Karl Wallinger
Encyclopedia
Karl Edmond De Vere Wallinger (born 19 October 1957, Prestatyn
, Wales
) is a Welsh
musician
, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for leading the band World Party
and for his mid-1980s stint in The Waterboys
. He also wrote the song 'She's the One', which went on to be a hit single for Robbie Williams
.
Wallinger is a multi-instrumentalist
, enabling him to demo and record the bulk of World Party material as a one-man band.
, Wales
, but was educated at Charterhouse
(a public school
in Surrey
).
From a young age, he was immersed in the music
of The Beatles
, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan
and Love
. Echoes of these childhood heroes permeated the records he was to release himself 33 years later.
Wallinger's musical career began in Prestatyn in 1977 as a keyboard player with Pax, before forming the short-lived band Quasimodo with Dave Sharp and Nigel Twist (who both went on to be in The Alarm
). He then had a brief job in music publishing, after which he became musical director of The Rocky Horror Show
.
as a keyboard player
in 1983 and contributed to two of the band's albums (A Pagan Place and This Is the Sea) as well as playing on live tours. Initially hired to play piano and organ (and to sing occasional backing vocals), Wallinger's multi-instrumental and production skills impressed Mike Scott and ensured that he played a far greater role on This Is The Sea than he had on the previous album. While Scott concentrated on Steve Reich
ian orchestrations of the songs using multitracked pianos and guitar, Wallinger fleshed out the material with a variety of synthesized orchestrations, synth bass and percussion instruments. Wallinger also wrote the original music for 'Don't Bang the Drum' (the opening track for This Is the Sea). Aware that his own musical ambitions would bring him into conflict with Scott, Wallinger opted to leave The Waterboys in 1986. (He was replaced as keyboard player by Guy Chambers).
Whilst working on solo material, Wallinger also worked on Sinéad O'Connor
's 1987 debut album The Lion and the Cobra
. O'Connor returned the favour by singing some backing vocals
on the first two World Party albums.
(1986), was a combination of folk
, funk
and soul
. Its title was a nod to its creation by Wallinger working alone in a home recording studio
. It spawned a minor hit
single
in "Ship of Fools
". Various musical colleagues from former projects contributed to the recordings, including Waterboys saxophonist Anthony Thistlethwaite, Sinéad O'Connor (singing backing vocals on "Hawaiian Island World") and the mysterious Delahaye.
World Party has gone on to release four more albums — Goodbye Jumbo
, Bang!
, Egyptology
and Dumbing Up
. In 2007, Karl Wallinger released Best in Show, a best-of album covering tracks from the studio albums.
, Reality Bites
, and contributed to the soundtrack
of Clueless in 1996. The Wallinger-penned "She's the One" (originally a World Party song) has been successfully covered
by Robbie Williams
(Most of Williams' other hits, including "Angels" were co-written by Guy Chambers
, who was originally with World Party). Wallinger has also acted as a member of Bob Geldof
's backing band.
1997 saw two tracks by Wallinger included on a compilation album
entitled Now And In Time To Be, a musical celebration of the works of famed Irish
poet
, W. B. Yeats
. The poem "Politics" is credited as having been interpreted by Wallinger, while World Party is acknowledged as a contributing artist for "The Four Ages of Man".
In 2008, after almost 18 years in the making, the album Big Blue Ball
was released, co-produced
with Peter Gabriel
and Stephen Hague
. The album collects songs written and recorded during the summers of 1991, 1992 and 1995 by several artists from different countries. Among them are the French
duo
, Deep Forest
, and the Irish
singer, Sinéad O'Connor
.
freelancer Jay Hedblade, Wallinger revealed that he suffered a brain aneurysm in February 2001. Although this meant that he had to suspend all work for nearly five years, he eventually made a full recovery and resumed touring in 2006.
Prestatyn
Prestatyn is a seaside resort, town and community in Denbighshire, North Wales. It is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. At the 2001 Census, Prestatyn had a population of 18,496.-Prehistory:...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
) is a Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for leading the band World Party
World Party
World Party is a British pop/alternative rock band, which is essentially the solo project of its sole member, Karl Wallinger. He started the band in 1986 in London after leaving The Waterboys.-Career:...
and for his mid-1980s stint in The Waterboys
The Waterboys
The Waterboys are a band formed in 1983 by Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Scotland, Ireland and England. Edinburgh, London, Dublin, Spiddal, New York, and Findhorn have all served as homes for the group. The band has played in a...
. He also wrote the song 'She's the One', which went on to be a hit single for Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
.
Wallinger is a multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
, enabling him to demo and record the bulk of World Party material as a one-man band.
Early life and early musical work
Wallinger was born and spent his early childhood in PrestatynPrestatyn
Prestatyn is a seaside resort, town and community in Denbighshire, North Wales. It is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. At the 2001 Census, Prestatyn had a population of 18,496.-Prehistory:...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, but was educated at Charterhouse
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
(a public school
Public School (UK)
A public school, in common British usage, is a school that is neither administered nor financed by the state or from taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of endowments, tuition fees and charitable contributions, usually existing as a non profit-making charitable trust...
in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
).
From a young age, he was immersed in the music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
and Love
Love (band)
Love was an American rock group of the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were led by singer/songwriter Arthur Lee and lead guitarist Johnny Echols...
. Echoes of these childhood heroes permeated the records he was to release himself 33 years later.
Wallinger's musical career began in Prestatyn in 1977 as a keyboard player with Pax, before forming the short-lived band Quasimodo with Dave Sharp and Nigel Twist (who both went on to be in The Alarm
The Alarm
The Alarm are an alternative rock band that emerged from North Wales in the late 1970s. They started as a mod band and stayed together for over ten years. As a rock band, they displayed marked influences from Welsh language and culture...
). He then had a brief job in music publishing, after which he became musical director of The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show is a long-running British horror comedy stage musical, which opened in London on 19 June 1973. It was written by Richard O'Brien, produced and directed by Jim Sharman. It came eighth in a BBC Radio 2 listener poll of the "Nation's Number One Essential Musicals"...
.
The Waterboys (1983-1986)
Wallinger was recruited into Mike Scott's band The WaterboysThe Waterboys
The Waterboys are a band formed in 1983 by Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Scotland, Ireland and England. Edinburgh, London, Dublin, Spiddal, New York, and Findhorn have all served as homes for the group. The band has played in a...
as a keyboard player
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
in 1983 and contributed to two of the band's albums (A Pagan Place and This Is the Sea) as well as playing on live tours. Initially hired to play piano and organ (and to sing occasional backing vocals), Wallinger's multi-instrumental and production skills impressed Mike Scott and ensured that he played a far greater role on This Is The Sea than he had on the previous album. While Scott concentrated on Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
ian orchestrations of the songs using multitracked pianos and guitar, Wallinger fleshed out the material with a variety of synthesized orchestrations, synth bass and percussion instruments. Wallinger also wrote the original music for 'Don't Bang the Drum' (the opening track for This Is the Sea). Aware that his own musical ambitions would bring him into conflict with Scott, Wallinger opted to leave The Waterboys in 1986. (He was replaced as keyboard player by Guy Chambers).
Whilst working on solo material, Wallinger also worked on Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
's 1987 debut album The Lion and the Cobra
The Lion and the Cobra
The Lion and the Cobra is the 1987 debut album by Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor. O'Connor, age 20 at the time, recorded the album while heavily pregnant with her first child....
. O'Connor returned the favour by singing some backing vocals
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
on the first two World Party albums.
World Party (1986-present)
Wallinger's first release under the World Party banner, Private RevolutionPrivate Revolution
Private Revolution is the 1986 debut album by the British rock band World Party. At this point, singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Karl Wallinger was the only member of World Party, and the only person pictured on the cover....
(1986), was a combination of folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
and soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
. Its title was a nod to its creation by Wallinger working alone in a home recording studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
. It spawned a minor hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
in "Ship of Fools
Ship of Fools (World Party song)
"Ship of Fools" is a rock song performed by World Party. It was written and produced by singer and multi-instrumentalist Karl Wallinger, formerly of The Waterboys. Wallinger is the sole member of World Party....
". Various musical colleagues from former projects contributed to the recordings, including Waterboys saxophonist Anthony Thistlethwaite, Sinéad O'Connor (singing backing vocals on "Hawaiian Island World") and the mysterious Delahaye.
World Party has gone on to release four more albums — Goodbye Jumbo
Goodbye Jumbo
Goodbye Jumbo is the second album by World Party. Released in 1990, the album was essentially a solo project by Karl Wallinger, aided by a number of guest artists, including Sinéad O'Connor and former members of The Waterboys. The album was voted Album of the Year by Q magazine in 1990. In 2000, Q...
, Bang!
Bang! (World Party album)
Bang! is the third album by British group World Party. While previous World Party albums were essentially solo projects by one-man orchestra Karl Wallinger, for this album World Party officially became a three person group: Wallinger , Dave Catlin-Birch , and Chris Sharrock...
, Egyptology
Egyptology (album)
Egyptology is an album by World Party released in 1997, re-released in 2006. It contained the #31 British single "Beautiful Dream" and the award-winning She's the One, among other songs...
and Dumbing Up
Dumbing Up
Dumbing Up is an album by World Party released in 2000 and then re-released with a special DVD and new track listing in 2006.-2000 Release:#Here Comes the Future #What Does It Mean Now? #Another 1000 Years #High Love...
. In 2007, Karl Wallinger released Best in Show, a best-of album covering tracks from the studio albums.
Soundtracking, other songwriting and collaborations
Wallinger was musical director for the 1994 filmFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, Reality Bites
Reality Bites
Reality Bites is a 1994 American romantic comedy-drama film written by Helen Childress and featuring the directorial debut of Ben Stiller. It stars Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke and Stiller, with major supporting roles played by Janeane Garofalo and Steve Zahn. The film was shot on location in Austin...
, and contributed to the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
of Clueless in 1996. The Wallinger-penned "She's the One" (originally a World Party song) has been successfully covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
(Most of Williams' other hits, including "Angels" were co-written by Guy Chambers
Guy Chambers
Guy Chambers is an English songwriter and record producer, perhaps best known for his long partnership with Robbie Williams.- Biography :...
, who was originally with World Party). Wallinger has also acted as a member of Bob Geldof
Bob Geldof
Robert Frederick Zenon "Bob" Geldof, KBE is an Irish singer, songwriter, author, occasional actor and political activist. He rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Irish rock band The Boomtown Rats in the late 1970s and early 1980s alongside the punk rock movement. The band had hits with his...
's backing band.
1997 saw two tracks by Wallinger included on a compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
entitled Now And In Time To Be, a musical celebration of the works of famed Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
poet
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, W. B. Yeats
William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
. The poem "Politics" is credited as having been interpreted by Wallinger, while World Party is acknowledged as a contributing artist for "The Four Ages of Man".
In 2008, after almost 18 years in the making, the album Big Blue Ball
Big Blue Ball
Big Blue Ball is an album by multiple artists which "grew from 3 recording weeks" at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios in the summers of 1991, 1992, and 1995. It is Peter Gabriel's fourteenth album project overall....
was released, co-produced
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
with Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
and Stephen Hague
Stephen Hague
Stephen Hague is an American music producer most active with various British acts in the 1980s. He was an influential figure in the synthpop movement.-Early career:...
. The album collects songs written and recorded during the summers of 1991, 1992 and 1995 by several artists from different countries. Among them are the French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
duo
Duet (music)
A duet is a musical composition for two performers. In classical music, the term is most often used for a composition for two singers or pianists; with other instruments, the word duo is also often used. A piece performed by two pianists performing together on the same piano is referred to as...
, Deep Forest
Deep Forest
Deep Forest is a musical group consisting of two French musicians, Michel Sanchez and Eric Mouquet. They compose a style of world music, sometimes called ethnic electronica, mixing ethnic with electronic sounds and dance beats or chillout beats...
, and the Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
singer, Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
.
Brain aneurysm
In an interview with Chicago TribuneChicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
freelancer Jay Hedblade, Wallinger revealed that he suffered a brain aneurysm in February 2001. Although this meant that he had to suspend all work for nearly five years, he eventually made a full recovery and resumed touring in 2006.