Happy Birthday

The legendary Albert Hammond is 80 years old

His songs are better known than his name. Albert Hammond is one of the most successful composers in pop history, but has also celebrated considerable success as a singer. He sang classics such as "It Never Rains In Southern California" or "The Free Electric Band" and wrote global hits such as "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" or "One Moment In Time" for other artists. Many of Albert Hammond's songs are catchy tunes for the ages. Today, on May 18, the Briton turns 80 years old.

The wrinkles on his face bear witness to his 60-year career as a musician. His gray hair is tied back in a ponytail. An earring glitters on his left side. "I've been through some tough times in the last seven or eight years," Hammond tells Deutsche Presse-Agentur in London. "I've been carrying a lot around with me. And I thought I'd get creative again." The result was "Body Of Work", his first studio album with new songs in almost 20 years. "I hoped that music would heal me."

Unexpected divorce
When Hammond talks about difficult times, he is referring to what he describes as the very sudden separation from his second wife Claudia in 2016. The two have a son together, Albert Hammond junior, guitarist in the rock band The Strokes. The divorce after more than 30 years of marriage hit the musician, who has two daughters from his first marriage, hard. "I didn't expect it," he says. "I thought it would be forever."

Then came the coronavirus pandemic, and an autoimmune disease took its toll on him. He is not yet back to full health, but things are steadily improving. Mentally, his return to music had the effect he wanted - it healed him. "Just like it always has," says the pop veteran, immediately appearing more cheerful. "I believe music heals everyone. It could heal the world."

Adventure instead of meticulousness
The passion for his profession is clear to see. Music - and the talent for writing - was in his blood from birth, believes Hammond, who was born in London on May 18, 1944. "There was nothing for me to learn because I'm not a really good musician. I learned three chords as a child because I wanted to play Buddy Holly songs," he says. "I was never one to practice five hours a day or anything like that. I was too free and too mischievous as a kid. I wanted adventure."

Hammond's parents had come to London from Gibraltar during the Second World War and later returned with little Albert. He grew up there. To this day, the Brit, who also lives in Los Angeles and has American citizenship, has a residence on the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula.

The momentum came in America
At the beginning of his career, he tried his luck in Gibraltar with the band The Diamond Boys. He later attracted attention with the pop group The Family Dogg. The young Elton John, the musicians from Led Zeppelin and pop singer Ireen Sheer took part in the recordings. However, it was only when he moved to the USA in the early 1970s that Hammond's music career really took off. In 1972, he released his first solo single "Down By The River" and shortly afterwards the worldwide hit "It Never Rains In Southern California". Further popular singles followed in the years that followed.

At the same time, Hammond made a name for himself as a composer for other artists. With "The Air That I Breathe", written by him and his songwriting partner Mike Hazlewood, The Hollies landed a worldwide hit in 1974. It was something of a fluke for him. "The chords of 'The Air That I Breathe' were unusual at the time." Hammond sensed that he had composed something special.

Unorthodox approach
He has not changed his approach since then. "I put my hand somewhere on the guitar and if it sounds good, I try to remember where my fingers were," he says with a laugh. That worked well. Hammond wrote songs - mostly in collaboration with other artists - for Celine Dion, Chris De Burgh, Diana Ross and Julio Iglesias. The list is long.

Alongside "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now", a number one hit for Starship in the USA, Great Britain and several other countries, and the Olympic anthem "One Moment In Time", with which Whitney Houston topped the charts, Leo Sayer's "When I Need You" is one of Hammond's best-known songs. "Don't Turn Around", originally written for Tina Turner, later became a hit for the British reggae band Aswad and then for the Swedish pop group Ace Of Base. Bonnie Tyler and Neil Diamond also recorded it. Hammond's songs were repeatedly covered by well-known stars. He is said to have penned around 1,000 songs.