The Walker Brothers

The Walker Brothers were an American pop group formed in Los Angeles in 1964 by John Walker (real name John Maus) and Scott Walker (real name Noel Scott Engel), with Gary Walker (real name Gary Leeds) joining shortly after. They adopted the name "Walker Brothers" as a show business touch, though they were unrelated. After moving to Britain in 1965, they achieved their breakthrough Top 20 single there with "Love Her", and went on have several UK Top 10 albums and Top 40 singles, including the No. 1 hits "Make It Easy on Yourself" and "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)", both of which also made the US Top 20 and Canadian Top 2. Between them was the UK No. 3 hit "My Ship is Coming In". They provided a unique counterpoint to the British Invasion (a period when British bands such as The Beatles dominated the U.S. charts) by achieving far more success in the UK than in their home country.The trio split up in mid-1967, though they temporarily reformed for a tour of Japan in early 1968. Over the next eight years, each member pursued solo projects with varying degrees of success. In 1975, they reunited full-time, and scored a final Top 10 UK hit with "No Regrets". After releasing the critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful album Nite Flights in 1978, the group again disbanded. John Walker remained active in the music business and toured as a solo act until his death in 2011. Scott Walker resumed his solo career and gained recognition as an avant-garde artist; he died in 2019. Gary Walker died in 2026.The Walker Brothers Trio was formed in Los Angeles in 1964 by John Walker (lead vocals, guitar), Scott Engel (bass, harmony vocals), and Al "Tiny" Schneider (drums). Before then, John Walker—who had already been using that name professionally for several years—had performed and recorded several unsuccessful singles with his sister as "John and Judy", and Engel had played bass with instrumental band The Routers. Walker and Engel, with two other musicians, had also toured the Midwest in 1963 as The Surfaris, though the group included none of the musicians who played on the Surfaris' records. Dropping the word Trio, the Walker Brothers were signed by Mercury Records, recorded a single, "Pretty Girls Everywhere", and became a leading attraction at Gazzari's Club in Hollywood. They also appeared on the Shindig! TV show, developed by Jack Good, and then on a weekly TV show, Ninth Street A Go Go.Late in 1964, they met drummer Gary Leeds, previously of The Standells (late 1962–1964). He had recently toured the UK with singer P.J. Proby. Leeds – along with Gazzari's club regular Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones – persuaded them that the band's rock and roll and blues style would go down well in "swinging London," where Proby had already succeeded. Before leaving, they recorded their second single, "Love Her", overseen by Nick Venet and arranger Jack Nitzsche, with Engel (now Scott Walker) taking the lead vocal part for the first time—previously John had been the lead vocalist. The song had originally been recorded by The Everly Brothers and released as the B-side to their single "The Girl Who Sang The Blues" in 1963. With his distinct baritone, Scott became the group's de facto frontman, and the trio shifted their focus from upbeat R&B to pop ballads that better suited his vocals. They also appeared in a film, Beach Ball, and sent demo recordings to record labels in the United Kingdom.With Leeds (now Gary Walker) as drummer, and with financial backing from his stepfather, the Walker Brothers travelled to the UK in February 1965 for an exploratory visit.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.