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John P. Hammond | |
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 Hammond performing at the Cactus Cafe inAustin, Texas, 2008 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | John Hammond Jr. |
| Born | John Paul Hammond (1942-11-13)November 13, 1942 (age 83) New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1962–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | johnhammond |
John Paul Hammond (born November 13, 1942) is an American singer and musician.[1] He is the son of record producerJohn Henry Hammond Jr., and is sometimes referred to asJohn Hammond Jr..[2]
Hammond is a son of record producer and talent scout John H. Hammond and his first wife, Jemison McBride, an actress. He is a descendant ofCornelius Vanderbilt, the patriarch of the prominentVanderbilt family, through his paternal grandmotherEmily Vanderbilt Sloane Hammond.[3] He has a brother, Jason, and a stepsister, (Esme) Rosita Sarnoff, the daughter of his father's second wife, Esme O'Brien Sarnoff. John Paul Hammond's middle name is in honor of a friend of his father, the actorPaul Robeson. He grew up with his mother and only saw his father a few times a year while growing up.
He began playing guitar in high school, partially inspired by the albumJimmy Reed at Carnegie Hall. He attendedAntioch College inYellow Springs, Ohio for a year but dropped out to pursue a music career. By the mid-1960s he was touring nationally and living inGreenwich Village inManhattan, New York. He befriended and recorded with many electric blues musicians in New York, includingJimi Hendrix,Eric Clapton,Levon Helm's New Hawks (later known asthe Band),Mike Bloomfield,Dr. John, andDuane Allman.
Hammond usually plays acoustically, choosingNational Reso-Phonic Guitars and sings in abarrelhouse style. Since 1962, when he made his debut onVanguard Records, he has recorded 34 albums. In the 1990s he began recording on thePointblank Records label. His 1963 debut album,John Hammond, was one of the first blues albums by a white artist.[4] Hammond has earned aGrammy Award and been nominated for six others.[5] He provided the soundtrack for the 1970 filmLittle Big Man, starringDustin Hoffman.[6]
Although critically acclaimed, Hammond has received only moderate commercial success. Nonetheless, he enjoys a strong fan base and has earned respect fromJohn Lee Hooker,Roosevelt Sykes, Duane Allman,Rory Gallagher,Willy Deville,Robbie Robertson, Mike Bloomfield andCharlie Musselwhite, all of whom contributed their musical talents to his records. In addition, Hammond is the only person who had bothEric Clapton andJimi Hendrix in his band at the same time, if only for five days in the 1960s, when Hammond playedThe Gaslight Cafe in Greenwich Village.[7] To his regret, they never recorded together. It has been suggested that Hammond deserves some credit for helping boostthe Band to wider recognition. He recorded with several members of The Band in 1965 and recommended them toBob Dylan, with whom they undertook afamed and tumultuous world tour.[8]
Hammond hosted the 1991UK television documentaryThe Search for Robert Johnson, detailing the life of the legendaryDelta bluesmanRobert Johnson. Hammond has had a longstanding friendship with the songwriterTom Waits and has performed Waits' songs on occasion. In 2001, he releasedWicked Grin, an album consisting entirely of Waits' compositions, with one exception, the traditionalspiritual, "I Know I've Been Changed". Waits played guitar and sang backing vocals on the album and was also its producer.
In 2003, he releasedReady for Love, produced byDavid Hidalgo ofLos Lobos. It included aMick Jagger andKeith Richards song, "The Spider and the Fly". Hammond's 2009 album, entitledRough & Tough, was a 2010 nominee for theGrammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album.[9] In 2011, he was inducted into theBlues Hall of Fame of theBlues Foundation.[10]
Hammond married his first wife, Dana McDevitt on October 21, 1967.[11] They divorced. In 1981, Hammond and his second wife, Peggy Spoerri, married. They later divorced. His third wife as of 2003[update] was Marla.[12]
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