"It Never Rains in Southern California" | ||||
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Single by Albert Hammond | ||||
from the album It Never Rains in Southern California | ||||
B-side | "Anyone Here in the Audience" | |||
Released | 1972 | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Genre | Soft rock [1] | |||
Length | 3:19 (Single Version) 3:31 (Album Version) | |||
Label | Mums | |||
Songwriter(s) | Albert Hammond, Mike Hazlewood | |||
Producer(s) | Albert Hammond, Don Altfeld | |||
Albert Hammond singles chronology | ||||
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"It Never Rains in Southern California" is a 1972 song jointly written and composed by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood and sung by Hammond, a British-born singer-songwriter.
The lyrics of "It Never Rains In Southern California" tell a first-person story of a showbiz aspirant whose attempts to break into entertainment were failures, but who wants to hide that fact from those he had left behind to pursue his dreams.
Though Hammond's and Hazlewood's lyrics do not actually specify the narrator's living conditions, it can be inferred that he was found homeless and penniless, a humiliation he would naturally be unwilling to reveal to those he had left behind.
Hammond collaborated with Don Altfeld to produce the selection when he recorded it.
Instrumental backing was provided by L.A. session musicians from the Wrecking Crew, but with Michael Omartian on piano. [2] The song appears on Hammond's debut album of the same name and peaked at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is Hammond's only top 10 hit to date (although he would have one other top 40 hit in 1974 with "I'm a Train").
In 1984, Julio Iglesias re-worked the song as "Moonlight Lady" for his concept album 1100 Bel Air Place , with the original song on which it is based used as an uncredited reprise at the end of the track.
In 1989, Hammond re-recorded the song for his Best of Me greatest hits compilation. [3]
| Year-end charts
|
Chart (1973) | Peak position |
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Japanese Oricon Singles Chart [19] | 77 |
Chart (2000) | Peak position |
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U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs | 74 |
Albert Louis Hammond OBE is a British-Gibraltarian singer, songwriter and record producer. A prolific songwriter, he also collaborated with other songwriters such as Mike Hazlewood, John Bettis, Hal David, Diane Warren, Holly Knight and Carole Bayer Sager.
Greatest Hits 1982–1989 is the third greatest hits album by the American band Chicago, released by Full Moon/Reprise Records on November 21, 1989. It became one of Chicago's biggest selling albums, having been certified five times platinum in the United States.
"Daniel" is a song written by English musician Elton John and his long-time songwriting partner Bernie Taupin, and performed by John. It was first released on John's 1973 album Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player as its opening track. The original single release was also notable for a re-recorded version of 'Skyline Pigeon" on its B-side, which went on to be a popular track in its own right.
"The Air That I Breathe" is a ballad written by the British-Gibraltarian singer-songwriter Albert Hammond and the English songwriter Mike Hazlewood. It was initially recorded by Hammond on his debut album, It Never Rains in Southern California (1972). After being covered by Phil Everly in 1973, it was a major hit for the Hollies in early 1974, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart. It was the Hollies' last major hit. The English rock band Radiohead reused the chord progression and melody of "The Air That I Breathe" for their 1992 song "Creep".
Too Low for Zero is the seventeenth studio album by English musician Elton John, released in 1983. The album marked a comeback for John, whose previous four albums had failed to yield many enduring international hit singles, and had disappointing sales compared to his string of hit records released during the first half of the 1970s.
"For All We Know" is a soft rock song written for the 1970 film Lovers and Other Strangers, with music by Fred Karlin and lyrics by Robb Wilson and Arthur James, both from the soft rock group Bread. It was originally performed, for the film's soundtrack, by Larry Meredith and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1971.
Michael Edward Hazlewood was a British singer-songwriter and composer. He variously worked with Albert Hammond, T-Bone Burnett, Van Dyke Parks and Harry Nilsson.
"Kodachrome" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the lead single from his third studio album, There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973), released on Columbia Records. The song is named after Kodak's now-discontinued reversal film brand, Kodachrome.
"Yesterday Once More", written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis, is a hit song by the Carpenters from their 1973 album Now & Then. Thematically the song concerns reminiscing about songs of a generation gone by. It segues into a long medley, consisting of eight covers of 1960s tunes incorporated into a faux oldies radio program. The work takes up the entire B-side of the album.
"When I Need You" is a popular song written by Albert Hammond and Carole Bayer Sager. Its first appearance was as the title track of Hammond's 1976 album When I Need You. Leo Sayer's version, produced by Richard Perry, was a massive hit worldwide, reaching number 1 on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in February 1977 after three of his earlier singles had stalled at number 2. It also reached number 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 for a single week in May 1977; and the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks. Billboard ranked it as the No. 24 song of 1977. Sayer performed it on the second show of the third season of The Muppet Show.
"Do That to Me One More Time" is a song performed by the American pop duo Captain & Tennille. It was their 13th charting hit in the United States, and their second number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song was included on the duo's 1979 studio album, Make Your Move, and was written by Toni Tennille. It features a Lyricon solo by saxophonist Tom Scott.
1100 Bel Air Place is a concept album of love songs largely composed by Albert Hammond, and performed by Spanish singer Julio Iglesias, released on 10 August 1984 by CBS Records internationally and by Columbia Records in the United States. It was the first of Iglesias' albums to be performed largely in English, and it is generally considered his breakthrough album in English-speaking markets.
"I Go to Extremes" is a song by American singer Billy Joel from his eleventh studio album, Storm Front (1989), released as the album's second US single in early 1990. It reached the number-six position on the US Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number three on the Canadian RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart. The song was also a top-10 hit on both the Billboard Adult Contemporary and Album Rock Tracks charts. The song also reached at number 70 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Don and Dick Addrisi, and best known from a hit 1967 recording by the Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success as songwriters was "Never My Love". Recorded by dozens of notable artists in the decades since, in 1999 the music publishing rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) announced it was the second most-played song on radio and television of the 20th century in the U.S.
"The Free Electric Band" is a song written by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood and performed by Hammond. The song reached #19 on the UK Singles Chart, #11 in South Africa and #48 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1973. The song appeared on his 1973 album, The Free Electric Band and was produced by Hammond and arranged by Michael Omartian.
Art Garfunkel is an American singer, best known for participating with Paul Simon in the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. In a career spanning over 60 years, Garfunkel released ten studio albums, one live album, four compilation albums and twenty-nine singles.
"Little Arrows" is a single by English artist Leapy Lee. Released in 1968, it was the first single from his album Little Arrows. Written by Albert Hammond & Mike Hazlewood.
"Oklahoma Sunday Morning" is a song written by Tony Macaulay, Albert Hammond and Lee Hazlewood. It was recorded by American country music artist Glen Campbell and released in December 1971 as a single. The song peaked at number 15 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and number 9 the RPM Country Tracks chart in Canada.
It Never Rains in Southern California is the debut album by Albert Hammond, released in 1972. The title song was a big hit, and the album included the first release of the song "The Air That I Breathe", which would go on to become a major hit for British band the Hollies in 1974.
This is the discography of British-Gibraltarian singer-songwriter Albert Hammond. For information about the discography of The Family Dogg, see The Family Dogg § Discography.