Crossing the Boundaries

Mikki Kauste has been writing music for Egotrippi for at least 15 years. Like any ambitious songwriter, he has probably never aimed to write only certain type of music, such as music to meet the conception of what is suitable for Egotrippi – not that “suitable for Egotrippi” is even easy to determine in the first place. As Mikki developed as a songwriter, new influences began to manifest themselves in his compositions. At some point he noticed he had written a bunch of songs that he didn't think would suit Egotrippi but he didn't feel like giving them to other artists either. Mikki decided to go solo.

The result was an album called Lintumies, released in May 2013. The album has been labeled as schlager music and while certain songs (Turmio, Oisin kerrankin mies, Rakkauden roinaa) sound very much like schlager, there are also other things such as timeless intimate pop ballads, following in the footsteps of the Walker Brothers' orchestrated grandiosity: Prologi (Lintumies), Pyydät liikaa, and Hyvästi Amsterdam.

Mikki has described his vision as pop music expanded towards grandiose Anglo-American pop á la Dusty Springfield, old Finnish schlager, Italian schlager, and French chanson. Also fascination towards old jazz has surely influenced Mikki's melodic sensibility. Even his jangly power pop song Tie from the 2011 Syksyn sävel song contest fits the album both musically and thematically. In a way Lintumies is a real crossover album, showing that different musical styles can easily be put together because they all have certain common roots in the golden decades of pop music.

So, what if this music had been released as an Egotrippi album? The audience would probably have been quite surprised, even confused, even though Egotrippi has been pushing its musical (and lyrical) boundaries during the past ten or more years. I do understand the decision to release the Lintumies material as a solo album. It was time for Mikki to show what he can do without his band – and he shines like never before.

Lintumies is a truly high-quality, coherent, intimate album full of timeless melodies. I am especially impressed by the heavenly ballads. The album lyrics are really good but Mikki's voice expresses much more than any words could ever do. Mikki is a really distinctive vocalist and he has been getting better and better throughout the years. On this album he is free from all boundaries, resulting in his most heartfelt renditions.

Somehow I get the feeling that this is only the beginning. Coming next, a jazz album? A chanson album? My expectations are getting high!

Scott on TV

After the Walker Brothers' success, Scott Walker had become such a popular artist in the UK that he was granted a TV show of his own. Scott surely hesitated because singing other people's songs didn't really fit his artistic ambition that kept growing. Despite being hungry for getting to present his own compositions and lyrics Scott agreed to do the show. He saw it as a way to challenge himself as there were many songs he hadn't sung before.

Scott: Scott Walker Sings Songs from His TV Series was released in July 1969 being his fourth solo album release. The songs on the album are studio re-recordings of the same songs Scott performed live on TV, consisting of big band numbers, ballads, and film music.

At the moment the album is not officially available on CD, thanks to having being blocked by Scott himself. However, most of the songs can be heard on various CD compilations. The rest can be heard through unofficial channels, such as YouTube. Despite the difficulties in availability, the album itself just might be worth hearing if you happen to enjoy Scott Walker singing any kind of good music (and not just self-penned material).

My personal experience with this album has been quite interesting. Knowing Scott and his artist persona, him singing something like Will You Still Be Mine was very bizarre at first. However, those kind of cheery big band numbers didn't sound so strange too long – Scott does a fantastic job throughout the album – even though his version of Look of Love isn't as good as Dusty Springfield's.

In any case, many of the songs on the TV show album are melancholic ballads (which you could definitely expect from Scott) and Scott's renditions are impeccable. You can hear how he took the challenge seriously. The orchestrations are very pleasant thanks to Peter Knight's work as music director.

Wish to hear more of Scott's standards, tender ballads or jazzy numbers? Don't underestimate the power of Scott's TV show music!

P.S. Unfortunately, the actual TV show is gone, thanks to BBC overwriting the tapes. The audio was salvaged, though, which is a good thing even though the quality isn't superb. Search for "Scott Walker BBC TV show".

Walkermania! Part Three

I will now conclude Walkermania by talking about the Walker Brothers' second and third album released in the UK, Portrait (1966) and Images (1967). These weren't obviously their last albums, as the Walkers returned in the 1970s with three more albums. I might cover them some time later.

Whereas Take It Easy.. was relative cheerful and uptempo, on Portrait and Images the basic concept has been turned upside down. This means that there are now only a couple of uptempo songs per album and the rest is ballads or at least very peaceful and slow songs. Both albums are really good and even though Portrait was more successful back then, I personally prefer Images.

After the debut album and number one hits Make It Easy on Yourself and The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore, the Walkers were household names in the UK. They were on top of their fame even though they never had another number one hit single again. Their music was becoming even bigger and more dramatic than before. There was also an increasing number of songs that were very intimate or jazzy. In my opinion, some of the most quiet numbers weren't able to capture their best qualities. Still, the Walkers obviously didn't lack ambition rendering songs like Just for a Thrill, Old Folks and Once upon a Summertime.

The Walker Brothers were at their most glorious when performing dramatic, grandiose songs that had almost a gothic quality to them. When I say ”The Walker Brothers” it is in fact often more like ”Scott, big choir and big orchestra”. John got more room on these albums and sang really well but he was obviously destined to remain in Scott's shadow all the way. Not only was Scott the most celebrated Walker brother, he was also beginning to show major signs of great songwriting skill. He wrote or co-write and sang on such amazing classics as Archangel, Deadlier Than the Male, Orpheus, and Genevieve. Scott wrote both very dramatic and gentle songs – it can be said that most of his material from this period is, in fact, focused on exploring the opposites. In addition to Orpheus and Genevieve, some of his more gentle songs included I Can See It Now, Experience, and Mrs. Murphy, the latter of which was released as a solo single.

Some of the best ”quiet and intimate” songs on Portrait and Images include No Sad Songs for Me, I Will Wait for You, I Can't Let It Happen to You (written by John, presented with an atypical arrangement including organ and no strings), as well as Where's the Girl, a song that once again captivated the amazing emotional quality of Scott's voice. And of course, there is a stunning version of Summertime, with a great jazz sax solo and all. Curtis Mayfield's gospel People Get Ready is also really fantastic whereas Living Above Your Head almost sounds out of place with a sunshine pop choir singing ”ba bop bop baa”. Still, it is really catchy, just like Walking in the Rain, a song made famous by the Ronettes.

There were indeed so many great songs that I am finding it difficult to mention all of them without sounding like a list. The main reason why I prefer Images is probably that it is a bit more lively as a whole. There is, for example, Everything Under the Sun, a midtempo happyish song that has a lot of kick and the kind of uplifting quality that is present in many of my favorite Walker Brothers songs. It Makes No Difference at All is also one of my most cherished favorites: a hearbreaking ballad with Scott singing in the lowest range of his voice. Just Say Goodbye is a somewhat similar experience, but it has an even more fantastic and subtle soundscape outside the massive chorus.

It goes without saying that the Walker Brothers were definitely not just any ”boy band” of the 60s!

Check out some music:

Walking in the Rain

Everything Under the Sun

Where's the Girl?

Mrs.Murphy

It Makes No Difference Now

Archangel

Walkermania! Part Two

Take It Easy with the Walker Brothers came out in December 1965. However, I now intend to talk about the Walkers' music from that period in general, based on CD 1 of the box set Everything Under the Sun (which I felt compelled to buy).

Given that the Walker Brothers were mostly famous for big ballads, the music on their first album is not very much dominated by ballads. There are actually only a couple of songs that are clearly ballads. Mostly it is comprised of midtempo songs that aren't even particularly gloomy despite Scott Walker singing lead almost all the time. The Walker Brothers' music comes across as very classy, aurally massive, a bit melancholic but definitely more uplifting rather than dark.

The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore was originally performed by Frankie Valli without any huge success. The Walkers version could have suffered the same fate if Scott hadn't demanded it to be recorded once again after the first attempt. The end result was a huge classic, a track to cherish from now to eternity. Despite being rather dark in the lyric section, the overall feel you get from it is something completely different. It is a great song, great arrangement and performance by both Scott and the studio band.

Randy Newman's I Don't Want to Hear It Anymore is one of Scott's most fantastic vocal performances. It seems almost unbelievable that with this kind of power, style, emotion and flawless phrasing he is still pretty much a self-learned singer. And even though Scott is just as great as he is, he also sounds fantastic when singing together with John Walker. John's background vocals appear in many songs, and the lovely female choir also plays an important role. Therefore, don't forget to check out the Walkers' take on the Everly Brothers song the Seventh Dawn which was the b-side of the Love Her single. There we have probably the most heavenly, uniquely beautiful harmony ever recorded by Scott and John. And speaking of great harmonies, also check out their version of Bob Dylan's Love Minus Zero!

Even though Scott sang lead on almost anything, John got one lead vocal on the debut album. His performance on Dancing in the Street may sound even a bit too cool but is in fact very good. John's talents were at this point largely overshadowed by Scott's amazing performances on songs like The Girl I Lost in the Rain (chilling!), There Goes My Baby (probably Scott's best uptempo number here) and, obviously, Make It Easy on Yourself. One Engel composition is even included on the debut album, You're All Around Me. More of his compositions appeared on b-sides.

An interesting thing is that at times the Walkers seemed to be very much drawn towards soul and funk music. However, when it comes to the funk part, the results rarely were very commendable. Songs like Tell The Truth and Everything's Gonna Be Alright were great live numbers but not really Scott's strongest area. Land of 1000 Dances was included on the debut album and was also a very popular song but I think it just sounds bizarre when Scott Walker sings it – especially when you think about what was to come.

Take It Easy with... was certainly a worthy debut but if you're interested in hearing the singles and b-sides, which are all very, very good and not included on the album, I recommend checking out the extended version as a whole. You don't want to miss the uplifting beauty of songs like I Need You, After The Lights Go Out, and Young Man Cried. One of my personal favorites is My Ship Is Coming in, which will probably always amaze me. Scott and John make quite a theatrical opera duo!

Here are some samples:

The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (promo video - now that's what I call Marketing! And by the way, can you imagine they also performed it live)

My Ship Is Coming in

I Don't Want to Hear It Anymore

The Girl I Lost in the Rain

Walkermania! Part One

It comes as no surprise that the Walker Brothers have very much become an everyday activity to me. Back in the early 60s there were many great things going on in southern California. One of these things was bass player Scott Engel meeting guitarist John Maus. Original drummer Al “Tiny” Schneider was replaced with Gary Leeds after some time. Debut single Pretty Girls Everywhere was followed by Love Her which was musically a massive step forward. For various reasons, the trio decided to aim at the UK market. Especially Engel was very much interested in moving to England where he felt the band's music might get a better reception. Leeds managed to get financing for the trio to step on a plane.

Engel, Maus and Leeds arrived in England in the freezing cold winter of 1965. They were soon signed to Philips Records. Love Her caught a lot of attention and the first single recorded on English terrain (Make It Easy on Yourself) was a number one hit. Between 1965 and 1967 the Walkers released several top 20 hits, three albums and toured in the UK and abroad. At some point they were even said to be more popular than the Beatles, which is probably the result of their fan club growing out of proportion, thanks to the devotion shown by young girls towards their favorite Americans.

As the Walkers became more and more popular they also began to attract girls – hundreds, thousands of hysterical, screaming girls. A typical Walker Brothers gig consisted of screaming rather than music, even though the Walkers always gave the best performance they could. Some major violence occurred during tours of this period. Fans, tour personnel and the artists themselves ended up in hospital on many occasions.

So, there were definitely many interesting aspects about Walkermania. The most memorable thing is obviously the music and superb production quality, not to mention Scott Engel/Walker's voice that has continued to amaze people up to this day. In the mid-60s England pop was a lot about beat music. However, a typical Walker Brothers recording session was something quite different. Instead of two guitars, bass and drums there were more likely two or three sets of drums, three pianos, a brass section, a big string section and a chorus. The music definitely cost a lot of money to record but when you listen to the results... They just don't make music like this anymore! Or can't afford to.

Tune in next time, when I discuss some of the most beautiful, magnificent and heartbreaking  Walker Brothers songs! Meanwhile, check out something really good.

Scottmania, Part One

A few months ago I experienced strange times. I was wondering how I was ever going to move on from Scott Walker's solo albums 1–4. The reason to this was that I believed finding music that is at least equally good would be really, really difficult. Since then I have moved on, for the most part, but I still haven't found the music that I would need to really break this habit of listening to Scott Walker – and only Scott Walker... I am very much open to any kind of recommendations.

Now I will write some kind of small review-presentations of all these Scott Walker albums. They were released in 1967–1969 and show Scott's fantastic development as a songwriter, poet, and why not as a singer. The first solo album, Scott, was released in 1967 while the Walker Brothers were still around.

It is clear as day that Scott truly spread his wings on the solo albums, right from the start. However, at this point Scott was still mostly singing other people's songs. There are contemporary songs (for example a gorgeous version of Angelica), film music (You're Gonna Hear from Me – showing Scott's crooner side), original compositions, and Jacques Brel songs.

The original material is of course among the most interesting material here. Montague Terrace (In Blue) is a fantastically uplifting composition with a sensational arrangement. Everything on Scott's albums 1–4 is, in fact, incredibly well arranged, thanks to Wally Stott (a.k.a. Angela Morley) who arranged quite a few of these songs. Other original Engel (Walker) compositions include Such a Small Love, a song that features a very typical eerie mood that Scott likes, and Always Coming Back to You, a dreamy song with a hint of desperation.

Looking at the Jacques Brel songs Scott eagerly chose to record in English, the songs actually reveal surprisingly lot of Scott's dark inner world. I think it says a lot that the first song on his first solo album is about a sadomasochistic relationship (Mathilde). Later, there is another Brel song about his own death (My Death)... And it doesn't get much lighter with Amsterdam at the end of the album.

It seems that Scott selected the cover songs carefully to fit the mood he wanted to pursue. That mood could be described to be generally melancholic, or perhaps it is a question of balance between the beautifully melancholic and the almost scaringly dark songs... Still, it confuses me to hear him obviously being on top of the world singing all of this music – even happy?

You see, Scott Walker doesn't seem to be too fond of his own voice. Or maybe he is, but according to what he has said in interviews, he never listens to his own music again after it is finished. On his more recent albums he uses a higher vocal register in order to prevent the listener from getting too comfortable while listening to his singing. All of this sounds strange, but serves some kind of purpose to Scott.

That is enough for now. We will soon return to the mystery of Scott Walker and listen to some Scott 2...

As usual, some song picks for you (YouTube):

Montague Terrace (In Blue)

Mathilde

Such A Small Love

Angelica

The Grand Talent of Scott Walker

I think I might be getting obsessed about Scott Walker. I listen to his first four solo albums from the 60s (Scott 1-4) every day, and if I don't.. Well, then I won't be too happy..

Originally, I had heard one song from Scott Walker's band, the Walker Brothers (The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore). Apart from that, I hadn't spent much time thinking about Scott Walker, or the Walker Brothers... This more recent development began when I saw the documentary film Scott Walker: 30 Century Man. The (almost) whole story was there: at first Scott Walker was in the Walker Brothers, a band that was much more popular in the UK than its homeland, the United States. Scott wrote songs for the band and soon went on to record solo albums. After that, his musical ambitions only kept growing. He is still writing new music – and he is definitely not trying to please the big buying audience anymore!

Funnily, the documentary film didn't say much about the first phase of Noel Scott Engel's musical career. Engel, as his real name is, was a teen idol way before his enormous success with the Walker Brothers. To me this is really interesting, as I might consider myself a sucker for teen idols... Scott before his grown-up career sounds quite a bit like himself, only his voice is higher. And, yeah, the music is a bit different, too...

In the mid-60s Scott joined the Walker Brothers, a band in which the members were not really brothers or called Walker. The Walker Brothers were considered to be a boy band, and its popularity was often even compared to the Beatles. The band was a popular subject of gossip and hype. It didn't take long until Scott began to feel anxious being in the band. He wore sunglasses to express the alienation he was feeling at the time.

It seems to me that it wasn't until the solo career when Scott really began to shine. The Walker Brothers performed music that had certain similar aspects to Scott's solo work but as a solo artist there was no need to adjust to the group dynamics. When Scott went solo he began a journey towards his later ambitions. At first he recorded many cover versions, including several Jacques Brel's songs. There were also original compositions right on the first album – with some extremely well-written lyrics. Scott 3 (1969) contained touches of dissonance, indicating the more experimental style that Scott was already interested in at that point. Scott 4 (1969) wasn't as big a commercial success as the first three albums but it was the first to feature only Scott Walker compositions.

Albums Scott 1-4 are in any case must-hear material. There are spectacular orchestral arrangements as well as awesome songs. Then there is Scott's personal instrument... His deep baritone voice. Scott's voice can be characterized by magnificent integrity and expressiveness. He makes singing sound so very easy with his relaxed style and natural vibrato. There is also a lot of emotion. In fact, his style is sometimes quite theatrical.

According to Scott himself, he probably would have started making experimental music earlier if Scott 4 had been more succesfull. After Scott 4 there was little progress for many, many years. Finally, in 1995 came Tilt, the first of Scott's avant garde/experimental albums. The following album, The Drift was released in 2006. These albums are surely interesting as they reveal the more adventurous, ambitious, as well as darker sides of Scott Walker. Nowadays Scott does exactly what he wants, and that is probably the ideal state of mind for a talented artist to be in.

Here is Jackie, a Jacques Brel song from Scott 2 (1968).

Scott Walker website