Mike gave me the idea for this post....people who really go out of their way to sound like Scott. My votes for biggest Scott Wannabe's are Ian McCulloch of Echo and the Bunnymen and Marc Almond from Soft Cell, though mostly Mac...he rips Scott from whole cloth. I give honorable mentions to the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon and Julian Cope however because at least they'll admit to their pronounced Scott obsessions. Any other nominees?
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Unsu...
Re: Scott wannabe's
Mon, July 26, 2004 - 5:51 PMIf you want to talk about male vocalists who bear a strong Scott Walker influence ('wanna-be' is a pejorative term that implies a sense of cheap imitation with no originality), I'd say Brendan Perry of Dead Can Dance sounds more like Scott than any other singer I can think of (and he has acknowledged Scott's influence in interviews)
Bowie is also prone at times to Scott mannerisms (his version of 'Amsterdam' is more hommage to Walker than to Brel)
And though his voice is completely different than Scott's, I'd say Antony (of Antony and the Johnsons) is similar to Scott in spirit: over-the-top, sweeping melodrama (like Marc Almond but minus the camp sensibility)... -
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Tue, July 27, 2004 - 2:54 AMFerrara, you beat me to the punch: Brendan Perry is it. I don't mind at all if people use Scott as an influence. Wannabe is not an apropriate term for a lot of these people. I mean, just because they like his music and it informs their singing style doesn't mean they wannabe Scott Walker. I'll add a couple names to the list:
Nick Cave: He admits to the Scott linage and has covered his songs. He also happens to be one of my favorite singers, along with Scott.
Midge Ure (Ultravox): Has has also done some of Scott's songs. -
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Wed, July 28, 2004 - 11:42 AMF/P, you nailed it...Brendan Perry obviously thinks Scott hung the moon.
And Robin, 'wannabe' wasn't meant disrespectfully, though i was implying that Mac and Marc seem to have healthy enough egos the both of them, that they might not readily cop to Scott's influence. I actually sang in a Scott tribute band with my friend Josh and I'd be happy to bray like an ass that I'm a real frantic Scott wannabe and quite proud to be so. Nick and Midge both...nice one. Can we agree that by an artists merely showing signs of Scott's influence, it's as much a symbol of high quality as anything?
Stuart Staples of Tindersticks came to mind the instant after I posted.
I didn't mention Bowie either, as that seemed apt, though a bit obvious and well-documented. -
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Wed, July 28, 2004 - 10:16 PMCousteau certainly had Scott Walker influences, especially the singer. Also there was Scott 4 a band who liked 'Scott 4' the album so much that they named themselves after it. -
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Unsu...
Re: Scott wannabe's
Wed, July 28, 2004 - 10:28 PMAnyone ever heard this group called Balcony who supposedly put out a very Scott-sounding record years ago? (not sure what the connection was, I think I saw it on eBay once)...
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Thu, July 29, 2004 - 3:17 AMOkay. I see where you're coming from. And of course you would never expect Mac to admit to any influence. After all, isn't he the one who is under the impression that good music started with Echo and the Bunnymen? I saw them a few years back and he still has no qualms about introducing "Ocean Rain" as "the best song ever written". -
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Unsu...
Re: Scott wannabe's
Thu, July 29, 2004 - 8:40 AMi like that idiot mac's attitude though, he's funny -
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Thu, July 29, 2004 - 9:14 AMOh, me too. And I like a lot of their music as well.
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Mon, August 2, 2004 - 9:31 PMHi, I just joined...big fan of Scott and also Marc. Understand, Marc's first solo release had a cover of "Big Louise". So he did acknowledge the influence, just as he did Brel with "The Bulls" on his first full - length.
Stuart Staples is more in debt to Lee Hazelwood, who he recently paid tribute to, but the Scott influence is there.
Nick Cave included Scott on the soundtrack he, Mick Harvey and Blixa Bargeld wrote for "To Have and to Hold", Preluding the release of "Tilt" (The song is "I threw it all away"...is it exclusive?).
Neil Hannon and Marc both covered Jacky in a fashion similar to Scott's, rather than Mort Shuman or Brel.
Thought I'd share.
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Unsu...
Re: Scott wannabe's
Tue, August 3, 2004 - 11:53 AMi thought of a couple more..
the guy from franz ferdinand, his singing style..
beta band..i read this morning they just broke up for good i think this time..
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Wed, September 22, 2004 - 10:25 PMfirst of all, i'm thrilled beyond belief to find people who appreciate scott! my guitarist friend turned me on to mr. walker in late 80's & i've loved his work to this day. i'd hoped to take part in a scott walker tribute concert with various other wdc area musicians but it never panned out. i would love to cover "amsterdam" (even though it's a song scott did via jaques brel)or "my death".
ian, julian, david, neil, and even nick cave (these days) are definitely influenced by scott. but i think neil hannon (with cheesey orchestration) sounds the most like scott out of all of them. -
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Re: Scott wannabe's
Fri, September 24, 2004 - 4:54 PMI forgot another...David Sylvian. I've been a fan for a while and was just watching Japan "Oil On Canvas" and couldn't deny the Scott ref points. Seems Brits just have Scott running in their veins due to more radio plays, Scott used in jingles, maybe licensed in movies & tv, etc.
In a perfect world, Scott would be on AM radio in US a LOT more. -
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Unsu...
Re: Scott wannabe's
Sat, September 25, 2004 - 7:48 PMyeah dave sylvian all the way.
david sylvian sings an uplifting (kidding) version of a song from westside story used in an insurance commercial that ran during the olympics..there's a place for us, that one..sounded alot like scott
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