World Party @ Crescent Ballroom

Karl Wallinger has been conspicuously absent from the music scene the over the past decade — but with good reason. The former Waterboy and World Party founder suffered a debilitating brain aneurysm in 2001 that left him unable to walk and talk, let alone sing or play any of the...

By Glenn BurnSilver

November 29, 2012

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Karl Wallinger has been conspicuously absent from the music scene the over the past decade — but with good reason. The former Waterboy and World Party founder suffered a debilitating brain aneurysm in 2001 that left him unable to walk and talk, let alone sing or play any of the many instruments he's mastered. Wallinger endured five years of extensive rehab so that he could lead a normal life again — which for this prolific songwriter of such Britpop hits as "Ship of Fools," "Put the Message in the Box," "Give It All Away," "Way Down No," "Is It Like Today?" and "She's the One" (a mega-hit for Robbie Williams), means writing songs, playing music, and touring. His initial return to the stage came in 2006, but concert tours have been limited and new material almost nonexistent. That changes now as Wallinger takes World Party on the road supporting the recent release of Arkeology, a career-spanning five-CD set full of rarities and unreleased material. Wallinger is said to have also composed 70 new songs, many of which will be showcased on this tour. — Glenn BurnSilver

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