Albert Hammond

This is one of my favorite cd's. He has such a beautiful and soothing voice.

The music and songs are wonderful. I have this CD in my car and listen to it over and over. It is especially well done. I am enjoying every song the more I listen to them. "The Prayer" with Charlotte Church is one you can sing to.

I specifically purchased this album after seeing a video on Youtube. It was a song that briefly was played on the radio, I never could catch the title. The song is "To where you are." I abosolutely love the song and was happy to finally find it.

When Josh first appeared on an episode of Ally McBeal, I was mesmerized. The boy (at the time he was 16) can sing!! I love his work... he does not disappoint!

There is nothing you can say about Josh Groban except that his voice is like a piece of heaven...

This DVD provides a glimpse of Josh Groban when he was 21 or 22 years old, a world of difference from him today. His music is sweet and tender, as is his demeanor. A few differences exist in the music shown on this DVD when compared with his CD that came out in 2001; otherwise they are the same. My earlier comment isn't meant to detract from Josh today; he has evolved as stardom has made him a truly bigtime item in the firmament. But if you want to see him when he was a relatively fresh face, you shouldn't miss this album.

For those of you unfamiliar with Josh Groban this is a great way to start. It is his first cd - self titled - What a voice. He has several other cd's as well as dvd's (awesome by the way) He changed my life - We call ourselves Grobonites a proud name to bear. Whatever you've heard about the music - if you haven't listened you truly need to. You will not be sorry about the investmant you've made. He has a charitable foundation that helps bring medicine and drinking water to villages in Africa. His foundation also works with AIDS patients. I've actually met him and was able to tell him that he helped me thru Cancer his voice kept me going thru some tough times. Please just listen once. (and it doesn't hurt that he's cute too!)

I was given "Noel" by Josh Groban as a gift. I immediately realized that a "this is a voice unlike any other." After receiving the Josh Groban in Concert DVD and the accompaning CD, I realized that even this had been an understatement. Josh's voice lends itself equally to the classical, near operatic songs, and to the sweet, pop like love ballads. The DVD is well over an hour of nonstop music, and also has backstage coverage which was shot by Josh's brother, Chris, and other coverage of the making of the DVD. If you're a Josh fan, this is a must have. If you are not as yet acquainted with this great talent, try this DVD and I guarantee you will be wanting more of this amazing voice.

This DVD will be always betwen my tresures.
I Love it.

Maria

Very disappointed in the product I love the artist but was not impressed with the DVD It needed to be stated that it was not in English

I honestly wasn't expecting a sophomore album from Hammond, mostly because I'd hoped to see a Strokes album drop at some point in 2008. However, I was still extremely excited to hear the good news. Just as good as his debut, ¿Cómo Te Llama? contains 46 minutes of Strokes-like guitar goodness with somewhat better lyrics and more special guests. Hammond's line up for the album consists of Josh Lattanzi on bass and Matt Romano on drums. Marc Philippe Eskanazi also contributed to the album, and supposedly, Sean Lennon plays piano on "Spooky Couch." The album was produced by Albert himself and recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York. I don't blame Hammond for taking some time off from working on the new Strokes album. Also, as long as the rest of the band is off working on their own side projects, he may as well take advantage of the time he has.

¿Como Te Llama? (2008, Red Ink) Albert Hammond, Jr's second studio album. ***

I suppose ¿Como Te Llama? can't be too much of a surprise, Hammond hasn't the artistic integrity or genius to stray too far from what the Strokes do without completely changing genres. To his benefit, he did add some electronic sounds, which, somehow, don't sound too out of place. Like anything the Strokes do, Hammond's solo album starts off great but wears down after awhile, for there's nothing we really haven't heard before, and it becomes nothing more than another generic garage-rock revival piece. Granted, the first two tracks are exhilerating, and the long instrumental "Spooky Couch" is, while seemingly from nowhere, a pleasure to listen to. That being said, the rest of the album is mostly a bore. A decent bore, but still a bore. And by the way, are fans of Hammond going to willingly accept the fact that he blatanlty lifted the vocals for "Lisa" from Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars"? It was a pretty popular song, buddy, I think people might notice.

Albert Hammond Jr., best known as the Strokes' rhythm guitarist, has really come on strongly since the Strokes have gone on a long (did I say long?) sabbatical following the early 2006 release of their "First Impressions of Earth" album. His first album, the really surprising (in a good way) "Yours To Keep", was released in the UK in late 2006 (and here in the US in early 2007). Now comes the follow-up.

"¿Como Te Llama?" (13 tracks, 46 min.) starts off with a strikingly Strokes-like "Bargain of a Century" and the great tracks just keep on coming: "In My Room", GfC" (first radio single) and "Victory at Monterrey" (reminding me of the Breeders) among others. Regretfully, the flow of the album is almost fatally stopped by a 7+ min. sparse instrumental "Spooky Couch", which goes nowhere and is about 6 min. too long. Thankfully, the tracks that follow restore order: "Borrowed Time", which starts off as an Elvis Costello-like stumper from the 70s, "G Up" (another Strokes-like song), and the closer "Feed Me Jack Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Peter Sellers", a perfectly off-beat but charming way to end the album.

In all, this is a really satisfying album (even despite that "Spooky Couch" clunker), and it makes me really wonder whether this is simply a side-project for Hammond, or "is this it" (given the Strokes' long inactivity, with no sign of new music coming any time soon). The album I got (which I bought here from Amazon) came as a "Deluxe Edition" with an "exclusive sticker" (the cover art but with the guys in the picture) and also a link to download a full length video concert from a show last Fall in New York (which I haven't had time yet to check out).

No words could do this album justice! Musically, this album is much more complicated and experimental his debut Yours to Keep release. However, Como Te Llama is just as good if not better. I can't stop listening to it! The melodies are so beautuful and infectous that I would go so far as to compare Albert to a modern day Brian Wilson. Don't hesitate to pick this one up!

How does he/she/it call you? is the translation of Como Te Llama in Spanish... So what does that mean? Shouldn't Albert have titled the album ¿Cómo te llamas? This would be asking what's your name? This is all I have read in reviews of this album, and to me, the spanish conjugation of llamar doesn't matter when it comes to this music. Albert has such a distinct voice and style of playing the guitar that you know it's him once you hear him say "It seems it's been such a long time" from the opener Bargain of A Century. You hear the Strokes influences, obviously due to Albert being the rhythm guitarist of the Strokes. But there's something more here...something different than the Strokes. Albert's tails of heartache and happiness can brighten anyone's day. My favorite part of Albert's music is the chord changes. Beautiful melodies and great guitar solos make the music on the album shine. After listening to the album about 20 times, I can't find a song I dislike. I need to look at all of the lyrics to fully understand every song, but if you are looking for a rock-n-roll album that will stay in your CD-player for months, look no further. Out of thirteen tracks on the album, my top 5 are:

5. Bargain of a Century
4. In My Room
3. You Won't Be Fooled By This
2. Feed Me Jack Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Peter Sellers
1. Lisa

I wouldn't have even know anything about Albert Hammond, Jr. if he weren't set to tour with Incubus last year. After seeing him perform live I just had to get his "Yours To Keep" album.

I recommend this album if you like Modest Mousse or Fran Ferdinand. I love this album. It's alway in my shuffle.

This album is good but it's unfortunate that it comes from a Stroke in the sense that there have been many a band that do this sort of thing way better and the best of the lot (The Realistics, Supergrass, etc.) have sadly slipped under the radar. This album does have a number of "cringe" moments like the "Sugar Ray" part at the end of "Bright Young Thing" but they get evened out with a couple of solid numbers. Not bad for Mr. Fro. and his crew of socialites.

Albert Hammond Jr. is "that other guy" to the Strokes lead singer Julian Casablancas, Hammond being the capable guitarist (and son of ...), but it's never been very clear how much he contributed to the Strokes' mysic (Casablancas writes all the lyrics). This album, Hammond's first solo outing away from the Strokes, brings perspective.

On "Yours to Keep" (12 tracks; 40 min.), the opener "Cartoon Music for Super Heroes" is like a blast from the 1960s Beach Boys. Upbeat "In Transit" is probably as close a Strokes song as anything on this album, and I love it. "Everyone Gets A Star" and "Bright Young Thing" are just about as good. "101" (1st single) is another one of those Strokes-sounding songs, and caps of an incredible first half of the album, which I rate 5 stars. The second half slows down considerably, although there as still some great moments like "Scared" (which features Julian Casablancas and Sean Lennon) and "Hard to Live in the City". The last 2 tracks of the album ("Postal Blowfish", which is just excellent, and "Well... All Right") are listed as "bonus tracks", but why is unclear to me, they simply sound like part of the album proper.

I have to admit that I really did not know what to expect from Hammond's solo debut, and I was very pleasantly surprised by this album. It flows by smoothly and at 40 min., it's over before you know it. One of the better surprises of the yeat so far for me.

Who knew that Hammond jr. had such an incredible voice?! A few of the songs are reminiscent of the strokes sound...which is not a bad thing! All in all, a great find!

It's hard not to hear The Strokes all over this album, and why not, that's the band from wence he came. My trouble with the album is that he doesn't do enough to get away from the sound of The Strokes. This kind of sounds like a loosely thrown together Strokes album.

With that said, this is still a solid album. There is not a bad song on this thing, and 101 blew me away when I heard it. There is nothing not to like about this album, but it's just "a not quite as good version" of The Strokes - which still isn't all that bad.

Standout Track: 101

Good selection of instrumental themes, as the title says, "hard to find" in some other releases like the original Nadia`s theme.
I recommend this album as a soft listening for special situations.

All beautiful forgotten (not by me) songs with three magnificent gems: 1.Beautiful obsession (nick name;Sir Chauncey) 2.The dark at the top of the stairs (Percy Faith) 3.Moonglow (George Cates).
Wonderful sound, great remastering job by Eric Records (not a surprise) sounds better than songs recorded 2 decades later.
80% true full STEREO, the heart&soul of this CD are songs that go from 1956 to 1964 and they sound like if they were born yesterday.
If music is part of your life also this CD is.
Ciao,
Franco

Back in 2002, one thing I shared with many other completist collectors of hit singles from the 1950s and 1960s was ever seeing a CD version of the George Cates version of Moonglow And The Theme From "Picnic."

I wrote to Bill Buster of Eric Records about that [and several others in the "impossible-to-find" category] sometime later that year, and within a few weeks he called me and we had a nice conversation about the frustrations of those of us trying to find CD versions of some long-lost hits.

Now whether or not that conversation had anything to do with this Volume appearing on the market I can't say - but I was so happy to see, not only the Cates version of that song, but Raymond Lefevre's The Day The Rains Came, and Nelson Riddle's hit "Route 66" Theme in its original format. Thank you Bill Buster and keep them coming please.

All the other selections in this compilation are appreciated as well, from those that charted [performances are shown on the reverse], to the non-hits [tracks 8, 11, 19, and 20] which, when you hear them, will leave you wondering WHY they were not hits themselves. Especially Franck Pourcel's rendition of Chariot (I Will Follow Him}, the vocal version of which was, of course, a huge hit for Peggy March in 1963.

Normally, the best such compilations around come from Ace Records of London, but this Hard-to-Find series produced by Bill Buster stands right up there with them. Not only for the music, but for the great liner notes in each set as well, in this instance six pages written by one of the best around, Joseph E. Laredo. And, as usual, the sound quality is excellent.

For the record, seven of the 20 selections [tracks 1, 2, 3, 5, 12, 13, and 17] were originally Top 40 hits, another six [tracks 6, 7, 9, 14, 15, and 18] made the Top 100, and tracks 4, 10, and 16 were all on the "bubble under" Billboard charts. A bit of interest was in finding that Sir Chauncey & his exciting strings [track 6] was, in reality, Ernie Freeman of Raunchy fame.

The version of "Nadia's Theme" (Theme from The Young and the Restless) isn't actually the one you're expecting. I believe it's actually the original arrangement made for "Bless the Beasts and the Children". So what later became the Young and the Restless theme (the one that was a hit) still remains unreleased on CD.

Hopefully, we can see that version on a future release. Maybe they could get "Little Ballerina Blue" on one while they're at it.

Still, some great stuff here.

El tema de nadia es una de las canciones mas excelentes de la historia de la musica

With 22 tracks of absolutely wonderful songs, this album is a good value. Hammond had a few big hits, but never was as popular as he should have been It's difficult to say why not, as he certainly wrote and performed many excellent songs, many of them on this album. He was probably more successful as a songwriter than as a performer and wrote several huge hits for other artists. I only knew Hammond from "It Never Rains in Southern California". It's still a favorite, but almost all the songs on this album are equally as good or better. There's not a bad song on the album. This is one of those artists that you can't help but wonder why you didn't discover sooner. Finding this album was like finding a lost treasure. Hammond doesn't have a perfect voice or as much passion or feeling as some singers, but even without that he is still a darn good singer and this is a very enjoyable and satisfying album. You won't be disappointed.

You may say who is Albert Hammond? This is truly an amazing listen. You can hear elements of the likes of Cat Stevens and The Guess Who. The first ten songs are from the original album, "It Never Rains In Southern California," a master work in itself on par with the likes of "Tea For The Tillerman." It Never Rains In Southern California is a catchy tune that turned out to be a top 10 hit for Hammond, but actually one of the weakest songs on the album. "From Great Britain To LA" is a delicious song about stardom; "If You Gotta Break Another Heart" is a beautiful and meditative song we can all relate to; "Down By The River" and "The Road To Understanding" are anthem-like folk-rock tunes that you will enjoy. The greatest song is "Names, Tags, Numbers, Labels," a song of both melodic and philosphic depth. In conclusion, this is a must-have for anyone who enjoys the folk-rock genre.

Singer/songwriter Albert Hammond's greatest hits collection (culled from his first three albums) features his endearing ode to the often futile search for stardom, "It Never Rains in Southern California", a seventies pop classic if ever there was one. But don't stop there. "Down By the River" (not the Neil Young tune)is a catchy anti-pollution protest, "The Free Electric Band" is an apparent musical autobiography, and "I'm a Train" an infectious novelty. You'll also enjoy the Hammond compositions "The Air That I Breathe" (a smash for the Hollies), and "Smokey Factory Blues" (covered by Steppenwolf), plus numerous other folky pop gems. Remember, this is the man who penned classics for Leo Sayre, Starship, Willie Nelson, Ziggy Marley, and countless others, so he knows his way around a melody. Check out "Names, Tags, Numbers, and Labels", "The Peacemaker," and "The Day the British Army Lost the War", and you too, will be a believer. An interesting footnote; Albert Hammond Jr. plays guitar in the recently hot band The Strokes.

I'm getting a new CD from Albert Hammond for my aunt,uncle,cousins for christmas this year one for Victoria & Shasha as a gift from me.

This CD contains all the songs from Albert Hammond's first two solo albums (It never rains in Southern California, 1972/The free electric band, 1973) - which are among his best ones - in their original order, as well as two songs from his third LP, Albert Hammond (1974).

This sounds very unspectacular and could make you think that this CD is just a more or less ordinary re-release of some ordinary albums - but because of the over-average lyrics and the outstanding production, it could easily be a "best of" compilation (by far not complete, though):

Only It never rains in Southern California, Down by the river, The air that I breathe and The free electric band being really popular, this CD contains several underestimated gems, e.g. Anyone here in the audience, Names, tags, numbers & labels, The road to understanding, Smokey factory blues, Rebecca...

The Albert Hammond/Mike Hazlewood songwriting team was/is without doubt one of the greatest gifts of the Seventies' music world. But please be aware that Hammond didn't leave the business after these efforts; hopefully, Sony will prove this by re-releasing more of his works.

See alberthammond.net, my website about this great singer/songwriter (supported by Albert Hammond himself), for more details on his life and music.

I bought this cd primarily for one song.(Down by the River)
I have his other two good songs-(It never Rains...& Free Electric
Band)already. I was disappointed to see that they decided to replace the original song with a 1976 version, which I have Never heard before. They did this with many others as well.
I really thought I Could trust Sony, but I guess they're not immuned to screwing up GH CDs either.What were they thinking?
I guess I'll have to buy another cd and hope for better luck.

As you get to know this artist, you'll begin to feel like him, and you'll be able to experience those feelings completely by having and enjoying this great album. This is a great incursion in spanish music. In fact, A MUST-HAVE!

does anyone realize that you're paying quadrupal the price for one extra track??? where's the deal in that? i'll take my original "josh groban" US '01 cd and listen to it for 12 bucks instead of paying 30 extra dollars to listen to ONE extra track... seriously people... im a grobanite, and a member of his "friends of josh groban" fan club, but im not stupid! even as a dedicated fan i cant see the monetary benefit of owning this "rip off" cd. sorry josh... but 42 bucks for one of your cd's is a little much... and those who have bought it already, must have that kind of money to burn on music... which most normal people dont. and yes i still gave the cd a 5-star rating because i cant, in my right mind, give a josh groban cd any less than that! if youre willing to pay for that extra song, i dont know if it will be worth it, but im sure it will be enjoyable if youre already a fan. but if this is your first time buying a jg cd, id suggest a US copy...

The collaboration of carefully crafted orchestrations, substantial content, and astonishing vocal talent have combined to produce one of the richest and most enjoyable listening experiences to arrive in many years. The music was lavish and varied, ranging from lyrical ballads sung in Italian to a sincere yet polished cover of Don McLean's Vincent. Josh Groban possesses a velvety, richly textured voice that brings each piece to life with a youthful freshness while maintaining respect for the music that is simply magic to behold in one so young. I enjoyed this CD immensely and would recommend this to music lovers of all ages and tastes.

Of all the Albums I've ever owned, Josh Groban's self-titled debut album is my all-time favorite. I love almost of all of Josh's music, but this album is totally unique. I find the wide variety of music encompassed in this album totally awe-inspiring. It is the most played album I've ever owned. My recent purchase of this album with the bonus track, "Mia Per Sempre," was like adding the perfect desert to a delicious meal.
I would highly recommend it!

This CD is a treasure trove of tracks, from the opening, "Alla Luce del Sole" to the end duet with the incredible Charlotte Church. Josh's rendering of "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" is the best I've ever heard in or out of a cathedral. This is a delight to the ear and would make a wonderful gift to any classical fan, as well as an excellent intro to people who want to learn to appreciate it. My newest favorite CD! Highly recommend!

josh groban is beyond genius. if you love a great voice, he is the one to buy. i have is regular cd so i bought this cd just for the song mia per sempre. and it is definetly worth the extra money.