Song of the Day 3/28: World Party, “Sweet Soul Dream”

Karl Wallinger, the multi-instrumentalist best known as the leader, and frequently the only member, of World Party, died at his home in England two weeks ago of a stroke. He was 66.

Wallinger first gained attention in 1983 when he joined the Waterboys, where his keyboards set the mood of that band’s biggest hit, “The Whole of the Moon.”

Chafing under the leadership of Mike Scott, Wallinger signed a solo contract a year before he left the band in 1985. His first World Party LP, “Private Revolution,” spawned his only U.S. hit, “Ship of Fools,” No. 27 on the Hot 100 in 1987. His second album, “Goodbye Jumbo,” was Q magazine’s album of the year in 1990. Wallinger played everything himself and wove his numerous influences – the Beatles, the Stones, Dylan and Motown – into a melodic, slightly trippy mix that scored with college radio. “Way Down Now” and “Put the Message in the Box” were minor hits in the UK, but the LP was full of catchy songs like this one.

Wallinger didn’t release another album until 1993’s “Bang,” which hit No. 2 on the UK album charts but struggled in the U.S. Two subsequent albums sold even less, and Wallinger was knocked out of commission in 2001 by a brain aneyrysm. It took him five years to recover the ability to play again. He stayed afloat financially through the period because Robbie Williams, a boy-band graduate and major star in Britain at the time, covered “She’s the One,” a tune that won Wallinger an Ivan Novello award in 1997 when it was released on “Egyptology.” Williams took the song to No. 1.

Wallinger recovered enough to tour again but he never released another album of new material. He told a reporter two years ago that he was working on another album, so fans can hold out hope for something from beyond the grave.