Albert Hammond

Albert Hammond ( born May 18, 1944 in London) is a singer- songwriter and music producer. He wrote such hits as It Never Rains in Southern California, The Air That I Breathe and One Moment in Time.

Albert Hammond was born in 1944 as one of three children in London. A few months after his birth, his parents took him back to Gibraltar, where the roots of his family are.

At the age of nine years, Hammond sang in the church choir. Around the same time made ​​his uncle the first demo recordings with him. With 14 years of Hammond graduated with his friend Richard Cartwright his first performances, they performed as " Albert & Richard " in Gibraltar and Spain. In 1960 he left school and started with Cartwright and other musicians, including his brother Leslie, the band ' The Diamond Boys ". Their repertoire consisted of English and Spanish rock and roll, and the band was very popular in Spain.

During this time they sent their first recordings New Orleans and Fool in Love to England, where they were released by Parlophone. A few months later made ​​"The Diamond Boys" a tour of Morocco, where she appeared in various clubs in Casablanca. From the tour back they won first place at the Circo Price Music Festival in Madrid. This event brought the band into contact with RCA, where they released their second single.

Breakthrough and career

At the age of 18 years, Hammond moved back to England, where he 1966 radio host Mike Hazlewood met. Together, the pair wrote songs for other artists; Hammond Hazlewood wrote and contributed the lyrics for. The first of the two international hit in 1968 Little Arrows in the interpretation of Leapy Lee.

In 1966 he founded with Steve Rowland, Mike Hazlewood and singer Christine Holmes group The Family Dogg. It existed until 1972 and released the albums A Way of Life (1969) and View from Rowland 's Head (1972). The Rare Bird Sympathy composition they had a hit in 1970 ( # 2 on the Dutch charts ).

Hammond moved to the U.S. where he with the also made ​​in collaboration with Hazlewood It Never Rains in Southern California made ​​his breakthrough as a singer in the fall of 1972. The song debuted in the U.S. charts at number five in Germany and in ninth place and was thereafter often gecovert, such as Sonny & Cher of (1974 ) or by Smokie ( 2000).

It was followed by other solo successes of Hammond as The Free Electric Band (1973 ), The Peacemaker (1974 ), I'm a Train ( 1974), Everything I Want to Do (1974) and Down by the River ( 1975) - one of the first songs against pollution of rivers by industrial areas.

In addition to English songs Hammond also took on numerous songs in Spanish. His solo career, he abruptly ended in 1982 with the album Somewhere In America. In 1987, the two-man album Hammond & West, whose single release Give a Little Love yet appeared, however, no longer able to build on the earlier successes.

Songwriting

In the late 1980s it was quieter around Hammond as a singer, he focused mainly on songwriting. He has written international hits such as The Air That I Breathe ( Hollies ), 99 Miles From LA ( Art Garfunkel ), One Moment in Time (Whitney Houston ), When I Need You ( Leo Sayer ), Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now ( Starship ), To All the Girls I've Loved Before ( Willie Nelson & Julio Iglesias), I Do not Wanna Lose You, Way of the World (Tina Turner), and When You Tell Me That You Love Me (Diana Ross). In 2008 he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

In addition to Mike Hazlewood he wrote with Diane Warren, John Bettis and Hal David, the former partner of Burt Bacharach songs for Tom Jones, Joe Cocker, Celine Dion, Chris De Burgh, the Carpenters and Ace of Base, he also worked with the German singer Sandra Black Main.

Together with Duffy wrote and produced most of the tracks on their second, 2010 released album Endlessly.

Presence

On 19 November 2010 appeared a new album with Legend. It includes Hammonds classics that were re-recorded with well-known duet partners. Also included is a duet with his son, Albert Hammond Jr., guitarist of The Strokes is. On October 25, 2013 ( Germany, UK: November 11, 2013) appeared Hammond's new live album, " Songbook 2013 - Live in Wilhelmshaven ."

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