| Jim Walker | |
| Birth Place: | Edmonton, Alberta, Canada |
| Genre: | Punk rock, post-punk |
| Occupation: | Drummer |
| Years Active: | 1977–1984 |
| Associated Acts: | Public Image Ltd. |
Jim Walker (born 1955) is a Canadian musician who was a founding director as well as the original drummer for the UK music group Public Image Ltd.[1]
James Donat Walker was born in Edmonton, Alberta. He first trained as a jazz drummer at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he was taught by Alan Dawson and Joe Hunt.[2]
In 1977, Walker, along with Malcolm Hasman and Chris Arnett, formed the Vancouver area punk band the Furies, the first punk rock band in Western Canada.[3] The band broke up after a few months, and Walker moved to London later that year. In early May 1978, after answering an ad placed in Melody Maker,[4] he auditioned for and became a founding member of Public Image Ltd., with John Lydon, Keith Levene, and John Wardle (Jah Wobble).[5] [6]
Dissatisfied with the band's direction, he left PiL as a player in February 1979, and as a director in January 1980. After PiL, he played for a few lesser known local London bands, including Kirk Brandon of Theatre of Hate's first band, The Pack, and Stan Stammers' band The Straps,[7] [8] before forming the Human Condition in 1981 with Jah Wobble and Dave "Animal" Maltby.[9] The Human Condition were together for just over a year, playing to mixed reviews, before disbanding in 1982.
In 1984, he left London for New York, and after playing that year left the music industry.[10] Walker was interviewed for the 2017 documentary film, The Public Image is Rotten.[11]