Daily Jam - Lines

There are currently a half dozen 12-year old boys making all kinds of noise upstairs for a birthday party sleepover.  Maybe you know this and may you don't, but 12-year old boys are...real weird.  Anyway, i'm just gonna listen to some music from The Walker Brothers while i reconsider some choices tonight.  Listen to "Lines" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - My Death

When we’re young, we take our lives for granted. Our present, our future, our health, our deaths…we live only for the moment, taking in every slice of pleasure or experience we can, our hair whipping wildly in the wind in our faces, gritted teeth, and no foregone conclusions. We walk on ever forward, never looking too far ahead, but never looking back either. Thinking back on our youth is like floating through a daydream. We inhale nostalgia like pulling off a joint. We inject memories like a syringe full of sleepy afternoons. And nothing seems real until it’s all too real.

Growing up, I could be a fairly macabre little dude, especially in my early teenage years, an adolescent not quite obsession with death and doom and gloom presided over by my artistic overlords of music, film, and literature. I thought about death…a lot. I dwelled on it. I wrote about it, drew about it, sang about it. My friends, my family, my loved ones, myself. But I never really experienced it except in an abstract way. Global catastrophes or disasters can certainly make you feel sad or empathetic, but at the end of the day, you still experience that kind of tragedy and death as a glassed off observer. It’s all just images on a screen really. In fact, it wasn’t until I was 30 years old that death really hit me directly…and completely took the wind out of me. After all of that not quite obsession, I was left unguarded and unprepared. And I felt foolish that I had found it so fascinating. And since then I’ve tried to appreciate life and everything in it, to think about my future, and my health, and my eventual death. But of course, we all eventually slack off.

And then death hit again.

The second time was no different than the first, even when expecting it or waiting for it. I was still unprepared and found myself adrift soon after. Death is so much more than you can ever really fathom. And again, it made me want to live, and to get things done, and to experience everything, and to blah, blah, blah. But we all fall back in line. We all succumb to the droning hum of existence. We find ourselves bored again. We find ourselves complacent. Death’s always just around the corner, but it never seems real, until it is again.

I’m doing my best not to take life or death for granted. I’m doing my best to carpe diem and all that good shit. And it’s hard work. And sometimes my brain and body don’t want to comply. But it’s good for my soul. And I hope I can keep it up before the next death, and the next, and my own.

Ladies and Gentlemen, from 1967’s Scott, Scott Walker’s “My Death”…

Daily Jam - Wait Until Dark

I could listen to Scott Walker's arrangements all day long.  So here's one.  Check out his version of Henry Mancini's theme from "Wait Until Dark" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - The Electrician

Here's probably the best song ever written about a CIA torturer.  Listen to The Walker Brothers' "The Electrician" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - Deadlier than the Male

Earlier this summer, i watched a cheesy, '60s Bond rip-off called "Deadlier than the Male."  It was a lot of fun, and for bonus points, it featured The Walker Brothers on the title track.  Check out "Deadlier than the Male" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - My Ship Is Coming In

Here's some classic '60s pop from The Walker Brothers.  Listen to "My Ship Is Coming In" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - Dealer

Going with some lesser known Scott Walker this morning, not that any Scott Walker is really all that widely known, but 1984's "Climate of Hunter" is often overlooked even by longtime fans.  His evolution forward into the avant garde is prevalent and hypnotizing.  Check out "Dealer" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - Mathilde

Happy Valentine's Day everybody.  Here's some Scott Walker.  Listen to "Mathilde" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - 30 Century Man

There's never really not a good day to listen to some Scott Walker, unless you're thinking of the asshole former governor of Wisconsin.  No.  Don't listen to him.  Fuck that guy.  Anyway, here's "30 Century Man" from "Scott 3," our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore

Scott Walker passed away early this morning, so i'm probably going to be listening to a lot of his work today.  One of his earliest hits with The Walker Brothers was the amazingly catchy "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore," your Daily Jam.

RIP Scott Walker

One of my all time favorite vocalists and composers, the enigmatic Scott Walker (nee Engel) passed away this morning at the age of 76.  Beginning his career as a teeny bopper with The Walker Brothers, but gradually morphing into an artist whose work got more and more experimental as he got older, Walker influenced just about everyone who listened to him, from Bowie to Eno, Radiohead to Sunn O))) (whom he recorded an album with a couple of years back).  He will be missed.  So, here's one of my favorites from early in his solo career, an English translated cover of Jacques Brel's "My Death."  RIP Scott Walker.

Absolutely Free - The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore

Did you guys here that there's an eclipse today?  Of course you did.  It's been kind of hard to miss.  Anyway, in honor of that, Toronto band Absolutely Free released a pretty solid cover of The Walker Brothers' "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore," which you can listen to below and buy here.  Enjoy.

Scott Walker - The Childhood of a Leader

I don't know anything about the new film "The Childhood of a Leader," except that it's based on a short story by Jean-Paul Sartre and that the legendary Scott Walker provides the score.  I'm most interested in that last part, an epic section of music made by a 74-piece orchestra.  Listen to "Run" below and get the record from 4AD tomorrow.

Daily Bowie - My Death

In 1973, Bowie retired his Ziggy Stardust persona, and those final concerts were caught on film for the documentary "Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars."  The film spent several years in post-production, finally releasing in 1979, with the soundtrack following four years later.  In the final performance, Bowie covered the Jacques Brel penned "My Death," featuring some sparse arrangements (mainly just an acoustic guitar) with the focus primarily on his voice.  It's stunning.  Listen below.

Daily Bowie - Nite Flights

In 1993, on the "Black Tie White Noise" LP, David Bowie covered The Walker Brothers' amazing "Nite Flights" because of course he did.  Ever the fan of Scott Walker, it's only fitting that the Bowie would be inspired by and cover the man's music.  It's a shame the two never had the opportunity to collaborate.  Listen below.

Scott Walker and Sunn O))) - Brando video

One of the more surprising (and amazing) collaborations to come out in recent years, the new album "Soused" from legendary experimental artist and crooner Scott Walker and drone metal band Sunn O))), is as huge, and dark, and intense as you'd ever imagine.  It's going to take several listens to really grasp the whole thing.  But while we're all doing that, watch the hauntingly beautiful video for album opener "Brando" below...and then go get the album from 4AD.

Scott Walker and Sunn O)))

Earlier today, 4AD released a link to this website...with the words "Scott O)))" in glorious black, white, and red.  They have since confirmed that legendary artist Scott Walker is make a collaborative album with drone metal band Sunn O))).  This is an unbelievably cool announcement, and a record is due by year's end.  I'll keep you posted.