| John Walker has no intention of hanging up his guitar just yet. Instead of winding down, John is stepping up a gear or two as his career continues to flourish. 2007 is set to be one of John’s busiest ever and will see him touring extensively throughout the U.K. and Europe. John’s last tour was such a resounding personal success for him, he has decided to repeat it all again. This time as part of the Solid Silver Sixties Show, covering the length and breadth of the country alongside, The Dakotas, Wayne Fontana, The Merseybeats and The Searchers, to be followed by a mini tour of the U.K. with his good friends The Dakotas. Not content with merely touring, John will be busy promoting his latest ten - track CD which is due for release next year, to coincide with the tour. This new, artistically inspired, seductive rock album, entitled “Just For You”, is exquisite! This is John at his very, very best. John says, “The recording of this CD has been a long, satisfying, musically emotional journey for me. I am and always will be a hopeless romantic. The songs on this album are very personal and are a reflection of how I feel at this important time in my life.” Two of the songs – “Just For You” and “The Ballad” - were written many years ago and until now, John has never been able to record these songs in the manner in which he felt they should be. Included on the CD are three great songs, written by other artistes, which are a little different for John but simply perfect for this album. On drums is John’s great friend and original Walker Brothers’ drummer, Al ‘Tiny’ Schneider, who incidentally, used to play with the Everly Brothers. John’s sister Judy joins him on backing vocals along with wife Cynthia, a fine classically trained musician in her own right, who is also responsible for playing keyboard and “those beautifully sweet string arrangements.” John, a New Yorker by birth, moved to California with his family, when just a small child and enjoyed all the usual pursuits life there had to offer – surfing, baseball, football, even becoming a childhood actor for a time! As a teenager, John discovered music. He taught himself to play a number of instruments but the guitar was soon to become his passion, giving lessons to the likes of David Marks and Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys, who just happened to be neighbours! For a while, John joined up with his sister Judy, playing the clubs and recording songs, with ‘Tiny’ often helping out on those drums of his! In the mid - sixties, John, as founder member of the legendary group, the Walker Brothers, left California and headed with fellow “brothers”, Scott and Gary for London and the uncertainty of the emerging pop-scene. With their unique sound and drop-dead gorgeous looks, the Walker Brothers soon found themselves in the “Hit Parade” with such enduring classics as “Make It Easy On Yourself”, “My Ship Is Coming In”, “The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore” and later, “No Regrets”, making them household names. You can be sure these songs will be included in John’s forthcoming tour set list, along with songs from his new album. John achieved considerable success, in his own right, as a solo artist, following the immediate break - up of the Walker Brothers, with singles such as “Annabella”, “Kentucky Woman”, “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight” and “Woman”. Tony Blackburn said at the time, “John’s voice has a rather lovely huskiness about it and we can somehow hear that he is a very sensitive person who really does feel the words he is singing.” After the Walker Brothers disbanded for the final time in 1978, John took time out from performing for a while to perfect his craft as a recording engineer. He attended numerous courses to this end, ultimately building his own recording studio at his home in L.A. During this time he was also extremely busy as a record producer and composer, writing the entirely self - penned album, “You”. Following on from the triumphant success of the Solid Silver Sixties Tour in 2004, John’s earlier solo album, entitled “If You Go Away”, which was originally recorded in London in the late sixties, was digitally re - mastered to the highest quality by Universal Records and much to the delight of John’s fans from around the globe was released on CD by Repertoire Records of Hamburg. The tracks on this gem of a CD had only ever been previously available on vinyl. |
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