Roger Whittaker (born Roger Henry Brough Whittaker in Nairobi, Kenya, on 22… Read Full Bio ↴Roger Whittaker (born Roger Henry Brough Whittaker in Nairobi, Kenya, on 22 March 1936; died 13 September 2023 ) was a British singer-songwriter and musician remembered for his eclectic mix of folk music and popular song, his baritone singing voice, and his trademark whistling skills.
He became widely known for his version of "Wind Beneath My Wings" (1982), as well as his own compositions "Durham Town (The Leavin')" (1969) and "I Don't Believe in If Anymore" (1970), his 1970 hit "New World in the Morning" and his 1975 hit "The Last Farewell" (his only single to hit the US Billboard Hot 100, making it to the Top 20).
Whittakers first chart success came in 1969 when "Durham Town (The Leavin')" was his first UK Top 20 hit. In 1970 came two follow-up hits, "I Don't Believe In If Anymore" (Top 10) and "New World In The Morning" (Top 20), and 1971 brought two smaller hit singles "Why" and "Mamy Blue".
Whittaker was absent from the UK singles chart until 1975, when "The Last Farewell" went Top 3, after which it was another eleven years until "Skye Boat Song" returned him to the Top 10 of the singles chart.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Whittaker had success in Germany, with German language songs produced by Nick Munro (unable to speak German at that time, Whittaker sang the songs phonetically). In time he became more fluent in German and sang and was interviewed in German on Danish television in November 2008. Whittaker retired from touring in 2013.
He became widely known for his version of "Wind Beneath My Wings" (1982), as well as his own compositions "Durham Town (The Leavin')" (1969) and "I Don't Believe in If Anymore" (1970), his 1970 hit "New World in the Morning" and his 1975 hit "The Last Farewell" (his only single to hit the US Billboard Hot 100, making it to the Top 20).
Whittakers first chart success came in 1969 when "Durham Town (The Leavin')" was his first UK Top 20 hit. In 1970 came two follow-up hits, "I Don't Believe In If Anymore" (Top 10) and "New World In The Morning" (Top 20), and 1971 brought two smaller hit singles "Why" and "Mamy Blue".
Whittaker was absent from the UK singles chart until 1975, when "The Last Farewell" went Top 3, after which it was another eleven years until "Skye Boat Song" returned him to the Top 10 of the singles chart.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Whittaker had success in Germany, with German language songs produced by Nick Munro (unable to speak German at that time, Whittaker sang the songs phonetically). In time he became more fluent in German and sang and was interviewed in German on Danish television in November 2008. Whittaker retired from touring in 2013.
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The Best Of Roger Whittaker
Roger Whittaker Lyrics
A Special Kind of Man Myself I made of nothing And my head is stuffed with…
Early One Morning Early one morning, just as the sun was rising I heard…
Fairytale The first of the sun rays are cast on my…
I Don't Believe In If Anymore Now if you load your rifle right And if you fix…
Mexican Whistler il n'y a pas de paroles, c'est Roger Whittaker qui…
Morning Has Broken Roger whittaker - Morning has broken Morning has broken, li…
The Last Farewell There's a ship lies rigged and ready in the harbor Tomorrow…
What Love Is Love is a morning sunrise Love is the rain that falls Love…
Why Something is going wrong With the singer and the song And th…
Nigel
on Jenny
I'm not sure by any means, but I wonder whether taking the midnight train is ultimately a metaphor for a more final journey. I also wonder if RW had someone specific in mind whose fate prompted this powerful song. I like it very much.