Beres Hammond Biography

Born on August 28, 1955, in Annotto Bay, in the Jamaican province of St. Mary, Hugh Beresford Hammond was a soulful singer hooked to classic rocksteady and American R&B and one of the most under appreciated reggae artists of his time during the '90s. He also preferred live performances and wrote most of his own music. Romantic lovers rock was his specialty but he was also interested in contemporary R&B, light dancehall, hip-hop fusion and conscious roots reggae. Hammond grew up vibing to his father's collection of American R&B which involved Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, etc. and jazz music. His passion for native Jamaican music began during the rocksteady and ska eras. His original influence was Alton Ellis while also listening to the likes of Ken Boothe, Peter Tosh and the Heptones. Hammond performed remarkably in talent competitions from 1972 to 1973 and one of these competitions led to his first recording which was a soul cover of Ellis' Wanderer. Hammond joined the group Zap Pow as lead singer in 1975 and enjoyed the success of a hit single with The System in 1978. At the time, Hammond was thinking about starting his solo career and with the help of Willie Lindo, a producer, he created his debut album, Soul Reggae in 1976. Hammond returned to the studio to record a new track, One Step Ahead, after his label, Aquarius requested he choose a song for single release from the album. One Step Ahead was a massive chart-topping hit in Jamaica, same with his second single, I'm in Love (1978) which was produced by Joe Gibbs. In 1979, Hammond left Zap Pow to concentrate on his solo career and started off working as a session singer to make up for the royalties that were barely coming in. In 1980, his second solo album, Just a Man was recorded with Gibbs for 1981's Comin' at You, he reunited with Lindo. Hammond continued his session work and created a quintet called Tuesday's Children that never recorded an album but had some success as a live band. He founded his own label, Harmony House, following Let’s Make A Song, a 1985 album to make sure he would have something to perform whenever he was booked by a company. Lindo produced the first two singles titled Groovy Little Thing and the Willie and What One Dance Can Do. Both songs were dancehall hits and the latter broke him into the international market and proved to be his biggest Jamaican hit ever. In 1986, he released a self-titled album and scored another hit with Settling Down. Hammond was the victim of an armed break-in and robbery in 1987 and the incident caused him to leave Jamaica to spend some time with relatives in New York, away from the spotlight. He reunited with Willie Lindo in New York and recorded Have a Nice Week End and also teamed with upcoming crossover star Maxi Priest for the 1988 duet How Can We Ease the Pain. Hammond returned to Jamaica in the wake of Hurricane Gilbert, and recorded Putting Up Resistance with producer Tappa Zukie and it was released in 1989. Hammond returned in 1990 signing with Penthouse label and teamed up with producer Donovan Germain for the massive dancehall hit Tempted to Touch which was his best-known song in the U.S. and U.K. It topped the charts in Jamaica and paved the way for 1992's hit A Love Affair album, which included hits like Respect to You Baby and Is This a Sign. His musical success attracted bigger music labels as Hammond continued to write and recorded music in the '90s which produced consistent results. In 1993, Sweetness was released on VP and In Control was released in 1994 which was a set on American major Elektra that was set towards the international market. His 1996 Harmony House album Love From a Distance, was distributed by VP and it made him one of the most popular lovers rock artists ever. The 1997 follow up Getting Stronger was directed by Hearbeat. 1998 brought A Day in the Life on VP and this led to Hammond taking a break from recording for a few years. Several music compilations were released including Forever Yours which focuses on his lovers rock material and Jet Star's Reggae Max which was a past hits review. In 2001, Hammond returned to the studio for Music Is Life, which featured rapper Wyclef Jean. In 2004, Love Has No Boundaries was released on VP Records, and included guest artists Big Youth and Buju Banton among others. In 2008, A Moment in Time was released and featured the hit song Picking Up the Pieces. His body of work titled One Love, One Life was released in 2012 and was divided into two separate discs which focused on social and love issues.

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