[2] In 1962, Clifford became the singer with Cliff Ward and the Cruisers, a proficient beat group that won the 1963 Midland Band of the Year contest in Birmingham.

Ward's debut album Singer ∙ Songwriter was released on Dandelion in 1972, but it failed to garner any significant attention.

Record Mirror called it "the sort of album that immediately becomes part of your life", commenting "some tracks have a jazz feel, others are folksy, and overall it's a collection of songs you want to hear over and over".

[7] In a retrospective review, Sharon Mawer of Allmusic wrote that the album represented "a breath of fresh air in the overproduced mid-70s... ..here was a man who told simple stories, with beautiful melodies, played with the minimum of fuss".

Mawer praised Ward's "love of poetry and words", and concluded "for all the beautiful songs on Home Thoughts, the standout track is the hit single "Gaye" with its instantly memorable singalong melody".