quête:albert hammond

Pop/rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist Albert Hammond Jr. is the lead & rhythm guitarist and songwriting member of the GRAMMY® and BRIT Awards-winning band The Strokes. He has released 4 solo albums to date, most recently the acclaimed “Francis Trouble” in 2018 which spawned the radio single “Far Away Truths”. In the 4 years, since then, The Strokes released their US Top 10 charting GRAMMY® nominated rock record “The New Abnormal” and toured the world extensively. Albert also began the songwriting process for his 5th solo album “Melodies on Hiatus”, a 19-track album, crafted in a most experimental style. Albert teamed up with his writing partner, Canadian songwriter, and poet Simon Wilcox (whom he never met during the process) and had lengthy conversations via the telephone; Simon would jot down notes from Albert’s stream of consciousness, and draft the lyrics on her typewriter, and drop them into his letterbox! Albert then added the lyrics to the melodies he had already crafted. The songwriting process became a long distant “anonymous love affair of ideas & lyrics.” The album covers themes of childhood, surviving adolescence, adulthood, vulnerability, fame, relationship with self and others, and is Albert’s “deconstructed broken down ego reaction” to “Francis Trouble.” The album also features songs with GoldLink, Matt Helders (of the Arctic Monkeys), Steve Stevens and Rainsford, and was mixed by Tony Hoffer (known for his work with Beck, Air, M83, The Kooks, Fitz and the Tantrums, Metric, Chromeo, etc.) and mastered by Dave Cooley at Elysian Masters (Paramore, Spoon, Tame Impala, Jimmy Eat World, Peanut Butter Wolfe).

Albert Hammond is one of the most prolific, versatile songwriters and performers of his or any generation. His earliest solo hits include “It Never Rains in Southern California” and “The Free Electric Band.” His contributions to popular music (writing and and/or contributing to hit songs by Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Willie Nelson and Julio Iglesias, Diana Ross, Starship, The Hollies, Joe Cocker, Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin) cross genres and generations.  Body of Work is an all-new, original, and essential addition to this iconic canon. Written during a time of tumultuous change, Body of Work is the moment a master songsmith takes a step back to reflect on the world, “This is the first step I had to take and the album is what I discovered about me and all of us once I started here,” says Albert. “I can feel the discomfort and impatience in it. That’s just the honest feeling when the world changes for you from oasis to desert, from beauty to chaos… freedom to fences.” From gutsy opener “Don’t Bother Me Babe” through the wistful “Looking Back” and closing with the reflective “Goodbye LA,” Body of Work is an album for the ages, crafted with 50 years of words, experience, and wisdom.

Pop/rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist Albert Hammond Jr. is the lead & rhythm guitarist and songwriting member of the GRAMMY® and BRIT Awards-winning band The Strokes. He has released 4 solo albums to date, most recently the acclaimed “Francis Trouble” in 2018 which spawned the radio single “Far Away Truths”. In the 4 years, since then, The Strokes released their US Top 10 charting GRAMMY® nominated rock record “The New Abnormal” and toured the world extensively. Albert also began the songwriting process for his 5th solo album “Melodies on Hiatus”, a 19-track album, crafted in a most experimental style. Albert teamed up with his writing partner, Canadian songwriter, and poet Simon Wilcox (whom he never met during the process) and had lengthy conversations via the telephone; Simon would jot down notes from Albert’s stream of consciousness, and draft the lyrics on her typewriter, and drop them into his letterbox! Albert then added the lyrics to the melodies he had already crafted. The songwriting process became a long distant “anonymous love affair of ideas & lyrics.” The album covers themes of childhood, surviving adolescence, adulthood, vulnerability, fame, relationship with self and others, and is Albert’s “deconstructed broken down ego reaction” to “Francis Trouble.” The album also features songs with GoldLink, Matt Helders (of the Arctic Monkeys), Steve Stevens and Rainsford, and was mixed by Tony Hoffer (known for his work with Beck, Air, M83, The Kooks, Fitz and the Tantrums, Metric, Chromeo, etc.) and mastered by Dave Cooley at Elysian Masters (Paramore, Spoon, Tame Impala, Jimmy Eat World, Peanut Butter Wolfe).

JTQ Return to Acid Jazz… At the very birth of Acid Jazz there was the James Taylor Quartet. Hammond player extraordinaire James Taylor was fresh from the split of The Prisoners when he recorded Herbie Hancock’s ‘Theme From Blow Up’ and signed with Eddie Piller’s Re-Elect The President label, the precursor of Acid Jazz. Then, in 1993, after albums for Polydor and Big Life, Acid Jazz and James hooked up again and released ‘In The Hand Of The Inevitable’, for many the finest JTQ album. In March this year James found himself backstage at the Royal Albert Hall - The Brand New Heavies were about to take the stage - with Acid Jazz’s Eddie Piller and Dean Rudland and a plot was hatched... James returns to the label with this brand new 7-inch single: ‘Wildflower’ b/w ‘Guiding Light’.

The A-side is Bossa-nova tinged slice of sunshine pop featuring James’ vocals. It sounds like an old private-press 45, unearthed in a dank warehouse basement in Oregon, and is another JTQ classic. The flip takes us into jazz funk territory. Presented in a one-o^ version of the latest Acid Jazz house-bag, with classic labels.

Set against the backdrop of New York City’s high-pressure nightlife scene, Black Rabbit centers on two brothers who are pushed to the brink by their duty to family and their pursuit of success. Jake Friedken (Jude Law) is the charismatic owner of Black Rabbit, a restaurant and VIP lounge, poised to become the hottest spot in New York. But when his brother, Vince (Jason Bateman), returns to the business unexpectedly, trouble soon follows; opening the door to old traumas and new dangers that threaten to bring down everything they’ve built. Black Rabbit is a propulsive thrill ride and character examination about the way an unbreakable bond between two brothers can shatter their world and everything in its orbit.
Black Rabbit is a music-fuelled series featuring a brand new song of RAYE and two songs by The Black Rabbits (Albert Hammond Jr. and Jude Law). Also with the exciting score of Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans a vinyl release is an absolute necessity for the this soundtrack.
Black Rabbit is available as a limited edition on crystal clear & black marbled vinyl.

A reissue of the wonderful female vocal LP released by FEDERAL in 1977! Mellow reggae with covers of classics by Patti Austin, Albert Hammond, Bob Marley, and more. Marcia Griffiths participates on backing vocals.

The Road Is No Place For A Lady was Cass Elliot’s final studio
album. The album was signified with touches of swing music and gospel and was promoted with the single “(If You’re Gonna) Break Another Heart” written by Albert Hammond.
The Road Is No Place For A Lady is available as a limited edition of 1000 individually numbered copies on pink coloured vinyl. After its initial release, this is the first time in 50 years that the album has been reissued on LP. After its initial release, this is the first time in 50 years that the album has been reissued on LP.

Die Kopplung „Flower Power – Best Of Love, Peace and Happiness” erinnert an die Zeit von Woodstock, Hippiebewegung und nicht zuletzt an ziemlich gute Musik.
Das Lebensgefühl der damaligen Zeit spiegelt sich in diesen Songs wieder: Freiheit, Liebe, Verbundenheit.
Auf 2LPs bzw. 1CD befinden 24 Songs aus den 60er und frühen 70er-Jahren. Von Künstlern, wie Joe Cocker, Cat Stevens, The Mamas & The Papas, Joan Baez, The Beach Boys, Melanie, The Who und
vielen anderen.
Die 2LP kommt im Gatefold-Cover und in farbigem Vinyl.

Between the 60s and 80s, Albert Verrecchia played a major role in Italian pop music and on the European disco and Afro-cosmic scene, both under his own name and under the monikers Albert Weyman and Albert Prince. He was the keyboardist of legendary Italian-French r'n'b band I Pyranas, served as a session Hammondist for singer and TV star Raffaella Carrà, and produced the disco trio Belle Epoque as well as the debut album of singer-songwriter Alan Sorrenti. Among his many incarnations, in the early and mid-70s he also composed a few soundtracks for Italian genre cinema, including for movies such as the poliziottesco Roma drogata, la polizia non può intervenire (Hallucinating Trip, 1975, Lucio Marcaccini) and the erotic drama Tecnica di un amore (1972, Brunello Rondi).

The score he wrote in 1975 for Il tempo degli assassini (Season of Assassins, a film about a gang of criminal youths who terrorize the city of Rome in the already violent 70s) is certainly his most accomplished work in the genre. Conceived for a small ensemble, it was written almost entirely on the spot in the recording studio. Verrecchia himself played the Moog, and his dynamic and percussive approach to the instrument resulted in a style midway between funk and proto-disco. A modern rhythmic style - or Ritmico Moderno, which is the title chosen by CAM for the LP containing the soundtrack and released two years later as part of a promotional library music series only distributed to film professionals and radio and TV programmers (CML series, cat. no. 131). One is led to wonder whether it was thanks to that LP that, in 1977, three pieces from the soundtrack found their way into another film about youth gangs, the Spanish Perros callejeros (Street Warriors), written and directed by Jose Antonio de la Loma. On a side but important note, there's the added bonus of popular 70s and 80s entertainer Sammy Barbot singing on Gang Leader alongside female vocal group Baba Yaga. What a pity that Verrecchia's career as a film composer ended here!

Natalie Imbruglia returns with her brand new album Firebird later this year, kicking off with the first single 'Build It Better' in June. The single marks the first new music from Natalie in almost a decade after choosing to remain out of the limelight following her monumental success in the nineties and early noughties, accumulating 5 x UK Top 10 singles, 10 x UK Top 40 singles, 1 x UK #1 album, 3 UK Top 10 albums, 2 BRIT Awards, 8 ARIA Awards, 3 Grammy Award nominations and much more. The forthcoming new album was written and recorded between the UK, the US and her homeland of Australia, co-written with the likes of Albert Hammond Jr of The Strokes, Romeo Stodart of The Magic Numbers, KT Tunstall, Eg White (Adele, Dua Lipa, Sam Smith), Luke Fitton (Little Mix, Girls Aloud), Fiona Bevan (One Direction, Ed Sheeran), Rachel Furner (Little Mix, Jason Derulo, Craig David) and more, and produced by Natalie and My Riot with additional production from Albert Hammond Jr, Gus Oberg and Romeo Stodart.

New York City 4-piece deliver a modern blues rock masterclass on their feisty debut album.

“A timeless classic rock sound that revels in lean riffs and raw emotion.” – Afropunk

In an age where artistic merit is awarded to those who shout the loudest, Dakota Jones pride themselves on an unwavering ability to leave a lasting impression. Spearheaded by Tristan Carter-Jones fierce and unashamedly uncensored songwriting, the band’s fast-growing reputation as formidable live act has stamped Dakota Jones with the hell-hath-no-fury power of Chaka Khan, the wild spontaneity of Janis Joplin, and the honey-dripping sensuality of Marvin Gaye. Their debut album’s message of proud black heritage and triumphant queerness manifests itself in Carter-Jones’ ability to challenge norms of adulthood and femininity as she takes a deep dive into some of life’s most visceral emotions.

Tristan Carter-Jones: “I’m a black, queer woman expressing myself through love and music. Some folks still find that to be a transgressive act in and of itself. I work to fight that idea. I write a lot about my
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sexuality and the ways in which I express it. Songs about sex and love bounce back and forth between songs about heartache, hangovers and self-medication, and the pleasure and pain of truly finding yourself. I don’t think we get to hear these things from a woman’s mouth as often as we should.”

Serving as an instant tone setter, the album opens with the line "Stretch marks from growing pains" with Carter-Jones lamenting the woes of adjusting to adulthood on lead single ‘Did It To Myself’ - her husky and commanding vocal instantly asserting its place in the spotlight. The atmosphere soon turns steamy on the flirtatious title track ‘Blacklight,’ whilst fantasising over a modern-day Bonnie & Clyde love affair the funk-laden ‘We Playin Bad Games’ packs a punch with its tale of free spirits entwined in a haze of late-night revelry.

Elsewhere, stories of caustic heartache twist the knife into wounded blues guitar riffs on ‘Like That’ and ‘Black Magic (That Power)’, in which Carter-Jones’s stoical voice never once faulters as she mourns the memories of a previous flame. Personal prayer ‘Lord Please’ recites empowered words of reassurance, and solidarity in the face of injustice erupts into a rallying cry for change on the classic sounding ‘Noise’ – written as a reaction to the 2016 US election. “I woke up after the election feeling pure panic and fear in my body,” remembers Tristan. “I wanted people in a place of privilege to stand up for what I was feeling, stand up for injustice, stand up for all of the things we need to change as a country. I wanted their rage, and I wanted their noise.”

Finally, the band’s tender tropes of togetherness eventually boil into gritty, guitar-slung balladry on hidden bonus track, ‘California,’ where, knees buckling under the weight of past trials and tribulations, Carter-Jones sets out on one final journey of self-discovery, hastily pulling out from reality and leaving only a dust cloud in her wake.

Production comes courtesy of the Grammy-winning John Wooler, ex Virgin Records A+R and founder of the Blues label Pointblank who has worked with everyone from John Lee Hooker and John Hammond to Isaac Hayes and Van Morrison. The album also features a wealth of hugely talented and accomplished musicians, including backing vocalist Kudisan Kai, former backing vocalist for the likes of Elton John, Chaka Khan, Anita Baker, Natalie Cole, Beck, Sting, Mary J. Blige and Jill Scott. Also present; Grammy winning keyboardist Jon Gilutin, who has spent years working with some of the industry’s most respected and iconic artists including Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor, Lady Gaga, Willie Nelson, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Jackson Browne, Celine Dion, Bonnie Rait and Carole King. You’ll also hear the talents of acclaimed guitarist Michael Toles. Most well-known for being a part of the Stax Records group The Bar Kays, and for his contributions on famous records by Issac Hayes, Al Green, BB King, Johnny Taylor, Rufus Thomas, Albert King to name just a few.

Dakota Jones are a rising funk, soul and blues rock band from Brooklyn, New York City. Comprising of Tristan Carter-Jones (vocals), Scott Kramp (bass) Steve Ross (drums), and acclaimed musician Randy Jacobs (guitar) - former member of Was(Not Was) who has recorded for Seal, Bonnie Raitt, Tears for Fears, Elton John and many others. Though Carter-Jones and Ross first met in 1999 whilst at primary school, the band formed years later following a series of home jam sessions in 2016. The band’s collective alias originates from Carter-Jones’s middle name, ‘Dakota’. Dakota Jones have since released a string of acclaimed singles and EPs as well as received international attention for their track, ‘Have Mercy’ after it featured on Netflix’s 2019 film, Always Be My Maybe starring Ali Wong and Randall Park – and now after years of hard work and determination, the band are finally set to reveal their long awaited debut album. “We’d been regularly releasing EPs, waiting for our chance to come, and wondering what that would look like,” says Carter-Jones. “We didn’t realise until we started making this record that we needed to stop waiting for some break to come along, and just do it ourselves, independently.”

“Black Light really dives into a place of funk soul and everything that comes with it. There’s joy and dancing, sleek guitar licks and funky bass slaps. There’s pain and longing, and there’s the feeling of relief when you come out of that place and find your joy and purpose again. Black Light is my story.”

It's album release time for this Madrid-based soul/jazz organ trio who have been burning up stages and festivals throughout 2019 and who have already had a successful single out on Rocafort Records. Beat Bronco Organ Trio have not rewritten the Hammond musical handbook, but they do what it says on the tin rather splendidly – a Road Trip that grooves, swings and sashays around the familiar but much loved funky jazz theme.

Although it's impossible to listen to the album without summoning up the ghosts of Jimmies McGriff & Smith and the like, nearly all tracks here are originals and shout out personality, verve and respectful homage to the tradition. Featuring the usual leitmotifs: Shaftish film sountrack, lo-fi lounger, gospel-tinged toe-tapper, the hip shaker and much wah-wah frenesi, there's nothing not to like if the genre is your bag.

The steaming horn section on "Hard Play" thickens the sauce à la JBs and the Meters, aided along by a unique orchestra of handclaps. Vocalist and guitarist Alberto Palacios Anaut storms in with "Hey Hey", an old Dave Bartholomew classic from New Orleans, just to remind us where Fats Domino and Ray Charles got it all from. Chip Wickham makes two welcome appearances on flute, adding an extra jazzy touch to "Squirtly" and "Electro Pi" – the latter a fabulous trippy, spacious head-nodder that demands in our opinion some kind of a wigged out drum'n'bass remix. Every track is clearly dominated by variations on the vintage keyboard, be it Hammond, Clavinet or Minimoog; all roads lead to that sexy, sacred sound.

Spain is already prominent on the modern-day Funk map thanks to groups like The Sweet Vandals, Speak Low and Mighty Vamp – and it comes as no surprise that our hero trio featured at various times in all these bands. Gabri Casanova (keys), Lucas de Mulder (guitar, percussion) and Antonio "Pax" Alvarez (drums, percussion) have been busy reviving the funk gospel for some time now. Road Trip is an elegant culmination of their efforts in keeping alive a revered and timeless tradition that still today serves as a reference to where all the good stuff came from: The Church!

For its 50th release, Black Truffle presents the 9th album from one of the label’s core ensembles, the power trio of Keiji Haino, Jim O’Rourke and Oren Ambarchi. Drawn from a November 2015 performance at Tokyo’s now-defunct SuperDeluxe, the record’s opening piece drops us immediately into the maelstrom, abruptly cutting into an extended episode of Ambarchi’s pummelling drums, O’Rourke’s fuzzed-out 6 string bass and Haino’s roaring guitar and electronics. Eventually settling into a hypnotic bass and drum groove over which Haino unleashes some almost Ray Russell-eque skittering atonal screech, these opening 13 minutes act as a potent reminder of the trio’s power. Alongside showcasing the steady development of a unique language for the guitar-bass-drums power trio, the group’s succession of releases over the last decade has demonstrated a constant experimentation with new instruments, which continues here with O’Rourke use of Hammond organ (played at the same time as his roaming, sometimes knotty basslines). On the album’s second piece, the organ plays a key role, furnishing a harmonically rich shimmer over O’Rourke’s angular 6 string bass chords, Haino’s distant, chirping electronics and Ambarchi’s crisp cymbal work; arriving somewhere halfway between Albert Marcoeur and Terje Rypdal, this piece is undoubtedly a highlight in the trio’s catalogue so far. Sides two and three are given over to slow-burning, multi-part epics that range from spacious reflection to furious tumult. Where the trio’s previous 2LP set (This Dazzling, Genuine “Difference” Now Where Shall It Go?, 2017) was primarily instrumental in focus, here we find Haino’s voice taking the spotlight on the expansive third side, intoning, wailing and exhorting in Japanese and English over a backdrop that moves from hushed bass and organ atmospherics to rolling toms and cymbal crashes before arriving at an ecstatic finale of searing guitar, tumbling drums and reverb-saturated bass. The fourth side returns to the hypnotic grooves of the opening piece, fixing on an relentless riff and riding it into oblivion under Haino’s roaming psychedelic soloing and jagged chordal slashes.