Originally coming to fame in the mid-1960s singing orchestral pop ballads as the frontman of The Walker Brothers, Walker went on to a solo career balancing a light entertainment/MOR ballad approach with increasing artistic innovations in arrangement and writing. Despite a series of acclaimed albums, a disastrous drop in sales forced him back into straight Middle of the road recordings with little of his own artistic input. This in turn eventually led to a Walker Brothers reunion in the mid-1970s (although the latter eventually moved, by mutual consent, into more avant-garde areas).
From the mid-1980s, Walker revived his solo career while drastically reinventing his artistic and compositional methods, via a series of acclaimed and vividly avant-garde albums. These combined his iconic voice with an unsettling avant-garde approach which owed more to modernist and post-modernist classical composition than to his pop singer past. This change in approach has been compared to "Andy Williams reinventing himself as Stockhausen".
Walker has been a continuing influence on other artists, in particular The Last Shadow Puppets, Marc Almond, Goldfrapp, Douglas Pearce of the band Death in June, Billy MacKenzie of The Associates, David Sylvian, Julian Cope, Antony Hegarty, Thom Yorke, Steven Wilson, David Bowie, Leonard Cohen, Trey Spruance, Perry Blake, Radiohead, Noah Lennox, Mikael Åkerfeldt, and the Divine Comedy/Neil Hannon.
Walker continued to release solo material until his death, and was signed to 4AD Records. As a record producer or guest performer he worked with a number of artists including Pulp, Ute Lemper, Bat For Lashes and Sunn O))).
Any Day Now
Scott Walker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And you'll be on your way
Then my wild beautiful bird
You will have flown old
Any day now, I'll be all alone, Wooo
Any day now, when your restless eyes, meet someone new
All to my sad surprise
Then the blue shadows will fall, all over town, Wooo
Cause you won't be around
And my wild beautiful bird
You will have flown old
Any day now, I'll be all alone
I know I shouldn't want to keep you
If you don't want to stay, no
Until you're gone forever
I'll be holding on for delights
Holding you this way
Making you stay
Any day now, when the clock strikes go you call up
And then my tears will flow and
The blue shadows will fall all over town,
Woooo
Any day now, love will let me down, cause you won't be around
Scott Walker's song "Any Day Now" is a powerful reflection on the imminent end of a relationship. The opening lines, "Any Day Now, I will hear you say goodbye my love, and you'll be on your way," lay out the basic premise of the song. The singer knows that the end of his relationship is inevitable, and he's bracing himself for the moment when his partner will leave him for good. The imagery of a "wild beautiful bird" that has "flown old" is poignant, emphasizing the freedom that his partner once had, but also the fact that it's time for her to move on.
The second verse focuses on the singer's fear that his partner will move on to someone new. When he imagines her "restless eyes" meeting someone else, the implication is that she's already emotionally checked out of their relationship. The mention of "blue shadows" falling all over town is a powerful metaphor for the singer's state of mind, as if he's seeing the world through a veil of sadness. The chorus reinforces this sense of despair, with the repeated refrain "Any day now, love will let me down."
The final verse is a mix of resignation and desperation. The singer knows that he shouldn't try to keep his partner if she doesn't want to stay, but at the same time, he can't bear the thought of being alone. He clings to her, holding her close and trying to make her stay. But he knows that, inevitably, the relationship will end, and he'll be left to pick up the pieces. The song ends on a haunting note, with the image of "blue shadows" falling all over town once again.
Line by Line Meaning
Any Day Now, I will hear you say goodbye my love
The singer knows that soon their lover will leave them and say their goodbye.
And you'll be on your way
The lover will soon depart.
Then my wild beautiful bird
The singer's lover is being compared to a beautiful bird that is wild and free.
You will have flown old
The lover will have flown away, possibly with age or after a long time.
Any day now, I'll be all alone, Wooo
The artist will soon be alone without their lover.
Any day now, when your restless eyes, meet someone new
The singer is worried that their lover will soon find someone else.
All to my sad surprise
The singer will be sad if their lover leaves them for someone else.
Then the blue shadows will fall, all over town, Wooo
The artist will feel sad and lonely when their lover leaves them.
Any day now, love will let me down
The artist is afraid that their love will let them down and their lover will leave them.
Cause you won't be around
The artist's lover will not be around.
I know I shouldn't want to keep you
The singer knows they shouldn't try to keep their lover if they want to leave.
If you don't want to stay, no
The artist is acknowledging that their lover has the choice to stay or go.
Until you're gone forever
The singer will hold onto their lover until they are gone forever.
I'll be holding on for delights
The singer will hold onto their love for the happy moments they had together.
Holding you this way
The singer wants to hold onto their lover and keep them close.
Any day now, when the clock strikes go you call up
The artist knows that their lover will call when they decide to leave.
And then my tears will flow and
The artist will cry when their lover leaves them.
The blue shadows will fall all over town,
The singer will feel sad and lonely after their lover leaves.
Woooo
Expresses the sadness and loneliness the singer is feeling.
Any day now, love will let me down, cause you won't be around
The artist is afraid that their lover will leave them and they will be alone.
Contributed by Gavin T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
RED D
Even though this is him at his most mediocre, middle of the road phase...his voice is still incredible!
Virginia Abreu de Paula
@RED D I understood what you meant. I only disagree! I love this song.
RED D
@Virginia Abreu de Paula I meant artistically. And as said his voice was still brilliant regardless of what he was singing.
Virginia Abreu de Paula
I disagree. Bacharah is never mediocre. Not to my ears.
guidofski
Agreed, this is Scott on autopilot, he's just getting the job done... yet the voice still manages to grab you.
wellandtruly joshed
Beautiful man beautiful voice ❤️ RIP Scott 💔
voodoograndma
I love this song. Doesn't sound to me like Scott's heart isn't in it; the arrangement's maybe a bit on the cheesy side, but you can't fault his singing.
stoker10
what a voice !
John Benn
I AGREE 100&. STILL CAN'T SEE MUCH WRONG WITH THIS TRACK
Helena Stokes
This version is the best as far as I'm concerned. But then anything the talented scott walker sang was sublime. R.i.p beautiful man.💔💔