The Walker Brothers were an American pop group of the 1960s and 1970s that included Noel Scott Engel (eventually known professionally as Scott Walker), John Walker (born John Joseph Maus, but using the name Walker since his teens) and Gary Leeds (eventually known as Gary Walker). After moving to Britain in 1965, they had a number of top ten albums and singles there, including the No. 1 chart hits "Make It Easy on Yourself" and "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)", both of which also made the US top 20 and Canadian top 2. In between the two was the lesser US hit "My Ship is Coming In", which was another major hit in Britain, where it reached No.3 in the charts. The trio split up in 1968, but reunited in the mid-to-late-1970s and scored a final top 10 UK hit with "No Regrets".
Formed in 1964, they adopted the 'Walker Brothers' name as a show business touch even though the members were all unrelated — "simply because we liked it." They provided a unique counterpoint to the British Invasion by achieving much more success in the United Kingdom than in their home country, a period when the popularity of British bands such as The Beatles dominated the U.S. charts.
Links to Peel[]
The Walker Brothers' hits "My Ship Is Coming In", "Another Tear Falls" and "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Any More" all featured in the KMEN British Pop Top Ten when Peel worked for the station in 1966, the last-named track spending three weeks at number one in the station's chart, which was compiled by JP (then John Ravencroft) himself. He hosted a weekly show on the station which included the British Top Ten, so these tracks would have been played on it.
However, when Peel returned to the UK in 1967, the Walkers' popularity was beginning to fade after peaking in the previous year. Their final tour saw them sharing the bill with support acts including the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cat Stevens[1], and even if Peel did play the odd track by them on the Perfumed Garden ("Experience") they soon split up, Peel played John Walker's solo single "Annabella", which was a minor chart hit, on his BBC Radio London daytime show on 01 July 1967, but Scott Walker was the only one of the trio to build a lasting solo career. He became a cult figure with a reputation that endured into the 21st century, influencing Peel session artists like Neko Case and Jarvis Cocker of Pulp, but never seemed to be a favourite of the DJ.
In 1975 the Walker Brothers reunited to record an album, No Regrets, the title track of which was a Tom Rush song which had been first heard on Peel's shows in 1968. During Tom Rush's visit to Britain in that year to promote his current LP, he had recorded the song as part of a Top Gear session, and the album version was issued as a single and played on an edition of Night Ride when Peel interviewed the singer on the telephone. Although it picked up a few plays elsewhere on Radio One, Tom Rush's single wasn't a hit, Eight years later the Walker Brothers' version made the UK singles charts, but Peel seems to have ignored it.
After Peel's death in 2004, it was later found out that he had a copy of the Walker Brothers' self titled album in his Record Collection: W.
Shows Played[]
- None, according to available playlists - but (from memory of listener Granger 354) unknown Perfumed Garden: Experience (LP - Images)
- 18 Feb 1966: My Ship Is Coming In (9)
- 01 Apr 1966: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (1)
- 08 Apr 1966: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (1)
- 15 Apr 1966: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (1)
- 22 Apr 1966: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (2)
- 29 Apr 1966: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (2)
- 06 May 1966: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (8)
- 21 Oct 1966: Another Tear Falls (9)
- 04 Nov 1966: Another Tear Falls (9)
Scott Walker
- 10 December 1967: Jackie (7") Philips BF 1628
- 17 December 1967: Jackie (7") Philips BF 1628
- 24 December 1967: Jackie (7") Philips BF 1628