THE SUN AIN'T GONNA SHINE ANYMORE: In The Sun I Feel As One or... Scott Walker Forever

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6334953

The Walker Brothers were a curious lot, a trio of Americans persuaded by head Stone Brian Jones to move to the UK during the height of Swingin' London. Another American would arrive a year later  There were no siblings to speak of in this band, something the Ramones made note of when they adopted the same surname sometime in the early Seventies. They were instead named after a car dealership deep in the loins of Porn Valley aka Van Nuys, CA. That L.A. touch, not to mention Gary Walker, nee Leeds was a founding member of the Standells, always made the group stand out on the radio as a kid. Back when I was young, AM radio was a real thing and you could get killer stations from all over the country at night or while driving in the car across town. My earliest memories of music weren't the ones being codified as dinosaur rock as I was literally coming up, I guess shirtless wailings not performed by Iggy were never my thing. What I remember was American Top 40 mid Seventies style - a mix of treacly crap, oldies - mostly the Stones and the Beatles, the nascent disco thang, and Sunday night mysteries. Yeah, you could still listen to dramas on the AM as late as the mid-Seventies. That was the kind of time it was, kinda recovering from the sonic boom that was the Sixties and ready to get on some sort of drugs in the Eighties - prescription or otherwise - over the counter culture was what my friend used to call it. Out of all those shitty AM radio tunes, in floats "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" like a ghost ship with Scott crooning the lyrics that complete sold me on the concept of sex, drugs, and rock & roll as a noble pursuit even at the tender age of four. 

Loneliness, a cloak you wear
A deep shade of blue
Is always there

I thought it was odd as a young 'un that Scott Walker would personify loneliness lyrically. Now, as a middle aged man, I feel like he's speaking directly to me. Maybe that goes a long way in explaining why I love Scott's music so much, it evolves. The song itself would be a typical American single produced by Phil Spector or any of his contemporaries and played by the Wrecking Crew if it was for the fact that it was recorded in London for Philips with the same team who made Dusty Springfield a huge star, mainly by aping the Wall of Sound style by rote. Written by Four Seasons' alums Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio, it was intended to be a solo single for Frankie Valli in '65 but saw no chart action.  '66 saw the Walkers pick up the tune and take it to #1 in the UK and a top 20 hit in the US. Their version was a refreshing change of pace from the Motown and Chess obsessed purism of the top dogs in the British Invasion scene. Granted, the 'Bros. weren't exactly a top dog and often veered well into the territory of Neil Diamond and the dreaded Humperdinck comma Engelbert. Personally, I prefer to think of the gloss and shine as a taste for fine cabaret pop ala Jacques Brel, specifically "My Death",  but that kind of music so often that just turns to a whole bunch of fat Elvis schmaltz that doesn't age well with time.

These guys were a singles band all the way in that respect, but unlike their American brethren who had Hal Blaine and Carol Kaye at their disposal, that's the band really playing. Heavily arranged by Ivor Raymonde, of course, but check out their live performance of "No Regrets" on Youtube to see these guys were all good enough to be top session men. The song has a deep, melancholic feel that only the best records on Phillies hinted at and took the teen drama portion of rock music to a whole new level whose ante would be upped in the coming years in Swingin' London. But for a brief, shining moment the Walker Brothers were the best there ever was and it was grand when I was age four hearing it for the first time on the car radio; even more so now because the lyrics are so obviously about depression. Interestingly, Crewe and Gaudio never had that intention in mind when they wrote the tune for Frankie, who over-emotes the hell out of it, as is his wont. Hearing the original, it is no wonder it never broke the Billboard Top 100, it is that same kind of typical Broadway schmaltz shit I alluded to above, which is just one small step above that hellhole known as Wayne Newton. The Walkers' version represents a major leap forward eleevating the whole thing to high art with Scott's daring reading that changes the song into an anthem for anyone who has ever struggled with serious, long term depression. That is why the song speaks to me, Scott shows tremendous courage in trying to articulate the ephemeral nature of mental wellness and the ache of a broken heart that can never be mended.

'The thoughts we used to share I now keep alone'

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THE SUN AIN'T GONNA SHINE ANYMORE
Loneliness, a cloak you wear
A deep shade of blue
Is always there

The sun ain't gonna shine anymore
The moon ain't gonna rise in the sky
The tears are always clouding your eyes
When you're without love, baby

Emptiness is a place you're in
With nothing to lose
But no more to win

The sun ain't gonna shine anymore
The moon ain't gonna rise in the sky
The tears are always clouding your eyes
When you're without love

Lonely, without you baby
Girl I need you
I can't go on
The sun ain't gonna shine anymore
(The sun ain't gonna shine anymore)
The moon ain't gonna rise in the sky
(The moon ain't gonna rise in the sky)
The tears are always clouding your eyes
(The tears are always clouding your eyes)
The sun ain't gonna shine anymore
When you're without love, baby