The son of Gibraltarian-British songwriter Albert Hammond, Albert Jr. was sent to the elite boarding school Institut Le Rosey in Switzerland at the age of 13. While there, he met Julian Casablancas, who would go on to be a fellow band member.
In 1998, Albert met up with Julian in New York City and together they formed a band with Julian's former schoolmates: Nick Valensi, Nikolai Fraiture and Fabrizio Moretti.
His trademark is wearing formal suits, usually a different one for each show. Albert is usually seen playing an olympian white Fender Stratocaster, or bandmate Nick Valensi's Les Paul Jr. He is usually associated with the "rhythm" guitar portion of the majority of Strokes songs, and most solos are played by Valensi. The solos in which Albert does play are Last Nite, Trying Your Luck, Take It Or Leave It, Under Control, The End Has No End, Ize Of The World, and Vision Of Division. His solos tend to focus largely on more emotional, "bluesy"-type melodical work, and the guitar tends to have a cleaner, softer tone in comparison to Valensi's (with a noteable exception found in Vision Of Division). He often holds the guitar in a high horizontal position, similar to Bob Dylan and Ian Curtis.
Although vocalist Julian Casablancas is the major contributor to the songwriting process for The Strokes' music, Albert has been known to write a few pieces of his own. He has been credited to writing three mostly instrumental songs (Swiss Beats, Holland, and By The Way) for the bands' 2001 tour video entitled "In Transit". He had also written a song called "Elephant Song", in which Albert used when he was was required to record a song for his Sound 101 class in freshman year, using the school's recording equipment. The song was played at a few shows before the release of their first album. The Strokes were to later rerecord the song as a special giveaway for fanclub members.
Hammond released his debut solo album on October 9th in the United Kingdom. Entitled "Yours to Keep," the album features musical guests such as Sean Lennon, Ben Kweller, and even The Strokes' manager Ryan Gentles and lead singer Julian Casablancas. Bassist Josh Lattanzi and drummer Matt Romano serve as the backing band, with Albert the main singer and guitarist. It was produced by former Thin Lizard Dawn vocalist Greg Lattimer at the Electric Ladyland Studios.
Hammond played his first solo dates at the end of October in a few cities including New York City and Philadelphia. He is set to tour the UK and Europe in November and December 2006, and provides support to Incubus on their forthcoming US tour of January/February 2007.
Albert has finished working on his second solo album with the title "Como Te Llama?", which was released on 8th of July in 2008. The new CD gets 8/10 in NME! This 8th of July is incidentally the first date of his world tour, which kicks off at the Virgin Store in his hometown of NYC. Dates in LA, as well as Japan and Australia have been already scheduled. Cont.
Cooker Ship
Albert Hammond Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And they want you to know but they want you to be
When they ask you to sit and they told you to stand
But you couldn't get up 'cause you couldn't have ran
Everyone knows that the time hasn't come
That the bulldozer biz that they asked me to fund
Was just to steal your dividends
How did I get in a jam like this?
Everyone walks when they tell you to run
When they want you to stand but they mean that you won
When they asked you to be what they told you to see
When you asked me to be but I couldn't believe
Everyone saw that the thing wasn't right
But the things that you do when you want me at night
And I know that your thing wasn't dragging a bit
When you asked me for a
Great cooker ship
How did I get in a jam like this?
Self-inflicted nightmare
Lately I'm just not quite my
Self-inflicted nightmare
Lately I'm just not
Great cooker ship
How did I get in a jam like this?
The opening lines of "Cooker Ship" by Albert Hammond Jr. reveal an all-too-common experience of being caught in the middle of conflicting messages, as the songwriter sings about being told to leave by some, and stay by others. The chorus adds to the confusion, alluding to a "great cooker ship" that he can't seem to escape, despite being in a "jam." The metaphor of the "cooker ship" isn't fully clear, but it may relate to a high-pressure and hazardous environment that is hard to navigate.
As the song progresses, Hammond Jr. becomes more introspective, exploring the pressures of trying to please others and live up to their expectations. He realizes that the "bulldozer biz," which he had been urged to invest in, was really just a scheme to take his money. Similarly, he recognizes that he has been manipulated and misled by others, causing him to doubt his own perceptions and experiences. The repeated refrain of "great cooker ship" suggests a feeling of being trapped and overwhelmed by external forces, as if caught in the engine room of a massive vessel.
The final lines of the song introduce a new element, that of self-inflicted suffering or "nightmare." Hammond Jr. hints at a personal struggle that might be contributing to his sense of confusion and conflict, implying that he may have brought some of it on himself. This realization adds depth and complexity to the song's themes, suggesting that sometimes we are our own worst enemies and that escaping a "jam" requires more than just changing external circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
Everyone goes when they tell you to leave
People expect you to do what they say, even when it doesn't make sense for you to do so. They want you to follow their rules and not your own.
And they want you to know but they want you to be
The people who tell you what to do want you to understand their reasoning, but they don't care about your own desires or beliefs.
When they ask you to sit and they told you to stand
Sometimes people will give you conflicting directions or expectations, making it difficult or impossible to succeed in either.
But you couldn't get up 'cause you couldn't have ran
You couldn't follow their instructions because they were too demanding or not appropriate for your abilities.
Everyone knows that the time hasn't come
People are aware that something isn't right, but they don't know what to do to change it yet.
That the bulldozer biz that they asked me to fund
The business venture that they proposed was overly aggressive and likely to fail.
Was just to steal your dividends
The people who proposed the business venture did so with the intention of making money off of your investment without giving you a fair share of the profits.
Great cooker ship
The situation being described is overwhelming and feels like it is consuming and encompassing everything.
How did I get in a jam like this?
The artist is questioning how they ended up in such a difficult and inescapable circumstance.
Self-inflicted nightmare
The artist acknowledges that some of the problems they are experiencing are due to their own mistakes or bad decisions.
Lately I'm just not quite my
The singer feels like they are not fully themselves or in control of their own life.
Great cooker ship
The overwhelming and all-consuming nature of the situation is being reiterated.
How did I get in a jam like this?
The singer is still questioning how they ended up in such a difficult and inescapable circumstance.
Contributed by Liam C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
GloryKushHD
I love this performance Rip Albert's voice crack though 😂
Piero Llanos
Me gusta, el rock puede ser sucio asà que lo tomo como una versión .Aplausos Albert sacaste tu punk interior!
Hugo Téllez
ALBERT HAMMOND JR. ♫ ♪ ♠♬ ♩ ERES EL MEJOR
Mat Rodd
<3
Sam Vidovich
Headphones are backwards