Roger Whittaker, an accomplished whistler and folk singer known for his 1969 hit tune Durham Town, has died at the age of 87.
The late singer got his start in folk clubs and went on to have great success with the 1986 duet, “Skye Boat Song,” he did with Des O’Connor. According to his website, Roger sold more than 50 million records globally and has other big songs like The Last Farewell and New World in the Morning.
Presently, the homepage of Roger’s website features a photo of the late singer along with his birth and death dates and a request for sympathy comments from visitors. One person who was grieving posted this evening on the website, writing: “The Last Farewell….A truly outstanding troubadour who brought such much pleasure everywhere he performed.”
On March 22, 1936, Roger, who was multilingual, was born in Nairobi, Kenya. The late star’s parents were both native to Staffordshire in England; his mother was a teacher and his father was from a line of grocery store owners. In Roger’s early years, the music of East Africa had a profound impact.
His official website quotes the late artist as saying: “In over 30 years of singing and playing musical instruments – the amazing drumming, and those marvelous, addictive rhythms – have played an important role in everything I have ever written and sung.” The school choir enthusiast who consistently received top grades throughout his education, Roger, continued, “In the final three years of my formal schooling, I managed to work sufficiently well to get top grades in all of my school exams as well as had great hopes later on of studying to pursue a career as a teacher or a doctor.”
Roger, however, was drafted into the national service three weeks after graduating from high school and served in the Kenya Regiment for the following two years. After making the decision to do so, he enrolled at the University of Cape Town in South Africa to pursue a career in medicine.
After relocating to the UK in 1959 to pursue his studies in zoology, biochemistry, and marine biology, Roger began to lay the groundwork for a career in music. Roger started writing songs throughout his final year at Bangor University since he had previously enjoyed singing and performing in neighborhood bars in East Africa.
The Charge of the Light Brigade and Steel Men were two singles that Roger recorded while he was taking his examinations. When he discovered that one of his songs had reached the British Singles Charts, he was faced with a choice. Roger once recalled how one of his professors helped him enter the music industry when he was debating whether to continue his academic career or try his hand at entertainment.
Roger remembered his professor saying, “Take your chance.” “Give show business a shot; if you don’t succeed there in ten years, come back here and teach. I’ll always have room for you at the university. Roger decided to try his luck in show business and ended up with a manager and agent.
Away from music, Roger married Natalie in August 1964, just three months after they initially met and started dating. Together, the couple gave birth to five children: Emily, Lauren, Jessica, Guy, and Alexander. The last time Roger performed was in 2003 while on tour in Germany. In 2012, he and his cherished wife retired to France.