Albert Hammond
b. 18 May 1944, London, England. Hammond spent most of his boyhood in Gibraltar where he began entertaining professionally at 13. With a brother and his friend Richard Cartwright, he formed the Diamond Boys but, on returning to England, he secured a job with Los Cincos Ricardos, a mariachi combo. In 1966, a meeting with Mike Hazelwood, a Radio Luxembourg presenter, led to a productive songwriting collaboration. After 1968's international success with "Little Arrows" for Leapy Lee, they scored domestically with the Pipkins' "Gimme Dat Ding" - commissioned (like "Little Arrows") for Oliver In The Overworld, an award-winning children's television series. The pair also sang with Magic Lanterns and Family Dogg - whose "Way Of Life" reached the UK Top 10 in 1969 - prior to crossing to Los Angeles to better hawk their collective and separate wares before more prestigious customers. With compositions of less infantile stamp than "Gimme Dat Ding', Hammond became, in 1971, the first artist contracted to the Mums label. Its manager, Bobby Roberts" outlay was mitigated when the second Hammond single, "It Never Rains In Southern California", sold a million in the USA alone and reached the Top 5. After a two-year wait, "The Free Electric Band" also did well, even gaining a toehold on the UK Top 20. His last major hit was in the USA with "I'm A Train".
Listen to Albert Hammond
at Finetune.
Top Tracks
- It Never Rains in Southern California
- The Free Electric Band
Related Artists
Fans