By the time the 60s entered its final year, the former Walker Brothers idol had released two solo records of increasingly ambitious songwriting and arrangement, his own songs dotted between covers notably by Jacques Brel. For Scott 3, the three Brel covers were placed right at the end of the album, leaving the rest to his most mature songwriting yet, including timeless classics like Copenhagen and Rosemary. Wally Stott's string arrangements were still sumptuous and classy, but the dissonant drone at the album's outset pointed to even more ambitious music to come.
Walker released no less than three albums in 1969, the second being a contractual commitment to his TV show - but he was saving his own material for his masterpiece. Originally released under his birth name of Engel, and probably sinking without trace for that reason on initial release, Scott 4 was Walker's first release of all-original material.
And seriously, what to even write about this clutch of ten songs without a single dud among them. Starting your record with a setting of Ingmar Bergman's Seventh Seal to a Morricone-eseque arrangement might seem like an audacious move - following it up with nine more perfect songs with slimmed-down arrangements just makes for one of the greatest albums ever made. If this post happens to be your first encounter with Scott 4, I envy you beyond description.
Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker is a longtime Scott Walker champion who'd worked with him in 2001, and had taken part in the "Tilting and Drifting" concert at the London Barbican in 2008. Cocker therefore must've been an obvious choice for this BBC Proms tribute to the 1967-1970 music of Scott, which took place in July 2017.
For this concert, Jarvis was joined by fellow British artist Richard Hawley, US singer-songwriter John Grant, and Susanne Sundfør from Norway. Each singer takes two songs in the spotlight, and turn about thereafter, all coming together for the closing Get Behind Me. Providing the sumptuous backing to seventeen of Walker's finest songs are the Heritage Orchestra conducted by Jules Buckley.
Scott 3 link
Scott 4 link
Proms Tribute link
pw: sgtg
Previously posted at SGTG:
Hearty thanks. I may be the odd one out here, but my favorite Scott Walker is the Scott Walker of the last portion of his career: Tilt, Bisch Bosch and the mighty Soused with Sunno))). Challenging listening for sure, and well rewarded to these ears.
ReplyDeleteNow if someone would give the Sunno))) guys directions to Diamanda Galas's house...
Like kingpossum, although I can see where Scott 1 to 4 et al came from, I feel the latter part of his career is much more rewarding than the earlier. From Walker Brothers last album (Nite Flights in 1978) to the final album with Sunn O)))), and the soundtrack to Childhood of a Leader, he produced some of the most skewed, rich, marvellous music ever written and played.
ReplyDeletePretty much in agreement with you both: the late 60s albums contain his most beautiful songs & arrangements, then from Tilt onwards (I'd give an honourable mention to Hunter as the prelude) he turned all conventional wisdom on its head and spent his later career doing his most stunningly creative and iconoclastic music. Soused IMHO is the album Bowie's Blackstar wishes it could've been.
ReplyDelete*And of course Nite Flights tracks 1-4 deserves to be in there as the late-period curtain-raiser, even more so than Hunter.
DeleteDiamanda Galas and sunn o)))... oh hell yeah, I'd listen to that. And set aside a good few hours' recovery time afterwards!
Well, in order to put some balance in here - I will take the opposite approach. I do love Tilt and Climate Of Hunter. The four tracks from Nite Flights are fantastic. But while I respect everything starting with The Drift and onwards - do I actually listen to and enjoy them with anything close to the frequency or enjoyment I do 1-4? No way, no how.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you poked around deep enough into the psyches of a lot of hipsters (and I'm not referring to anyone here, but the wider world of "received wisdom" at large) - I think it's probably true for most of them too. It just doesn't sound as cool to admit to it. And to borrow a line from one the more fervent admirers of the first period - leave the cool for the fool.
Nothing is more subjective than music. Does it occur to you that some listeners simply enjoy something more that falls outside of the prevailing collective consciousness of what's deemed good, better or best, without regard to appearances?
DeleteBut then, this is my first encounter with the Balance Police, so perhaps I've some learning to do about such things.
"Leave the cool for the fool" is nothing more than an arrogant labelling for those who use it. That you prefer a different era of an artist's career is terrific and exactly as it should be for you. Doesn't matter to me. Just as my preference doesn't matter to you. Or shouldn't, anyway.
But in the burning desire to reposition others' supposed psyches (and I'm not referring to anyone here, but the wider world of "received smugness" at large) lies an issue perhaps better addressed in the bathroom mirror than in the comment section of a music blog.
Good lord, man - I hope you were eventually able to untangle yourself from all those knots you put yourself through there.
DeleteInteresting thoughts, maybe I'll agree with everyone. But I'm here just to note this:
ReplyDelete"If this post happens to be your first encounter with Scott 4, I envy you beyond description." I understand and it is true! Thank you very much!