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))).
The Girls From The Streets
Scott Walker Lyrics
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Surround the night of me
Mustache large like smoke from his cigar
Coughs up a joke and laughs a net of sound
Swallowing the pinwheel clowns
Consuming all the women
Like a giant sponge
Luxuriate like planets whirling 'round the sun
Collapsing next to me
Shouts don't look sad
Things aren't so bad
They're just more wrong than right
His brandy brim voice whispers
Come with me I hold the key
The city's ours tonight
Heys the barmaid slaps her ass
She shrieks her gold teeth flash
With rapturous delight
Earthquaking the sawdust ground
He grabs my arm and out into the famished night
Now two blazing leaves burning up ground
The tiny waltz of a merry go round
Cascading lights for every heartbeat
Tonight we'll sleep with the girls from the streets
Hurry faster don't look back
His coattails snap his laughter's burning in my ears
I ride upon this giant storm
Through rust-red rooms where shadows breathe from every
board
The world is up for auction sales
A thousand lies descend
The women's tear-tracked cheeks
Still we'll dance them on and on
We can't stop now
Not now until we reach the dawn
Quick give us your lips
Give us your thighs
Give us your sad and devouring eyes
Cascading tears for every heartbeat
Tonight we'll sleep with the girls from the streets
The lyrics of Scott Walker’s “The Girls from the Streets” paint the picture of a chaotic night out in the city, with the singer encountering a larger-than-life figure who leads them on a wild adventure. The opening lines describe the overwhelming feeling of the night, with “suffocating eyes” and fleeting connections through “fast hellos and last good-byes.” Then, we meet the mysterious figure with a “mustache large like smoke from his cigar” who jokes and laughs with an infectious energy. The scene is set in a bar where the waiters are described as planets whirling 'round the sun.
As the night progresses, the energy builds up with the singer being swept away into another realm of sensory overload. The chaos of the world outside is contrasted with the singer's inner turmoil; their sadness is met with the mysterious figure's encouragement that things “aren’t so bad,” even though they’re “just more wrong than right.” The figure is an escape from the world outside, a break from the overwhelming feelings of melancholy. The singer is urged to “come with me, I hold the key, the city’s ours tonight,” and they venture out into the night, grabbing the attention of the barmaid who slaps her ass in delight.
Eventually, the singer is led outside where they ride out the “famished night” with the mystery figure. The adventure grows more intense, with cascading lights, “two blazing leaves burning up ground” and the “tiny waltz of a merry-go-round” filling the singer's senses. Despite the world falling apart around them, they are still dancing and chasing pleasure, seeking refuge in the “girls from the streets.”
Line by Line Meaning
Suffocating eyes and fast hellos and last good-byes
Feeling trapped in a whirlwind of temporary connections and goodbyes.
Surround the night of me
This feeling evokes a sense of isolation in the midst of a larger group of people.
Mustache large like smoke from his cigar
The man mentioned has a prominent physical feature that is visually striking like the smoke from his cigar.
Coughs up a joke and laughs a net of sound
The man has a loud and boisterous laugh that fills the room and draws attention.
Swallowing the pinwheel clowns
The scene around the artist feels surreal, like they are swallowing everything up without understanding it.
Consuming all the women
The man described takes advantage and consumes all the women around him.
Like a giant sponge
The man is taking in everything around him, leaving nothing untouched.
Snap! The waiters animate
Suddenly, the waiters around the artist come to life and begin to animate the scene.
Luxuriate like planets whirling 'round the sun
The waiters seem to be living in a world of luxury and indulgence like planets orbiting around the sun.
Collapsing next to me
The artist feels overwhelmed by the situation around them.
Shouts don't look sad
The man wants the singer to enjoy the experience and not be sad or upset about it.
Things aren't so bad
The man is attempting to convince the artist that things are not as bad as they may seem.
They're just more wrong than right
The man acknowledges that things may not be perfect, but they are not completely wrong either.
His brandy brim voice whispers
The man's voice is smooth and seductive like brandy.
Come with me I hold the key
The man is trying to entice the singer to follow him with the promise of unlocking something special for them.
The city's ours tonight
The man is claiming the city and everything in it as belonging to them for the night.
Heys the barmaid slaps her ass
The barmaid is objectified and sexually harassed by the man and reacts in surprise and indignation.
She shrieks her gold teeth flash
The barmaid's reaction is swift and visually striking, like the flash of her gold teeth.
With rapturous delight
The man is enjoying the situation and finds it exciting.
Earthquaking the sawdust ground
The scene is so intense and chaotic that it feels like an earthquake shaking the ground beneath them.
He grabs my arm and out into the famished night
The man takes the artist's arm and pulls them out into what feels like a barren, hungry world.
Now two blazing leaves burning up ground
The artist and the man are moving quickly and recklessly, like two leaves on fire.
The tiny waltz of a merry go round
The experience feels dizzying and disorienting, like a tiny waltz on a spinning merry go round.
Cascading lights for every heartbeat
The lights around them seem to be matching the rhythm of their heartbeats, creating a sense of excitement.
Tonight we'll sleep with the girls from the streets
The man is promising the singer an exciting and illicit night with prostitutes or women they encounter on the street.
Hurry faster don't look back
The man is urging the singer to move quickly and leave their past behind them.
His coattails snap his laughter's burning in my ears
The man's movements are quick and sharp, and his laughter feels overwhelming to the singer.
I ride upon this giant storm
The artist feels like they are being swept up in a huge, tumultuous event.
Through rust-red rooms where shadows breathe from every board
The setting around them is dark and eerie, with shadows lurking around every corner.
The world is up for auction sales
The singer feels like everything around them is for sale and up for grabs, including themselves.
A thousand lies descend
The situation feels overwhelming and difficult to parse through all the deceit and falsehoods around them.
The women's tear-tracked cheeks
The prostitutes or women they encounter on the street are crying, leaving visible tracks on their faces.
Still we'll dance them on and on
The artist and the man will continue on with the experience, regardless of the women's pain.
We can't stop now
The momentum of the situation feels inexorable.
Not now until we reach the dawn
The singer and the man will not stop until they see the dawn, signifying the end of the night's debauchery.
Quick give us your lips
The man is demanding a kiss from the artist, without any patience or gentleness.
Give us your thighs
The man is objectifying the singer and demanding sexual favors from them.
Give us your sad and devouring eyes
The man wants the singer to give themselves up completely, including emotionally.
Cascading tears for every heartbeat
The situation is emotionally charged, leading to more tears and pain for everyone involved.
Tonight we'll sleep with the girls from the streets
The man reiterates the promise of an exciting and illicit night with prostitutes or women they encounter on the street.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: SCOTT ENGEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind