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))).
Psoriatic
Scott Walker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bye the bye the bye the bye
Red is patchy snows the silver
Bye the bye the bye the bye
Can't turn from a crotch in the darkness
To turn to the valley of a king
Ja-da ja-da ja-da ja-da jing jing jing
Wrapped in blankets then in blankets
Hear the germs pinging on the night wind
Cross the west coast to the west coast to the west coast
The angelus begins
Eye for hand dye why-et eye bye-t
The negro come on sucker
Anthrax jesus sack of the-be
Shawl for he-be
No bye the bye pulling out won't be slow sorry baby be
The needles another night I gotta pull muffle
Bye no bye the bye by the bye no bye the bye
Neath the bougie a thimble rigger slyly rolls the pea
Bye the bye the bye the bye
Red is patchy snows the silver
Bye the bye the bye the bye
Don't think it hasn't been fun because it hasn't
Donje is Donje in the spring
Ja-da ja-da ja-da ja-da jing jing jing
Hear the blankets! Here come the blankets!
They plunge like rays snapping down the night wind
Cross the east coast to the east coast
Scratch the air and blue burn
The angelus begins
Pulling out won't be slow sorry baby staple
Jesus dreamed he mammoth gathered ye-t bye
The bye no bye the bye scaling comes scaling comes red is patchy
Snows the silver an other night gotta pull muffle
Bye no bye the bye bye the bye no bye the bye
The lyrics of "Psoriatic" by Scott Walker are cryptic and surreal, evoking a dream-like atmosphere. The song starts with the image of a thimble rigger - someone who cheats at a game in which a pea is hidden under one of three thimbles shuffled around - doing his dirty work under the flame of a "bougie", a term that can refer to a wax candle or a medical instrument used for illuminating internal cavities. The phrase "bye the bye" punctuates the first stanza like a refrain, suggesting an absence of meaning or direction.
The second stanza is even more abstract, describing a failed attempt to turn away from a "crotch in the darkness" towards the "valley of a king". The sudden appearance of the nonsense syllables "ja-da ja-da ja-da ja-da jing jing jing" adds to the disorientation of the listener. The third stanza brings in a new element, the presence of germs in a blanket - perhaps a reference to an illness or infestation. The singer travels across the West Coast to the West Coast, where the "angelus" begins, referring to a prayer recited at dawn, noon, and sunset in the Catholic Church.
The fourth stanza is the most enigmatic, with lines like "Eye for hand dye why-et eye bye-t", "Anthrax jesus sack of the-be", and "Shawl for he-be" defying interpretation. Some lines seem to be fragments of conversations or instructions, while others appear to be arbitrary words strung together. The fifth stanza repeats the first and second ones, but adds the disclaimer "Don't think it hasn't been fun because it hasn't", as if to mock the listener's attempt to make sense of the song. The last stanza introduces a new set of images, as the singer hears the arrival of blankets that "plunge like rays snapping down the night wind". The blankets cross the East Coast to the East Coast, scratching the air and burning blue. The song ends with another series of incomprehensible phrases, such as "scaling comes scaling comes red is patchy / Snows the silver".
Overall, "Psoriatic" is a challenging and opaque song, which embodies the experimental and surreal style of Scott Walker's later albums. The lyrics seem to defy any fixed meaning, relying instead on free association, abstraction, and fragmentation. The song creates an eerie and unsettling mood, in which the listener is left to wander through a maze of obscure images and sounds.
Line by Line Meaning
Neath the bougie a thimble rigger slyly rolls the pea
Underneath the chandelier, a skilled con artist carefully manipulates his trick ball.
Bye the bye the bye the bye
Repeated use of this phrase serves as a transitional message between lines.
Red is patchy snows the silver
Bloody sores covering my skin contrast with the glimmering snow.
Can't turn from a crotch in the darkness
I cannot ignore the sexual urges within me.
To turn to the valley of a king
But I feel compelled to follow a monarch and his kingdom's rules.
Ja-da ja-da ja-da ja-da jing jing jing
Rhythmical nonsense syllables putting the listener into an altered state of mind.
Wrapped in blankets then in blankets
Trying to shield myself from disease, I wrap blankets around myself repeatedly.
Hear the germs pinging on the night wind
I can actually hear the airborne viruses being carried by the wind.
Cross the west coast to the west coast to the west coast
I make multiple trips across the country in search of a cure.
The angelus begins
The church bell tolls, announcing that it's time to pray.
Eye for hand dye why-et eye bye-t
Misheard lyrics, which sound like a possible code to my diseased mind.
The negro come on sucker
Racially-tinted delusions make me paranoid and hostile.
Anthrax jesus sack of the-be
More misheard lyrics that could imply an elaborate conspiracy.
Shawl for he-be
More paranoid delusions that now involve other people.
No bye the bye pulling out won't be slow sorry baby be
I can't abruptly exit this insane situation because I'm too mentally compromised.
The needles another night I gotta pull muffle
I'm still taking my medication, but it's getting harder to cope with the side effects.
Don't think it hasn't been fun because it hasn't
A sarcastic statement indicating that this experience is far from enjoyable.
Donje is Donje in the spring
Everything has changed because even everyday words are now meaningless to me.
Here come the blankets!
Fearing contagion, I welcome the blankets that will cover me.
They plunge like rays snapping down the night wind
The blankets swoop upon me as if they are creatures from another world.
Cross the east coast to the east coast
As the disease spreads, I am forced to seek help from specialists on the other coast.
Scratch the air and blue burn
I try to scratch the persistent itch, but all it does is cause me pain.
Pulling out won't be slow sorry baby staple
Once more, I cannot leave because the disease and its grip on my sanity is too strong.
Jesus dreamed he mammoth gathered ye-t bye
The delusions and hallucinations take on religious and prehistoric themes.
Scaling comes scaling comes red is patchy
The symptoms are getting worse and soon will spread to other parts of my body.
An other night gotta pull muffle
I am becoming more confused and deaf to the world around me.
Bye no bye the bye bye the bye no bye the bye
The repeated phrase no longer has any meaning to me and my deteriorating mind.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: BOB CARLETON, SCOTT ENGEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Deedee 60
Scott Walker had the most wonderful voice. I love his solo albums. Innovative and unusual words and sounds. Very atmospheric! R.I.P SCOTT
Judi Van Knowe
Your creative genius was a gift to this world and will be cherished forever. You are so missed. RIP.
blue crane
I've just stumbled upon Scott Walker and I just find him so amazingly gifted. I love the production here ... the strings kind of sighing almost.
pedro a. cantero
Poesía feroz e ineludible la de este músico que halla con los años su verdad más feroz. Savia hecha verbo, como la de aquellos profetas antiguos que pronunciaban sus palabras dejándoles sabor a beleño en la boca. «As the grossness of spring lolls its head against the window/ As the grossness of spring lolls its bloodshot head/ Curare! Curare! Curare!/ Brogue cries from the Street/ Curare! Curare!/ As the grossness of spring rose/ A tumor balloon to squeak against the window/ With the grossness of spring staining into the walls/ The chair had been shifted ever so slightly/ Say five feet or two centimeters/ The prints of my fingers dusted from doorknobs/ A lamp had been dimmed/ Some sawdust where a ring had been…».
Oblique Strat
Lord have mercy this guy is good. I'm so happy I stumbled upon Scott Walker: 30 Century Man on Netflix.
Electric Farmer
Scott Walker is such a dark writer, I love his music.
Joe M.
As insane as this is, the "jadda jadda jing jing jing" is somehow so catchy I can't help but occasionally sing it to myself.
Martin A. Maguire - [Music]
Me too, I didn't realise until I googled it it's from a song from 1918.
Leo Laborda
TREEMENDO!!
unbefestigt
@ElectricFarmerCh yes, he is a true, a serious artist - far too serious and uncompromising for a pop audience. His artistic development is unbelievable. Not even Bowie, very innovative in the 70ies indeed, has the ability to go that far. And his voice is amazing!