At 90 years old, Herb Alpert is still going strong in all things music.
The celebrated trumpeter is currently on tour with his Tijuana Brass band, with plans to make new music as well, Billboard reports. Oh, and the man who is no stranger to holiday tunes just dropped a new album, Christmas Time Is Here, which features a cover of a certain ’90s classic.
Having dropped on Nov. 7, the LP’s eighth track is titled “All I Want For Christmas Is You” — and yes, it’s a reimagining of Mariah Carey‘s wildly successful holiday jam. Alpert recently opened up to Billboard about why he felt it necessary to put his own spin on it.
“I’m not trying to make a hit record that’s going to sell a zillion copies. I’m just trying to make something that feels good to me. I’m always looking for that. That’s my goal, to make music that feels good,” he told the magazine in an interview article published on Wednesday, Nov. 12. “So when I hit on a type of arrangement just felt right, felt interesting, that’s when I felt like (the songs) deserved to be done again.”
Alpert continued, “I always thought it was a really good song, good melody, nice lyric — it didn’t surprise me that record of hers did so well. It’s always melody first; like Quincy Jones once said, you can take the greatest singer in the world, and if the song’s not there the record won’t be any good.”
It should come as no surprise, meanwhile, that Carey’s O.G. version is already dominating the charts — and we’re still weeks away from December. “All I Want for Christmas Is You” made one of the earliest reentries for a holiday song on the Billboard Hot 100, showing that fans are getting into the festive spirit sooner than ever.
On October 31, Carey, 56, once again signaled that the holiday season had begun, teasing her “defrosting” for Christmas on TikTok.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Nov 13, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
