By the love shown for his 50-year-old hit song

crowds I’ve ever played to.’’

This time round, Humperdinck says Kiwis can expect to hear a selection of classics, plus a number of songs from his 2017 album

The album is a love letter to his wife Patricia Healey, who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease.

The record features a small handful of covers alongside a number of original songs, one of which now stands as an important piece of Humperdinck family history. was written by Humperdinck’s daughter Louise Sarah Dorsey and her partner Tony Taliaferro, and features the vocals of his granddaughter Olivia Taliaferro.

He says Olivia, who was just 9 at the time of recording, ‘‘sings these lyrics that were written for my wife so well’’.

‘‘I met my wife at a dance hall when she was 17, and that’s what the song is all about, that I met her when she was 17 and we’ve been together ever since,’’ he says.

The album, which Humperdinck confidently states is ‘‘one of the best I’ve ever done’’, also includes re-arranged covers of the Ed Sheeran hit

and the Bruno Mars song

He says the decision to include contemporary songs from young artists has ‘‘worked out amazing’’.

First and foremost he admires their work, but he’s also quick to point out that ties on the Bruno Mars track run deeper than most would be aware.

‘‘The Bruno Mars song has quite the story attached to it,’’ he says, pausing for effect.

‘‘I met Bruno Mars in Hawaii many, many years ago, and he performed for me at one of my fan club parties. He was 5 years old at the time. I said, ‘young man, you’re going to be a big star’.

‘‘But he’s not big, he’s a mega star, and so now I’m recording one of his songs.’’

‘‘I believe we played to quarter of a million people at one time. I couldn’t see the back of the crowd, it was that big.’’

Engelbert Humperdinck

Tickets for Humperdinck’s Auckland and Wellington shows are available via Ticketmaster. Tickets for his Christchurch show can be bought from Ticketek.