic flourishes that sound less '60s lounge pad and more contemporary James Bond action movie theme, accented by
's
Miles Davis
-influenced soloing. Ultimately,
represents not just the third album in a trilogy, but a loving creative partnership that, for
, spans a lifetime. ~ Matt Collar