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You have to take a deep breath before you say his name in one go. Karl Edmond De Vere Wallinger was born in 1957 in Wales and passed away quietly in March of this year.
The most talented artists are not always recognized at their true value. Karl Wallinger undeniably belongs to the race of unrecognized geniuses. Despite a talent as a melodist that borders on perfection, his group World Party (of which he was the only permanent member) never managed to reach the top of the hit parades. With the notable exception of his third album “Bang!” which slipped to second place in England. A very happy accident all in all…
Little is known about his childhood, except that he came from a family of six children. At the age of ten, in 1967, his favorite record was “Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band” and this influence would remain significant throughout the five albums that make up his discography. He experienced his first emotions in Quasimodo, a short-lived group composed in particular of Dave Sharp and Nigel Twist (before they joined The Alarm). You have to start somewhere!
By joining Mike Scott, who was then bringing the Waterboys to the baptismal font, Karl Wallinger found a kindred spirit. It seems indisputable today that his contribution to the group’s first three albums was essential. Even if Mike Scott is still reluctant to admit it openly, Wallinger was – at least in part – the architect of this ‘Big Music’ that characterizes the album ‘This Is The Sea’ in 1985. But, in the long term, these two protean talents could only cling, argue and finally separate.
With the patience of an alchemist deciphering old grimoires, Karl Wallinger then conducted his own melodic research, sprinkling notes and words in his stills to bewitch the listener. In a little over ten years and only five albums, he has succeeded in the feat of offering us about fifty jewels of unspeakable beauty. If you don’t know World Party, the albums “Goodbye Jumbo” (1990) with “Way Down Now” and “Bang!” (1993) with “Is It Like Today?” are the most obvious entry points.
Karl Wallinger passed away on March 10 this year after suffering a heart attack. He had retired to Hastings in the southwest of England.
