Roger Whittaker was born in British Kenya in 1936. He became an officer in the Kenyan Regiment and served during the Mau Mau Rebellion of the 1950s. It was while serving as an officer Whittaker started performing as a folksinger to raise his men's morale and entertain them.
Whittaker studied biochemistry, zoology, and marine biology at the University College of North Wales in 1959 and continued to perform music in campus pubs and clubs. He began his recording career with Fontana Records in 1962.
Whittaker is best known for his 1969 hit song Durham Town and his biggest hit song The Last Farewell, a Napoleonic War themed love ballad from 1975. His music became popular throughout the Anglosphere except in the United States where it failed to catch on. Whittaker sings a contemporary form of folk music known in Germany as schlager music which is known for its contemporary sound, use of orchestra, and features mainly newly written songs and music,
Whittaker's estranged parents (his parents were extremely disappointed over his choice of career as a musician despite his commercial success and never attended one of his concerts) were robbed and subject to torture for hours at their Nairobi home by rampaging Kenyan bandits in 1989, and his father was murdered.
Roger Whittaker was one of the most successful commercial pop folksingers to emerge from the 1960s and sold over 11 million records alone with his song The Last Farewell. Whittaker had an active concert touring schedule and conducted concert tours throughout the world in countries like the United States, Canada, Germany, etc.
Here on his 1979 record album entitled Wishes, Whittaker sings a cover version of New Zealand folksinger Dave Jordan's Remembrance Day song Goodnight Ruby.
Roger Whittaker passed away on September 13th, 2023 at age 87 at a hospital near Toulouse, France.
Goodnight Ruby--written and composed by New Zealand folk songwriter Dave Jordan in 1973. Performed by the late Roger Whittaker.
Lyrics:
C F G C
Heading home on Remembrance Day
Am D G
Slowing down in the autumn cold
C G C F G Am
In your scarf and your green beret
Em F Dm G C
And you can't help but wonder how you've grown so old
F G C
Called away by a waking dream
C/c C/b Am/a C/g D G
Brave old soldier running out of steam
F G Am
Blows a kiss to the evening skies
F C D G C
Good night Ruby with the stars in her eyes
There's a face in a photograph
That you've treasured the long years through
Just a trace of her distant laugh
And you pray there's a heaven and she waits for you
Called away by a waking dream
Brave old soldier running out of steam
Blows a kiss to the evening skies
Good night Ruby with the stars in her eyes
(And then an instrumental interlude here ??)
Set 'em up for the whole damn crew
Raise a glass to your absent friends
Just a ghost of the gang you knew
And you can't help but wonder will you meet again
Called away by a waking dream
Brave old soldier running out of steam
Blows a kiss to the evening skies
Good night Ruby with the stars in her eyes
(Repeat chorus at end, as indicated in melody of mp3
with final lines
'Goodnight Ruby, Goodnight Ruby,
Goodnight Ruby with the stars........in her eyes'
