Song of the Day 2/27: Albert Hammond, “It Never Rains in Southern California”

The weather in the USA has been weird lately — 50-degree temperature swings, February tornadoes and snow in Southern California. Maybe the lyrics of this song need an update — it never rains, but it snows.

Albert Hammond OBE moved from London to Los Angeles in 1970 as a singer-songwriter. By the time he released this single and his debut album in 1972, he’d been in town long enough to understand that the near-eternal sunshine dried up a lot of dreams.

Hammond scored his only US hit as a performer with this 1972 soft-rock classic, which made it to No. 5. But he’s had a much more successful career as a composer, co-writing a number of hits for other artists: “The Air That I Breathe” for the Hollies, “When I Need You” for Leo Sayer, “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before” for Julio Iglesias, even “Don’t Turn Around” for Ace of Base. He’s also the father of Albert Hammond Jr., guitarist for the Strokes.

At 78, Hammond is still going strong. He completed a tour of Europe last spring, and his website promises new music later this year.