Scott Walker

Scott Walker, one of the most enigmatic and influential figures in rock history, has died at the age of 76.

The US star found fame as a teen idol in The Walker Brothers, scoring hits with The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore and Make It Easy On Yourself.

But his dark baritone hinted at something deeper - and his darker, experimental solo albums tackled the complexities of love, sex and death.

Walker's death was confirmed by his current record label, 4AD.

Born Noel Scott Engel in Ohio, 1943, Walker initially pursued a career as an actor, before hooking up with John Maus and Gary Leeds to form the misleadingly-named Walker Brothers.

After a false start in the US, they relocated to the UK, where they caused a huge sensation, scoring number one hits with Make It Easy On Yourself and The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore.

For a while, the band were as big as the Beatles, greeted by screaming fans everywhere they went.

"Touring in those days was very primitive. It was really a lot of hard work. And you couldn't find anything good to eat. The hours were unbelievable."

At the height of their fame in 1967, when Walker was still considered a heart-throb and a potential superstar, he called time on the band and ran away to a monastery on the Isle of Wight. Not, as rumour had it, because of a nervous breakdown, but to study Gregorian chant.

He remained disillusioned with the industry until his girlfriend introduced him to the music of Jacques Brel, whose literate, passionate torch songs inspired him to embark on a solo career.

Walker's first four solo albums, Scott to Scott 4, juxtaposed lush, orchestral pop with dark existentialism; and his lyrics were frequently scattered with characters from society's margins - prostitutes, transvestites, suicidal thinkers and even Joseph Stalin.

"He took music to a place that it hasn't actually ever been since," said musician Brian Eno who, like Jarvis Cocker and David Bowie, cites Walker as a key influence.

Amid falling sales, Walker staged a brief, largely unsuccessful reunion with the Brothers in the mid-70s; then used a lucrative deal with Virgin Records to pursue some of his most abstract musical ideas on 1984's Climate of Hunter.

The record divided fans and critics - it was reputedly Virgin's lowest-selling album of all time - and Walker bowed out of music and the public eye for almost a decade.

"A friend of mine says I'm not a recluse, I'm just low-key," said the singer about his extended absence.

"Generally if I've got nothing to say, it's pointless to be around."

The Big Finish Catch-Up January 20019

For those of you new to this section of the blog, I started listening to the Big Finish Doctor Who releases when they started back in 1999, getting them as they were released up to mid 2002 and release No 33 Neverland. At that time I left Uni and due to being a bit busy with life and what not I only heard one or two releases over the next few years. I started getting back into them around 2008 and was 6 years behind at that point. Due to wondering off into the Lost Doctor range and a relaxed listening pace I fell further behind. In order to catch up I'm listening to two releases a month (or more when its a 60 min single disc release, plus without seeing the cover or knowing anything about the story) and my mission to catch up continues;

First up this month is An Earthly Child featuring the 8th Doctor and Susan in the 2009 subscriber special. This was a very intriguing and engaging story, starting off with the first Doctors music was a good swerve as I initially thought I was listening to a companion chronicle. Paul McGanns Doctor doesn't turn up for a while so when he does its a nice little surprise, Carole Ann Ford as Susan carries the majority of the story and the story is focused on what Susan's been up to since we last saw her. Also I'd like to take a moment to discuss the world building, the story benefits from being a follow up to a TV story but I was firmly entrenched in this future Earth more so than some stories that are double the length. A good story, one that benefited from having no knowledge going in and a good subscriber bonus and the feeling of a later Doctor having the kind of story more associated with an earlier Doctor, 8/10.

Next up its the second story in the first Jago & Litefoot box set The Bellova Devil and it was a complete joy from start to finish. Where the first story felt like mostly set up this felt like a story that could be listened to in isolation. One incident sets of a series of events and its a case of sitting back and letting the two leads get into some humorous trouble. Highlights include a brave turn from Jago while hiding in a bush and Litefoot getting talked into a situation he knows he has no business in. This is the kind of story that I hoped for going in and I suspect this may be the flavour of the series now that we've got the difficult start out of the way 10/10.

The final story this month is The English Way of Death an adaption of the Gareth Roberts book from the Missing Adventure range featuring the 4th Doctor, Romana and K9. A nice little fluffy story featuring the season 17 regulars. A story enlivened by the cast, especially Tom Baker however weak writing which includes rather weak sub Bertie Wooster characters. Even though I enjoyed it a week after writing this review up I'm struggling to remember any details. Given that how close this release was to The Romance of Crime and if you are on a budget I'd recommend getting that release over this. Perhaps it needed a bit more beefing up from John Dorney but as it is stands I feel like I've gone for a slice of cake that has the least amount of ingredients in it as possible. Sadly like the original novels I suspect The English Way of Death will go down as a disappointing follow up, 6/10.