Scatman John facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Scatman John
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Paul Larkin |
| Born | March 13, 1942 El Monte, California, U.S. |
| Died | December 3, 1999 (aged 57) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1981–1999 |
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John Paul Larkin (born March 13, 1942 – died December 3, 1999) was an American musician. He was known professionally as Scatman John. For many years, he was a talented jazz pianist and singer. He became very famous in the 1990s by mixing scat singing (a type of jazz singing) with dance music. He released five albums during his career.
In the United States and Europe, Scatman John is best known for his 1995 songs "Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)" and "Scatman's World". He was most successful in Japan. His album Scatman's World (1995) sold over a million copies there. John Larkin also received awards for helping people who stutter, just like he did. He was even added to the National Stuttering Association Hall of Fame after he passed away.
Contents
Early Life and Music Beginnings
John Larkin was born in El Monte, California. He had a severe stutter from a young age. This made his childhood difficult. When he was twelve, he started learning to play the piano. Two years later, he discovered scat singing through music by artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong.
Playing the piano helped him express himself. It was a way for him to deal with his speech difficulties. He once said he "hid behind [the] piano because [he] was scared to speak." His first known recording was in 1981. In 1986, he released his own album called John Larkin.
Becoming "Scatman John"
To grow his music career, John Larkin moved to Berlin, Germany, in 1990. He found that people there really loved jazz music. He started performing jazz shows. This is when he bravely decided to add singing to his act. He was inspired after getting a standing ovation for singing "On the Sunny Side of the Street".
Soon after, his agent thought of a new idea. They wanted to mix scat singing with modern dance music and hip hop sounds. Larkin was worried at first. He was afraid people would make fun of him because of his stutter. But the music company BMG Hamburg was open to the idea.
Larkin was concerned that listeners would notice his stutter. His wife, Judy, suggested he talk about it directly in his songs. Working with producer Tony Catania, he recorded his first hit song, "Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)". After this big success, he took on the new name and character of "Scatman" John.
Worldwide Success
In 1995, at 53 years old, John Larkin became a global music star. His first song, "Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)", slowly became popular. It reached number one in many countries. It sold over six million copies around the world. This song is still his most famous and best-selling track.
He then released another song called "Scatman's World". This song also did well, selling a million copies. It charted high in Europe. In 2019, "Scatman's World" became popular again as an internet meme.
After these two songs, he released his first album as Scatman John, also called Scatman's World. This album made it into the top 10 in many countries. It sold millions of copies worldwide. It was so popular that a Scatman John design even appeared on Coca-Cola cans. He went on tour in Europe and Asia. He once said that at a show in Spain, "the kids screamed for five minutes straight, I couldn't start the song."
Later Albums
Scatman John's second album, Everybody Jam!, came out in 1996. This album was not as big internationally as his first. However, it and the song "Everybody Jam!" became very popular in Japan. He had more success in Japan than anywhere else. In Europe, his later songs did not reach the same high charts as his first two.
The Japanese version of Everybody Jam! had five extra songs. These included ""Su Su Su Super Ki Re i"" and "Pripri Scat". Japanese companies used these songs for commercials. The Ultraman TV show even released a song called "Scatultraman". The cover art showed Ultraman characters wearing Scatman's hat and mustache.
Illness and Passing
In late 1998, John Larkin was diagnosed with lung cancer. In June 1999, he released his fourth and final album as Scatman John, called Take Your Time. Soon after, he began intensive medical treatment.
John Larkin passed away at his home in Los Angeles on December 3, 1999. He was 57 years old. He was married to Judy McHugh Larkin.
Discography
- John Larkin (1986)
- Scatman's World (1995)
- Everybody Jam! (1996)
- Take Your Time (1999)
- Listen to the Scatman (2001; released after his death)
Biographies
In 2022, a comic book about Scatman John's life was published. This was 23 years after he passed away. His manager and the producers of his music helped create the book.
Images for kids
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A robot icon.
