David Whitaker
1931 – January 11, 2012
David Whitaker was an English orchestral arranger and composer whose impact left on pop music as well. Over the course of his lengthy career, he worked with the likes of Lee Hazlewood, Simply Red, the Rolling Stones, Jimmy Page, and Serge Gainsbourg. David Whitaker passed away on January 11, 2012. Cause of death was not immediately released.
Thanks to Harold Lepidus for the assist.
I was most saddened to read of the passing of one of the most colourful and amusing people I had the pleasure of knowing. (Telegraph Obituaries 26 Jan 2012).
Little did I realise when we first met during our final months as National Servicemen in Germany during 1951 that he would become so wellknown in the world of music. However, it was obvious even then that he was determined to seek success in the music industry.
David’s skill at the piano was a great asset in the NAFFI and this gave him opportunities to experiment with song writing. I was no musician, but endeavoured to assist with lyrics. He told me that he studied at The Guildhall School of Music before joining the army.
We took advantage of opportunities to attend concerts in the nearby Celle Castle, usually followed by dinner at the Rathous Restaurant with a bottle of Klüsserather Bruderschaft. On one occasion we had a weekend in Hamburg, which included a trip to the Opera for a performance of Carmen.
We spent most of our leisure time with a small group, which in an earlier generation, would have been called ‘gentlemen rankers’ and David was the leader using his charm and humour to provide us with some memorable incidents.
The barracks had a stable-block containing several ‘hacks’ which had been ‘liberated’ at the end of hostilities. Being an infantry regiment, horses were just for recreation and squaddies as well as officers were allowed to ride out to give them exercise. Early one dark morning David set off on one of these nags when a senior sergeant was standing by the gate. Not immediately recognising the rider, he instinctively threw up a salute. As soon as he realised he had saluted a mere rifleman, you can imagine the threats of reprisals he uttered as David plodded off into the mist. Luckily the sergeant chose not to make an issue of it.
David and I were able to keep in contact for a few years after return to ‘civvy street’ because our parents’ houses were only 20 miles apart. This enabled us to engage in several more escapades until David married his first wife Rita. During early days of marriage, David worked in various local businesses, but following my own marriage and with the passage of time I lost contact with him. I would be fascinated to learn how David ‘escaped from Sussex’ to fulfil his dream of a career in music.