RIP Roger Whittaker

[Canada Jim]

I see that Roger Whittaker passed today. I was never a big fan of his singing, but I really admired the way he could whistle. Have a listen.
It appears that you'll have to click on the "Watch On YouTube" link.

 

[ukukeguy]

Oh dear! At first I thought it was one of the countless YouTube channels falsely reporting celebrity deaths, as it doesn't display on this site. I don't know if anyone has ever suggested it, but perhaps a Season including songs with whistling in would be fun to do. The Last Farewell, indeed.

 

[John Colter]

Many years ago I had a part-time job working at Wolverhampton Civic Hall. I saw numerous rock bands who required truck loads of amps and speakers and other contranklements to ply their raucous, posturing trade. In contrast, Roger Whittaker performed a concert which involved just himself, a guitar and the house pa system. He was a proper troubadour. RIP

 

[AZChris]

He occupied the same memory space in my head as Slim Whitman and Zamfir. They were/are artists I heard of because of TV commercials selling their music but never saw or heard them anywhere else. Clearly it worked as all 3 are/were worth millions even though you haven't heard from them much since the 70's. RIP

 

[mikelz777]

Roger Whittaker is a reoccurring presence in my life as he appears multiple times on a favorite various artists Christmas collection I play every year during the holiday season. He's not someone I would normally listen to but he had a wonderful voice and he's a very welcome addition to that Christmas collection. Ding Dong Merrily On High and The 12 Days Of Christmas are two that I remember him singing off the top of my head. I know my mother in law really liked him. RIP.

 

[Jan D]

When I was younger, I had the good fortune to see Roger Whittaker in concert on two different occasions. Stellar performances both. Roger had the most sublime singing voice, and of course his whistling skills were world-renown. I still listen to his albums from time to time. Will probably do so tomorrow, in honor of his passing.

 

[peanuts56]

Liked his voice. An afternoon dj on an AM station in my area played his songs often in the mid 70's. I had no FM in the car I owned and would listen to this time slot while I was driving. I remember the dj also liked Freddy Fender.
I worked out a fingerstyle version of The Last Farewell a few years ago. I never played it in public and haven't played it in a while. Going to revisit it during my practice session today. RIP Roger.