Scott Walker and the Late Twentieth Century Phenomenon of Phonographic Auteurism Duncan G
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Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2013 Scott Walker and the Late Twentieth Century Phenomenon of Phonographic Auteurism Duncan G. Hammons Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF MUSIC SCOTT WALKER AND THE LATE TWENTIETH CENTURY PHENOMENON OF PHONOGRAPHIC AUTEURISM By DUNCAN G. HAMMONS A Thesis Submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2013 Duncan Hammons defended this thesis on April 4, 2013 The members of the supervisory committee were: Kimberly VanWeelden Professor Directing Thesis Jane Clendinning Professor Co-Directing Thesis Frank Gunderson Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii Dedicated to my family and friends for their endless encouragements and many stimulating conversations that fostered the growth of my curiosity in this subject, and the memory of my father, Charles Edwin Hammons (November 1, 1941 - April 28, 2012), who taught me the invaluable lesson of consolidating work and play. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to acknowledge the members of my supervisory committee, Dr. Jane P. Clendinning, Dr. Kimberly VanWeelden and Dr. Frank Gunderson for their enthusiasm and generosity in their guidance of this research, and additionally, Dr. Laura Lee and Dr. Barry Faulk for lending their expertise and additional resources to the better development of this work. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ...............................................................................................................................vii Abstract ........................................................................................................................................viii 1. THE PRIMACY OF THE RECORDED FORMAT IN EURO-AMERICAN POPULAR STYLES ...........................................................................................................................................1 1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................1 1.2 Sound Recordings And The Transformation Of How Music Is Heard .........................4 1.3 Changing Aesthetics of Record Production ...................................................................6 1.4 The Beatles (and Glenn Gould) Declare: “All You Need Are Our Recordings” ...........8 1.5 Economic Barriers to the Creation of Works of Art in Commercial Media ................10 2. AESTHETIC PREMISES.......................................................................................................... 14 2.1 Intentionality and Identity of “The Work”................................................................... 14 2.2 Auteur Theory as a General Model for the Analysis of Autographic Media............... 17 2.3 Literature or Music: The Role of Meaning in Popular Genres ....................................20 2.4 The “Mixing-Desk Pen” as the Phonographic Auteur’s Tool ......................................21 3. EARLY YEARS IN THE COMMERCIAL MUSIC INDUSTRY............................................ 24 3.1 Scott Engel Demos, L.A. Session Work, and the Walker Brothers’ Formation ..........24 3.2 Issues of Teen Pop Idolatry and Public Performance ..................................................26 3.3 Development of Authorial Voice on Early Solo Releases (1967-1970) ......................28 3.4 “First Cut” and Issues of Patronage .............................................................................31 4. EMERGENCE OF MATURE COMPOSITIONAL STYLE (1978-1984) ...............................33 4.1 Circumstances Surrounding Nite Flights’ (1978) Production .....................................33 4.2 Narrative Process in Walker’s Works: “The Electrician” ............................................33 4.3 Replacement of Pop Forms with Mise-en-Scene: “Fat Mama Kick” ..........................38 4.4 Climate of the Hunter and the First Long Silence (1984-1995) ..................................46 5. TILT (1995)................................................................................................................................ 50 5.1 “Farmer in the City” and Walker’s Pastoral Orchestral Ballads .................................50 5.2 Narrative Threads and Movements Through Unseen Scenes: “The Cockfighter” ......54 5.3 Music or Sound Design: “Bouncer See Bouncer” .......................................................58 5.4 “Patriot (A Single)” As the Inverse Identity of “The Electrician” ...............................61 5.5 The Emergent Tradition of the Naturalistic Farewell Track: “Rosary” .......................65 6. THE DRIFT (2006).................................................................................................................... 67 6.1 Situationism, Psychogeography and the Principle of “La Derivee” (Drifting) ...........67 6.2 Analysis: “Jesse” ..........................................................................................................68 6.3 Analysis: “Jolson and Jones” .......................................................................................73 v 6.4 Analysis: “Cue” ...........................................................................................................77 6.5 Analysis: “Buzzers” .....................................................................................................81 6.6 Return to Public Visibility ...........................................................................................83 7. BISCH BOSCH (2012) ..............................................................................................................85 7.1 Orpheus Resurfaces, One Foot Lingering Below ........................................................85 7.2 Analysis: “See You Don’t Bump His Head” ................................................................87 7.3 Analysis: “SDSS1416+13B (Zercon, A Flagpole Sitter)” ...........................................89 7.4 Analysis: “Epizootics!” ................................................................................................91 7.5 Analysis: “Pilgrim” ......................................................................................................95 7.6 Analysis: “The Day the Conducător Died (An X-Mas Song)” ....................................96 CONCLUSIONS ..........................................................................................................................98 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................102 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................................106 vi LIST OF FIGURES 4.1 “The Electrician” Large-Scale Formal Structure ..............................................................36 4.2 “Fat Mama Kick” Large-Scale Formal Structure .............................................................39 5.1 “Farmer in the City” Large-Scale Formal Structure .........................................................53 5.2 “The Cockfighter” Intro [0:00 - 1:24] ..............................................................................56 5.3 “The Cockfighter” Transition / Verse 1 [1:25 - 2:55] .......................................................57 5.4 “The Cockfighter” Bridge [2:55 - 3:27] / Verse 2 [4:16 - 4:54] / Outro [4:54 - 6:02] ..... 58 5.5 “Bouncer See Bouncer” Structural Diagram .....................................................................60 5.6 “Patriot (A Single)” Structural Diagrams .........................................................................64 6.1 “Jesse” Structural Diagrams .............................................................................................72 6.2 “Jolson and Jones” Section A (“Metal Machine Music”) .................................................74 6.3 “Jolson and Jones” Transition [1:26 - 3:25] .....................................................................75 6.4 “Jolson and Jones” Section B [3:15 - 7: 45] .....................................................................76 6.5 “Cue” Section A ................................................................................................................78 6.6 “Cue” Section B and A’ .....................................................................................................80 6.7 “Buzzers” Large-Scale Formal Structure .........................................................................83 7.1 Symmetric Pattern of Studio Album releases since Nite Fights .......................................86 7.2 “See You Don’t Bump His Head” Large-Scale Formal Structure ....................................88 7.3 “Epizootics!” Large-Scale Formal Structure ....................................................................94 7.4 “Pilgrim” Large-Scale Ternary Form ................................................................................ 96 vii ABSTRACT The music of Scott Walker (b. Noel Scott Engel, January 9, 1943) continues to influence multiple generations of respected figures in popular music from David Bowie to Radiohead, yet Walker has not set foot on stage to perform since the 1970s. Instead, the singer-songwriter- producer’s latter-day