Scott Walker Series, #4: Scott Walker- Scott 2 (1968) MP3 & FLAC

"Cascading tears for every heartbeat, tonight we'll sleep with the girls from the streets."

With Scott 2, Scott Walker reached the peak of his (fleeting) commercial success by essentially repeating the recipe of his solo debut (a mix of originals, Brel interpretations, and cover songs), but doing so to even greater effect the second time around. Walker himself famously called Scott 2 the "work of a lazy, self-indulgent man," but self-penned songs such as "Plastic Palace People" and "The Girls from the Streets" suggest a songwriter who has learned a thing or two from Brel in the sense of crafting distinctive existential odes to the outcast and the marginalized. Walker's bewitching voice is in fine form throughout, and it's interesting to hear how his vocals turn some of the more conventional material inside-out; for example, in the hands of most singers, the album's final song, "Come Next Spring," would run no deeper than syrupy romanticism, but Walker's baritone forces the song into much darker, melancholic waters, peeling away its sentiment to reveal the ambiguity beneath. As with all the "Scott" albums, this deserves a place in any serious music collection.

Scott 2 (2000 HDCD Remastered Edition)
 1. Jackie  (3:23)
 2. Best of Both Worlds  (3:14)
 3. Black Sheep Boy  (2:39)
 4. The Amorous Humphrey Plugg  (2:41)
 5. Next  (2:50)
 6. The Girls from the Streets  (4:11)
 7. Plastic Palace People  (6:06)
 8. Wait Until Dark  (2:59)
 9. The Girls and the Dogs  (3:10)
10. Windows of the World  (4:25)
11. The Bridge  (2:50)
12. Come Next Spring  (3:24)

MU: Lossy (MP3@320)

MU: Lossless (FLAC)

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