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))).
Bouncer See Bouncer ...
Scott Walker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've been spared
All the nickling
All the dimeing
Spared
I've been spared
All the powder
Don't play that song for me
You won't play that song for me
The riff with the swaddling hair
Those sisters who never broke us
The link missing at the rear
And the halo, halo of locust
Mama danced four feet away
Papa danced four feet away
In the rubbing and fusing
The sealing and pivoting
Gotta dance four feet away
Spared
I've been spared
All the handle a body could handle
Spared
I've been spared
All the powder on a Magdalene Mary
Don't play that song for me
You won't play that song for me
Those threads you would never wear
The sobbing that just might choke us
Those tooth fairies wait till they get here
And the halo, halo of locust
I love this season without it's cleft
Left hook to the right hook
Right cross to the left
I love this season this very night
Right cross to the left foot
Left hook to the right
Mama danced four feet away
Papa danced four feet away
In the rubbing and fusing
The sealing and pivoting
Gotta dance four feet away
The song “Bouncer See Bouncer” by Scott Walker appears to be a surreal reflection on life and death, the experiences one goes through, and the things that are ultimately left behind. The opening lines, “Spared, I’ve been spared / All the nickling, all the dimeing,” suggest a feeling of gratitude and relief for avoiding some of the more mundane and repetitive aspects of life. The lines “All the powder on a trumpet of Gabriel” seem to refer to the grandeur and spectacle of religious beliefs or practices.
The chorus of the song, “Don’t play that song for me / You won’t play that song for me,” creates a sense of distance and separation between the singer and the world around them. This is reinforced by the imagery of the “halo of locust” and “threads you would never wear” that seem to separate the singer from the world they once knew. The lines “Mama danced four feet away / Papa danced four feet away” evoke a sense of isolation and distance from family and loved ones.
Overall, the song appears to be a meditation on the idea of being spared or saved from something, while also being left with a sense of emptiness and detachment from the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Spared
I have been saved or rescued
I've been spared
I have avoided or been protected from something
All the nickling
All the nagging or nitpicking
All the dimeing
All the demanding of payment or money
All the powder
All the drugs or substance use
On a trumpet of Gabriel
In a religious, heavenly or divine manner
Don't play that song for me
Do not perform or sing that particular piece of music for me
The riff with the swaddling hair
The musical passage or repetition with gentle, delicate sounds
Those sisters who never broke us
Those women who never let us down or harmed us
The link missing at the rear
The connection, part or detail that is absent or lacking
And the halo, halo of locust
And the circle, aura or swarm of destructive, invasive insects
Mama danced four feet away
My mother was dancing at a safe distance from me
Papa danced four feet away
My father was dancing at a safe distance from me
In the rubbing and fusing
In the movement, friction or combination of individuals or things
The sealing and pivoting
The closing or securing of something and the turning or changing of direction
Gotta dance four feet away
We have to keep a distance to be safe
All the handle a body could handle
All the physical or emotional strain a person could bear
All the powder on a Magdalene Mary
All the drug use or substance abuse involving a religious or fallen woman reference
Those threads you would never wear
Those garments or fashion items that you would never choose or tolerate
The sobbing that just might choke us
The crying or weeping that could suffocate, harm or weaken us
Those tooth fairies wait till they get here
Those imaginary or mythological creatures that are coming or arriving soon
I love this season without it's cleft
I enjoy this time of year without its fissure or division
Left hook to the right hook
A boxing technique using a swinging motion of the left and right arm
Right cross to the left
A boxing technique using a punch with the right arm crossing the body towards the left side
I love this season this very night
I really like this period of the year on this particular evening
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind