Scott Walker has sadly passed away.
I discovered him relatively late: he was not a big name in non-English speaking countries.
I discovered him thanks to Radio 3's Late Junction, which is going to be significantly cut by the short-sighted BBC.
The accidental links between these two events increases my sense of sadness at the loss of such a unique artist.
I worry that there may be less space in the future for such outsiders and outliers in the arts. Despite the possibilities of the world-wide-web, it seems at times that there is increasingly less space for diversity, and particularly challenging arts and artists, who find it more difficult to reach an attentive audience and make a living with their art. Maybe I'm being too pessimistic, after all there are places like Ireland where there is a thriving and exciting music scene, but I guess this scene is there in spite of the internet (Ireland has many active and well-attended music venues across the country), not thanks to it.
Walter Scott was truly unique: when he went solo he started doing MOR (Middle of the Road) Music that was nonetheless innovative and, at times, disconcerting.
An example is 'It's raining today' with its peculiar string drone in the background.
I also love the references to Erik Satie's work (see the opening chords of the wonderful 'Copenhagen')
The lyrics in his songs were poetic (see 'Copenhagen' again), but also characterised by irony, and self-deprecating humour. For example, in 'On your own again' , a song that talks about a love story that "[...] when it began, I was so happy I didn't feel like me."
Scott Walker was also single-handedly responsible for introducing Jaques Brel to an English-speaking audience, thanks to his many English covers of some of the best of Brel's songs, like Jackie:
He then disappeared and came back delivering experimental and uncompromising work. He did not lose his sense of humour even in tragedy. For example, the enigmatic 'The day the Conducator died (an Xmas song)' refers obliquely to the execution of Romanian dictator Ceausescu and his wife, which happened just before Christmas, and contains jolly Christmas bells in an otherwise bleak and sparse musical landscape: it's a work of genius and a haunting piece of music.
On top of that, in several interviews Scott Walker came across as a insightful, perceptive, and charming person. His passion for music and art was also always evident.
He will be missed by many, but I think his work will continue to inspire many others, as he has inspired diverse artists like David Bowie, Pulp and Jarvis Cocker, the Divine Comedy, and many others.
I discovered him relatively late: he was not a big name in non-English speaking countries.
I discovered him thanks to Radio 3's Late Junction, which is going to be significantly cut by the short-sighted BBC.
The accidental links between these two events increases my sense of sadness at the loss of such a unique artist.
I worry that there may be less space in the future for such outsiders and outliers in the arts. Despite the possibilities of the world-wide-web, it seems at times that there is increasingly less space for diversity, and particularly challenging arts and artists, who find it more difficult to reach an attentive audience and make a living with their art. Maybe I'm being too pessimistic, after all there are places like Ireland where there is a thriving and exciting music scene, but I guess this scene is there in spite of the internet (Ireland has many active and well-attended music venues across the country), not thanks to it.
Walter Scott was truly unique: when he went solo he started doing MOR (Middle of the Road) Music that was nonetheless innovative and, at times, disconcerting.
An example is 'It's raining today' with its peculiar string drone in the background.
I also love the references to Erik Satie's work (see the opening chords of the wonderful 'Copenhagen')
The lyrics in his songs were poetic (see 'Copenhagen' again), but also characterised by irony, and self-deprecating humour. For example, in 'On your own again' , a song that talks about a love story that "[...] when it began, I was so happy I didn't feel like me."
Scott Walker was also single-handedly responsible for introducing Jaques Brel to an English-speaking audience, thanks to his many English covers of some of the best of Brel's songs, like Jackie:
He then disappeared and came back delivering experimental and uncompromising work. He did not lose his sense of humour even in tragedy. For example, the enigmatic 'The day the Conducator died (an Xmas song)' refers obliquely to the execution of Romanian dictator Ceausescu and his wife, which happened just before Christmas, and contains jolly Christmas bells in an otherwise bleak and sparse musical landscape: it's a work of genius and a haunting piece of music.
On top of that, in several interviews Scott Walker came across as a insightful, perceptive, and charming person. His passion for music and art was also always evident.
He will be missed by many, but I think his work will continue to inspire many others, as he has inspired diverse artists like David Bowie, Pulp and Jarvis Cocker, the Divine Comedy, and many others.
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