Scatman John

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John Larkin – a fast-living, hard-playing, stuttering jazz pianist – overcame abuse, addiction, ageism, and obscurity to stage one of the most improbable debuts in pop music history by turning his greatest pain into his purpose. At 52, Larkin was a recovering alcoholic and veteran pianist, haunted by shame because of his lifelong stutter. His stutter meant he could scat-sing better than anyone else on the planet, grabbing and firing syllables like bullets – yet he couldn't even say his own name. But when a small, indie record label took a gamble on an oddball fusion of John's scat-singing and dance music, his life changed overnight: Scatman John was born. In 1995, his singles "Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)" and "Scatman's World" shot to #1 across Europe and Asia, turning a man who'd spent his life hiding into a global star. Audiences were captivated by the absurdity and charm of a middle-aged man in a fedora, machine-gunning syllables over a dance