The Walker Brothers

John Maus had already achieved a mild degree of success in the duo John and Judy with his sister after adopting the surname Walker when he met bass player Scott Engel (of The Routers). They joined The Surfaris and then formed the Walker Brothers Trio with drummer Al 'Tiny' Schneider. They later released one single "Pretty Girls Everywhere" and appeared on various TV shows as a duo after Al Schneider's departure. New drummer Gary Leeds (of The Standells) - who had recently toured the UK with P.J. Proby - persuaded them to try their luck in Britain and, with Scott Engel's deep voice and moody persona taking the central spotlight previously occupied by John Walker, they quickly found a teen audience in the UK, getting to number one in 1965 with a dramatic orchestral arrangement of "Make It Easy on Yourself" (1965), a Burt Bacharach-Hal David song that had previously been a hit for Jerry Butler. Other major hits like "My Ship Is Coming In" (1965), "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Any More" (1966) and "Another Tear Falls" (1966) swiftly followed as The Walker Brothers became one of the era's most successful acts. With Scott Walker reacting badly to the pressures of fame howver, often suffering from stage fright, they split in 1968. They reformed six years later, returning to the charts with a cover of Tom Rush's "No Regrets", recording three more albums No Regrets (1975), Lines (1976) and Nite Flights (1978) before splitting again in 1978. John Walker died of a liver cancer on 7 May 2011 at the age of 67; Scott Walker died on 22 March 2019, aged 67; Gary Walker died on 1st March 2026, aged 83.