Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)

Born in El Monte, California, Larkin suffered from a severe stutter by the time he learned to speak which led to an emotionally traumatic childhood. At age twelve, he began to learn piano and was introduced to the art of scat singing two years later, through records by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, among others.

Larkin became a professional jazz pianist in the 1970s and 1980s, playing many engagements in jazz clubs around Los Angeles. His first known performance on a studio album was in 1981 on the album Animal Sounds by Sam Phipps. In 1986, he released the self titled album John Larkin on the Transition label. This album was produced by John himself, along with Marcia Larkin.

To advance his career in 1990, Larkin moved to Berlin, Germany. From there, he discovered the appreciative jazz culture and started playing jazz gigs.[2] This was when he first decided to take a monumental step away from his insecurities and add singing to his act for the first time.

His agent Manfred Zähringer from Iceberg Records (Denmark) thought of combining scat singing with modern dance music and hip hop effects. Larkin was resistant at first, terrified of being laughed at and criticized once again, but BMG Hamburg was open.

Larkin was worried that listeners would realise he stuttered, and his wife, Judy, suggested that he talk about it directly in his music. Working with dance producers Ingo Kays and Tony Catania, he recorded the first single, "Scatman (Ski Ba Bop Ba Dop Bop)". After his first big hit, he adopted the new name and persona of "Scatman" John.

Larry Flick from Billboard called it a "novelty dance tune" and noted that it "has a giddy Euro-NRG tone" and that Scatman John "bends his tongue to rapid, ear-popping effect."[3] Dimitri Ehrlich from Entertainment Weekly wrote in his review, that "this synth-pop hit defines novelty: A chintzy drum machine pitter patters at a frantic pace while John, a Los Angeles jazz vocalist who has stuttered since childhood, frees himself from his speech impediment by scatting for three minutes and twenty seconds."[4] Debby Peterson from The Network Forty described the song as a "hellacious techno-dance groove".[5]

The song was very successful on the charts all over the world, reaching number-one in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland, as well as on the Eurochart Hot 100 and the Canadian RPM Dance Chart. Additionally, it also reached the Top 10 in Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Scotland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. In the latter, the single reached number 3 in its third week at the UK Singles Chart, on May 21, 1995.[6] It climbed into the Top 20 in Iceland and Poland, and the Top 40 in Japan and New Zealand. In the US, the single peaked at number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 10 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play. Scatman John was awarded the March 1996 Echo Award in Germany for the best Rock/Pop single with "Scatman".[7] The single was also awarded with a gold record in Australia, Austria, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, and a platinum record in France and Germany.

The music video for "Scatman" was released in 1994 and directed by Kerstin Mueller. It was also produced by Ariola Records.[8] It was shot in black and white, and features a fractured screen with several boxes showing shots of John singing, along with various people dancing, miming and playing drums. The video was played in heavy rotation on music channels in 1995. It was uploaded to YouTube in November 2013. It has amassed over 100 million views as of February 2021.[9]

CD Maxi

1. "Scatman" (Basic Radio) – 3:30
2. "Scatman" (Jazz Level) – 3:41
3. "Scatman" (Second Level) – 5:40
4. "Scatman" (Third Level) – 5:46
5. "Scatman" (Game Over Jazz) – 5:03

CD Maxi 2

1. "Scatman" (new radio edit) – 3:21
2. "Scatman" (Pech Remix) – 4:55
   • Remixed by Pech
3. "Scatman" (Arena di Verona Mix) – 6:04
4. "Scatman" (extended radio version) – 5:11