"Deadlier Than the Male" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Scott Walker under his real name of Scott Engel with UK record producer

Johnny Franz John Charles Franz (23 February 1922 – 29 January 1977) was an English record producer and A&R man at the Philips label. He was one of Britain's most successful producers in the 1950s and 1960s. While his recordings encompassed several forms o ...

. The song was first recorded and released by Walker's pop group

The Walker Brothers The Walker Brothers were an American pop group of the 1960s and 1970s which included Noel Scott Engel (eventually known professionally as Scott Walker), John Walker (born John Joseph Maus, but using the name Walker since his teens) and Gary Le ...

as their eighth single in 1966. The accompaniment was directed by Reg Guest. The song was the title track for the 1967 British action film ''

Deadlier Than the Male ''Deadlier Than the Male'' is a 1967 British adventure crime mystery film. It is one of the many take-offs of James Bond produced during the 1960s, but is based on an already established detective fiction hero, Bulldog Drummond. Richard Johnso ...

'' which featured the character of

Bulldog Drummond Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond is a fictional character, created by H. C. McNeile and published under his pen name "Sapper". Following McNeile's death in 1937, the novels were continued by Gerard Fairlie. Drummond is a First World War veteran who, ...

. The song's title is a reference to the 1911

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

poem " The Female of the Species," which includes the line, "The female of the species must be deadlier than the male", and also refers to Sapper's earlier Drummond book ''The Female of the Species''. "Deadlier Than the Male" was a minor hit spending six weeks on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and peaking at No. 32. The single was released concurrently that December with the EP '' Solo John/Solo Scott''. The low sales of the single may have been hit by the label's strategy of releasing them both at once. The single is essentially a Scott Walker solo release as he sang lead vocals and wrote/co-wrote both tracks. Previously Scott had only contributed album tracks and b-sides. "Deadlier Than the Male" is also notable for having been Walker's first A-side.

Track listing

Chart positions

References

{{The Walker Brothers 1966 singles The Walker Brothers songs Songs written by Scott Walker (singer) Film theme songs 1966 songs