Albert Hammond

Pop/rock singer, songwriter and guitarist Albert Louis Hammond was born on May 18, 1944 in London, England. He was the second of three children. His father was a firefighter. Hammond grew up in Gibraltar and learned how to fluently speak both English and Spanish. Albert sang in the church as a kid and was a choir boy. In 1958 Hammond and his friend Richard Cartwright began performing as a duo in both Spain and Gibraltar. In 1960 Albert joined the band The Diamond Boys, who performed at nightclubs in Madrid. Hammond subsequently dropped out of school to pursue a career in music. In 1966 Albert co-founded the British vocal group Family Dogg, who had a Top 10 UK radio hit with "A Way of Life" in 1966. It was during this time that Hammond met fellow musician and future songwriting collaborator Mike Hazelwood. In 1972 Albert scored a massive international smash with the fine and touching song "It Never Rains in Southern California;" the song peaked at #5 on the US pop charts and sold a million copies worldwide. Such equally excellent follow-up songs as "The Free Electric Band," "Down by the River," "I'm a Train," and "I Don't Wanna Die in an Air Disaster" likewise did well. Among the many artists Hammond has co-written songs for are The Hollies ("The Air That I Breathe"), Johnny Matthis ("99 Miles from LA"), Leapy Lee ("Little Arrows"), Joe Dolan ("Make Me an Island," "You're Such a Good Looking Woman"), The Pipkins ("Gimme Dat Ding"), Chicago (""I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love"), Johhny Cash ("Smokey Factory Blues"), Willie Nelson and Julio Iglesias ("To All the Girls I've Loved Before"), Leo Sayer ("When I Need You"), Tina Turner ("Love Thing," "I Don't Wanna Lose You"), Ziggy Marley & The Melodymakers ("Give a Little Love"), and Starship ("Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now"). In the late 70's Albert recorded a bunch of Spanish language singles and albums that were extremely successful in Spain. In 1988 Hammond wrote "One Moment in Time," which was performed by Whitney Houston at the Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. More recently Albert released the album "Revolution of the Heart" in 2005. His son Albert Hammond, Jr. is a member of the popular garage rock band The Strokes. Albert Hammond was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 19, 2008.