100 Artists who just "walked away"

.. you know, they just sorta 'resigned'.

As opposed to 'got dropped'.

(I was going to add 'or couldn't handle it mentally' but that could mean everyone on some small level)

... So:

100. Syd Barrett
99. Lewis Taylor
98. The Sundays

97. Bill Withers

96. Mark Hollis

97, really?

96 was one hell of a long fade-out.

re 97 yes, just look up "Bill Withers retired" e.g. for details.

95. The Left Banke
94. The Four Tops
93. Billy Bragg

92. Pete Quaife
91. Thelonious Monk

90. Captain Beefheart

89. http://relevantsound.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/article-1042504-023be8170000044d-47_468x3291.jpg

88. http://991.com/newgallery/Cast-Walkaway---Clear-62616.jpg

NOT FAST ENOUGH

95. The Left Banke
94. The Four Tops
93. Billy Bragg

I admit it took a moment, but I got it.

87. jarobi

95. The Left Banke
94. The Four Tops
93. Billy Bragg

I admit it took a moment, but I got it.

They were dropped. It was Renée who walked.

They "walked away" in the stretched sense of doing the song.

86. rick astley

85. Pete La Roca

There's not that many of these, I don't think, but here's definitely one:

84. Fred Neil

83. Kendra Smith

:(

i sure hope david roback isn't following suit

82. Bill Berry

Ugh at that Cast sleeve. I can't believe you camped out to get no.00007.

81. Kate Bush

Has she retired?

not officially I don't think, but we're four years into a gap-following-a-twelve-year-gap now

I'd surprised if she didn't record again though

89 is [nabisco] [.] or just someone who resembles him?

hahaha awesome

He is a bloke called Howard who used to manage a bank then started singing in the bank's annoying TV adverts and now given the state of the financial sector he's probably on the dole

he also guest-starred on The Office, I believe

Yes he did, but I don't think he sang.

In 2005, Brown released a cover of the Barry White song You're the First, the Last, My Everything as a charity single. It peaked at number 13 in the UK singles chart.

In April 2008 it was announced that Brown would not be starring in any more Halifax adverts, with him instead taking a role in its public relations department.

88. Lauryn Hill

80. Jeremy Spencer

79. Deanna Durbin

78. Artie Shaw

77. Robert Wyatt

(sorry)

77. Cat Stevens

http://www.virginmedia.com/images/ridgeley-431.jpg

76. Lee Mavers

75. Noddy Holder

74. Kevin Shields

Sterling Morrison

(surprised we got this far without him...)

What about Lou going off to work in his Dad's accountancy firm?

72. Jeff Mangum

71 roy montgomery

70 shuggie otis

69. Art Ledger

68. David Ackles

So what's the deal with Gillian Welch? Is it writer's block?

67. Bill Wyman

Lots and lots of techno DJs/producers from the late 80's/ear;y 90s

early. Though the 90s were eary too.

What to make of Matt Johnson? For all of Wikipedia's alleged activity, the guy's pretty much off the grid, isn't he?

David Bowie

Matt Johnson
Matt Johnson signed a solo contract with Jive Records Matt left the label after being unhappy with the music direction. Most recently, Matt has been working with record producer Jay Reynolds and is set to release a single in 2010 with record label Tristar Records. He has an official website and is also a wedding singer.

This is according toWikipedia.

^^him or the The The guy?

David Bowie

Dude made albums for 30-something years!

And then he just walked awy

awy awy awy

awy

awy

The The guy. Dunno who that Jive turkey is.

Recently, the The The guy made a soundtrack to his brother's movie. (haven't heard it myself)

The The The guy has just put out a new instrumental soundtrack album, I revived this thread to talk about it but as usual with my posts nobody was paying attention.

xp

The The The Johnson walked away from major-label involvement and running a "band", yeah. Seems to have been (ended up being) something of a cover for pootling about and doing stuff he was interested in, but he definitely said "ah fuck this" in the middle of a concerted reissue and promo campaign, due to Sony cockery.

Dunno who that Jive turkey is.

appropos of nothing, but i hope that phrase comes back into style.

MC 900 Ft. Jesus

Can't believe I'm the first to mention Elizabeth Fraser.

Still dabbles, but yeah.

98. The Sundays

I heard somewhere once that the last show The Sundays ever played consisted of all four members walking out onstage without any instruments, but instead with big garbage bins full of spray paint cans that they passed out to those in the audience with the instructions they should express themselves all over the walls of the auditorium. This sounds a little aggro based on what I know of The Sundays' personal demeanors, but I really want to believe that it's true.

I know it's only been 13 years since the last album, but it seems twice that long easily. :(

Can't believe I'm the first to mention Elizabeth Fraser.

We're all in denial.

Bill Carter of the Screaming Blue Messiahs

5. Anne Bredon

4. Tom Lehrer

3. chuckii booker

2. Danielle Dax

#1. Mase

http://www.hiphopstarship.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/mase-grin.jpg

#1. Mas$e

<3 #1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAJV6Zvqvy4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uN4b1jUN5lc

Shep Pettibone
Dave Edmunds

iirc 20+ years ago there was a (female) ilx poster everyone was actively terrified of, but whom i never actually saw post

her name will come to me eventually

Steve Eliovson

Rodriguez

Naida Cole, classical pianist who recorded discs for Decca and Deutsche Grammophon then quit to become a medical doctor

Jean Sibelius

Bradford Cox

Su Tissue

rihanna

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxucr5TSxDg

iirc 20+ years ago there was a (female) ilx poster everyone was actively terrified of, but whom i never actually saw post

her name will come to me eventually

― mookieproof, Thursday, February 13, 2025 10:48 PM

Marissa Marchant?

Can't be her, she did post here a whole bunch of times, including one time in which she posted about once every 15 minutes for several hours.

Doing a search and reading the thread, sounds like she fits the bill. Though folks are more bemused than terrified. "I kick Norah Jone's ass and she just won several grammys. She can barely sing or play the piano. Either can any of the them compared to me. I now perform for only fifty thousand dollars, because we

watching that Police video last night made me wonder how many bands at the tippy top height of their fame just...walked away. The Police were HUUUUUUUUge. (i know i know they did a one year reunion thing...kinda ruined the beauty of the thing. they just couldn't go the Minor Threat route. funny that Police and Minor Threat basically stopped around the same time.)

(and i'm not counting bands where someone died...)

either MM or Becky Lucas xps

xp Roxy Music? Barring eventual reunions, they pretty much hit their high point with the Avalon tour and then dissolved.

The Jam, The Smiths, Japan, none of them as big as The Police of course

jeez, yeah, the smiths. feel like they just would have kept getting bigger and bigger. the jam just turned into something else. something different. i loved the jam when i was a kid but i have no idea how much impact they made in the states. the buzzcocks too!

feel like the buzzcocks could have melded PS's synth-love with some pop punk and taken over the u.s. in the 80s. as much as i love his first two solo albums they didn't have that same power of prime buzzcocks. but few bands can match them at their best.

Rodriguez

his taking every international tour or live album or film soundtrack licensing offer he got between his second studio album and the documentary prob disqualifies him

not being booked for gigs in the US but taking everything you could get elsewhere is kinda the opposite of walking away, regardless of whether it was necessary to take other work in order to buy, eg., food

Becky Lucas! otm

Todd Terje