Browse by Artist: WALKER, SCOTT

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	Scott
Label:	4 MEN WITH BEARDS
Format:	LP
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	4M 149LP

"One of the most enigmatic figures in pop music history Scott Walker (nee Scott Engel) first saw massive success in England with his band The Walker Brothers in 1965. Not really brothers, nor were they British, the trio left Hollywood seeking fame in England, and they found it there for a time with their particular brand of orchestrated pop. Following the group's demise in 1967, Walker set out to pursue solo stardom in perhaps the most peculiar way possible, with over-the-top baroque pop songs owing more to his idol Jacques Brel, Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra than they did to The Beatles or The Stones. This is his first solo LP from 1967 and features 3 of his own compositions along with covers of songs by Brel, Tim Hardin, and the Brill Building team of Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann. A true original."

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	Scott 2
Label:	4 MEN WITH BEARDS
Format:	LP
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	4M 150LP

"Originally released in 1968, Scott 2 made it all the way to number one on the UK pop charts, perhaps the strangest number one hit in pop history. Continuing with his orchestral obsession, Scott 2 features over-the-top string and horn arrangements, occasionally veering into dangerously schmaltzy territory. This production style is in drastic contrast to the lyrical content, songs of despair, prostitution, homosexuality, and brutal honesty, indicting the same glamorous and glitzy lifestyle that his baroque pop style emblemizes. Along with many originals, Scott 2 features songs by Jacques Brel, Tim Hardin, and Bacharach/David."

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	Scott 3
Label:	4 MEN WITH BEARDS
Format:	LP
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	4M 151LP

"Scott 3, originally released in 1969, marked a big change in Walker's approach to albums as, for the first time, the record is dominated by his original compositions. In fact, the only other songwriter that makes it onto the album is Walker's idol, Belgium's legendary singer/songwriter Jacques Brel. Scott 3 again features string heavy production courtesy of Wally Scott, though it occasionally moves out of pop ballad territory into a more cinematic feel influenced by Ennio Morricone, among others. An huge influence on folks like David Bowie and Nick Cave, as well as just about anybody on the 4AD label." 180 gram vinyl; gatefold sleeve.

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	Scott 4
Label:	4 MEN WITH BEARDS
Format:	LP
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	4M 152LP

"Despite being the first of his solo albums not to reach the British Top 10, Scott 4 was perhaps his best, and most ambitious album to date. Originally released in 1969, it is the first record to feature only Scott Walker originals. It is also the first to back off a bit from the heavily string laden production of past releases, allowing other sonic influences to shine through, from country to folk to soul. The lyrical content remains intense as Walker tackles everything from War to Stalinism to heartbreak with equal success. A classic." 180 gram vinyl; gatefold sleeve.

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	Tilt
Label:	DRAG CITY
Format:	CD
Price:	$13.00
Catalog #:	DC 134CD

Domestic issue of this strange1995 album, previously issued in Europe on the major label Fontana. "It must be stressed that even those familiar with Walker's career -- the sublime mid-60s Walker Brothers hits, the dramatic maturation of The Voice and Inimitable Presence on the not-to-be-missed first four solo LPs -- were shocked by Tilt. Yes, Tilt astonishes. The bleak, gothic theatre that Walker's oblique lyrics and operatic vocals convey is bolstered every step of the way by dark string arrangements, reverbed guitars, the whirring of synthesizers and the rattle of percussion. It furthers by an astonishing margin the already singular breadth of Scott Walker's 30-year career, finding him at still another and different peak of his ability as a vocalist and lyricist. And God what a barren and unfamiliar summit it is!"

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	Scott
Label:	FONTANA (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$16.00
Catalog #:	FONT 879

"New digital 24Bit High Definition/remastered editions with restored original sleeve artwork, superseding the prior reissues from 1992; at an attractive midline price to boot. If your not familiar with the genius of Scott, now the time is ripe to act decisively. On this debut solo album from 1967 we still find him constrained by the Wagnerian pop anthems that made the Walker Bros. a household name (in Europe anyway), but already we see Scott exhibiting his unique approach to making records that are an amalgam of stunning orchestral arrangements, controversial subject matter, and a booming athletic vocal style. His obsession with the decadent Belgian crooner Jacques Brel is readily apparent with three of his songs covered here, including the stunning 'My Death -- decisions like that that would eventually end the 'commercial' phase of Scott's recording career. But it's a couple of the originals here that really give a hint at the artistic triumph to come; the brooding, almost filmic 'Such a Small Love', and especially the haunting 'Always Coming Back to You', amply demonstrate the unique pop sensibility that would make his later LPs such classics. There are a couple of duds here, unfortunately, the middle of the road 'When Joanna Loved Me', and the Andre Previn (!) chestnut 'You're Gonna Hear from Me', so for the uninitiated this might not be the place to start, but for fans this is essential." -- Billy Kiely

Artist:	WALKER, SCOTT
Title:	5 Easy Pieces
Label:	MERCURY/UNIVERSAL (FRANCE)
Format:	5CD BOX
Price:	$85.00
Catalog #:	MERC 81044

2003 release, 96 tracks across 5 themed CDs ('Bedsit Dramas', 'Songs of a Lady, Love & Loss', 'Songs from Europe & America', '15 big hits' and 'Music From Film and for Films'). Many rare & deleted tracks. Scott's soundtrack work collected on one CD for the first time. 56 page booklet of notes. "Anthologizing Scott Walker's career is a daunting task. Along with Walker, perhaps only The Beatles, Roxy Music, John Cale and David Bowie have engulfed themselves in both art and pop and created such riches in each vein. Incredibly, Walker swung much further in each direction than any of those other artists, singing standards (and other housewives' choices) on a TV variety show, and creating famously impenetrable, esoteric work on his most recent (a loosely used term here, to be sure) solo albums. Therefore, the first challenge of any examination of his career demands rectifying the split between his more populist and cerebral impulses. Happily, the five-disc, 93-track 5 Easy Pieces rises to the challenge, capturing the on-the-surface duality between Walker's MOR song styling and his avant-garde leanings, as well as demonstrating the common ground shared by everything he did in between. With a large number of rare and out-of-print tracks sitting alongside most of his best-known work, this is a rare collection that would appeal to both Walker devotees and novices. And with a few exceptions, each disc is arranged chronologically, demonstrating in some cases that Walker's unusual path didn't have as many sharp turns as most would think... An increasingly revered figure, Scott Walker is a singular craftsmen, one of rock's few individuals to demonstrate a willingness to both embrace elements of the unfashionable and ignore prevailing trends, yet also display an acute awareness of contemporary sounds. Forgoing many of the stylistic trappings of rock, Walker has explored a broad range of Western musical styles and displayed an intellectualism that is at times subversive, hilarious, cutting and poignant. It's a slight bit odd to attempt to delve into the heart and mind of one of pop's most anomalous and enigmatic figures by examining his work -- that's an approach more often reserved for long-departed painters, sculptors or writers who created in often self-conscious 'periods.' Therefore, as an exploration of an artist's psyche, 5 Easy Pieces is incomplete at best. More importantly, however, as an exploration of this artist's career, it's endlessly rewarding, almost wholly engrossing, and long overdue." -- Scott Plagenhoef/Pitchfork

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