John Walker, singer for the '60s trio the Walker Brothers, died over the weekend from cancer. The American musician, who led the ensemble through a successful period in the '60s, alongside the famed Scott Walker, passed away on Saturday (May 7) after a battle with liver cancer. He was 67.
While the singer found his greatest success in the '60s, he had been working on music up until a couple of weeks ago. His last performance was in Los Angeles in March.
Born John Maus, the performer and two other Americans, vocalist/bassist Noel Scott Engel (aka Scott Walker) and vocalist/drummer Gary Leeds, packed their bags and moved to Britain just as the British Invasion was sweeping their native land. The move paid off. Calling themselves the Walker Brothers – even adopting the surname – they landed a string of hits, starting with 1964's "Love Her." The group would go on to tour the world and sell over 23 million records.
It's said that Maus took on the Walker surname professionally when he was 17 so that he could obtain a fake I.D. to perform in bars he was too young to enter legally, though before he moved to England, he was already entrenched in the music scene, having played guitar in the early '60s in the Hollywood club scene.
John Walker moved back to the United States in the '80s, but according to his personal assistant, Polly Klemmer, he returned to the UK every year as part of a "Silver 60s" show until his health began to deteriorate. He was diagnosed with liver cancer last December.
Walker is survived by his wife, Cynthia; a sister, Judy Hoyt; children Jamie Maus Anderson, Nickoletta Drew Maus, Adam Sarrazin and Heather Stewart; as well as several grandchildren.
While the singer found his greatest success in the '60s, he had been working on music up until a couple of weeks ago. His last performance was in Los Angeles in March.
Born John Maus, the performer and two other Americans, vocalist/bassist Noel Scott Engel (aka Scott Walker) and vocalist/drummer Gary Leeds, packed their bags and moved to Britain just as the British Invasion was sweeping their native land. The move paid off. Calling themselves the Walker Brothers – even adopting the surname – they landed a string of hits, starting with 1964's "Love Her." The group would go on to tour the world and sell over 23 million records.
It's said that Maus took on the Walker surname professionally when he was 17 so that he could obtain a fake I.D. to perform in bars he was too young to enter legally, though before he moved to England, he was already entrenched in the music scene, having played guitar in the early '60s in the Hollywood club scene.
John Walker moved back to the United States in the '80s, but according to his personal assistant, Polly Klemmer, he returned to the UK every year as part of a "Silver 60s" show until his health began to deteriorate. He was diagnosed with liver cancer last December.
Walker is survived by his wife, Cynthia; a sister, Judy Hoyt; children Jamie Maus Anderson, Nickoletta Drew Maus, Adam Sarrazin and Heather Stewart; as well as several grandchildren.
