John Paul Larkin (born March 13, 1942 in El Monte, California; died December 3, 1999 in Los Angeles), known as Scatman John, was a famous stutterer who invented a unique fusion of scat singing and disco. As he liked to say, this was a process of "turning my biggest problem into my biggest asset." Scatman John has received 14 golds and 18 platinums for his albums and singles. He was also the recipient of the Annie Glenn Award for his outstanding service to the stuttering community
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John Paul Larkin (born March 13, 1942 in El Monte, California; died December 3, 1999 in Los Angeles), known as Scatman John, was a famous stutterer who invented a unique fusion of scat singing and disco. As he liked to say, this was a process of "turning my biggest problem into my biggest asset." Scatman John has received 14 golds and 18 platinums for his albums and singles. He was also the recipient of the Annie Glenn Award for his outstanding service to the stuttering community, and was also inducted to the National Stuttering Association's Hall of Fame. In 1995, at 52 years of age, he became a world star. The sales of its single were low at the beginning, but gradually they were increasing until reaching the 1º position in practically all the countries where it was sent, selling more than 6 million copies throughout the world. Scatman (Ski Ba Bop Ba Dop Bop) is still his biggest sales success and his best song to date, having stayed several weeks in the Top 10 singles in the United Kingdom. Later he continued with the single Scatman's World entering the Top 10 of the United Kingdom with less success than his first single, but selling 1 million copies and reaching high positions throughout Europe. Following the successes of these two singles, he released his debut album Scatman's World. It sold 3 million copies and broke the world record as an album sold in the largest number of countries. Scatman John began a tour of promotional concerts in Europe and Asia. In an appearance he made in Spain, the young people shouted for 5 minutes in a row, he couldn't start the song. During an interview regarding the new album, Scatman John spoke so fluently that a journalist said he had not heard Larkin stutter even once and asked if he was not using the stuttering community as a means to continue his career. Scatman was surprised to feel ashamed for the first time of his ease of speaking. He was later diagnosed with lung cancer and soon went into intensive treatment. He maintained a positive attitude throughout, declaring that "whatever God wants is fine by me... I've had the very best life. I have tasted beauty." He died in his Los Angeles home on December 3, 1999, at the age of 57. "I hope that the kids, while they sing along to my songs or dance to it, feel that life is not that bad at all. Even for just a minute." - John "Scatman" Larkin Discography: 1995 - Scatman's World 1996 - Everybody Jam! 1995 - Scat Paradise (EP) 1999 - Take Your Time
