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Songwriter and producer Dennis Lambert enjoyed a successful run working for the ABC-Dunhill label during the '70s, where he and partner Brian Potter helmed hit records for the Four Tops, Dusty Springfield, and Glen Campbell, among others. Lambert began his career as something of a folkie, forming a poppy folk-rock duo with fellow singer/guitarist Craig Nuttycombe in Los Angeles in 1968. The first Lambert & Nuttycombe album, At Home, was released on A&M in 1970, and actually was recorded in the duo's Sausalito, CA, living room. In the meantime, Lambert had formed a songwriting partnership with Brian Potter, with whom he signed a publishing deal with ABC-Dunhill in 1969. Lambert cut a solo album, Bags and Things, in 1972, and returned for a second and final Lambert & Nuttycombe album, As You Will, in 1973.br /br /However, Lambert's songwriting and production work at ABC-Dunhill was beginning to make clear that his real fortune lay behind the scenes. He and Potter had their first taste of success writing for the Grass Roots in 1969, and struck gold penning Coven's antiwar protest hit "One Tin Soldier" that year. A few more hits followed, including Gayle McCormick's "It's a Cryin' Shame" and Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds' "Don't Pull Your Love (Out)." 1972, however, was their true breakout year, thanks to their work on the Four Tops' post-Motown LP Keeper of the Castle; the group went on to score hits with the Lambert/Potter-penned title track and "Ain't No Woman (Like the One I Got)," which revived their career. In the wake of that success, Lambert and Potter were teamed with new ABC-Dunhill signee Dusty Springfield for 1973's Cameo LP, and the following year they helped bring R&B group Tavares their first significant chart success. Lambert and Potter's biggest smash as producers came in 1975 with Glen Campbell's Rhinestone Cowboy LP, for which they also wrote four songs. By this point, Lambert and Potter had formed their own label, Haven, which was the mid-'70s home of the Righteous Brothers. Haven's greatest commercial success came in 1978 with one-hit wonder Player's "Baby Come Back," produced but not written by Lambert and Potter. Lambert's songwriting and production activity tailed off substantially in the '80s, but he occasionally resurfaced to work with the likes of Natalie Cole and the Commodores. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide |
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