The Searchers (band)
Encyclopedia
The Searchers are an English
beat group, who emerged as part of the 1960s Merseybeat
scene along with The Beatles
, The Fourmost
, The Merseybeats
, The Swinging Blue Jeans
, and Gerry & The Pacemakers
.
The band's hits included a remake of the Drifters' 1961 hit, "Sweets for My Sweet
"; remakes of Jackie DeShannon
's "Needles and Pins" and "When You Walk In The Room
"; an original song written for them, "Sugar and Spice
"; The Orlons
' "Don't Throw Your Love Away
"; and a cover of The Clovers
' "Love Potion No. 9
". They were the second group from Liverpool, after the Beatles, to have a hit in the United States
when "Needles and Pins" charted during the first week of March 1964.
group in Liverpool
in 1959 by John McNally
and Mike Pender
, the band took their name from the classic 1956 John Wayne
western
The Searchers
. Pender claims that the name was his idea, but McNally ascribes it to 'Big Ron' Woodbridge (born Ronald Woodbridge, 1938, ın Liverpool, Lancashire), their first lead singer. The genesis remains unresolved.
The band grew out of an earlier skiffle group formed by McNally in 1957, with his friends Brian Dolan (guitar) and Tony West (bass - born Anthony West, in 1938, Waterloo, Liverpool, Lancashire died 11 November 2010, West Way, Hightown, Merseyside). When the other two members lost interest McNally was joined by his guitarist neighbour Mike Prendergast
. They soon recruited Tony Jackson
(born Anthony Paul Jackson, 16 July 1938, The Dingle, Liverpool, Lancashire — died 18 August 2003, Nottingham
, Nottinghamshire
) with his home-made bass guitar and amplifier, who was recruited as a lead singer, but took a back seat at first in order to learn the bass. The band styled themselves as 'Tony and the Searchers' with Joe Kelly on drums. Kelly soon left to be replaced by Norman McGarry (born 1 March 1942, Liverpool, Lancashire), and it is this line-up — McNally, Pender (as he soon became known), Jackson and McGarry — that is usually cited as the original foursome.
McGarry did not stay long, however, and in 1960 his place was taken by Chris Crummey
(26 August 1941 – 28 February 2005), who later changed his name to Chris Curtis. Later that year Big Ron had a successful audition with Mecca and became a ballroom singer. He was replaced by Billy Beck, who changed his name to Johnny Sandon
(born Wıllıam Beck, ın 1941, Lıverpool dıed 23 December 1996). The band had regular bookings at Liverpool's Iron Door Club
as 'Johnny Sandon and the Searchers'.
Sandon left the band in late 1961 to join The Remo Four
in February 1962. The group settled into a quartet 'The Searchers' with Jackson becoming the main vocalist. They continued to play at the Iron Door, The Cavern, and other Liverpool clubs. Like many similar acts they would do as many as three shows at different venues in one night. They negotiated a contract with the Star-Club
in the St. Pauli
district Hamburg
for 128 days, with three one-hour performances a night, starting in July 1962.
The band returned to a residency at the Iron Door Club and it was there that they tape-recorded the sessions that led to a Pye Records
recording contract with Tony Hatch
as producer
. Their first single was issued in US on Mercury
, the second on Liberty
without success and then a deal was arranged with U.S. based Kapp Records
to distribute their records in America. Their first album, sung mostly by Jackson Meet the Searchers
was released in August, 1963 and reached #2 on the British album charts by the next month. A slightly changed version of it, including the song "Needles and Pins" hit #22 in the US album charts in June 1964.
Hatch played piano on some recordings and wrote "Sugar and Spice"—the band’s UK #2 hit record—under the pseudonym Fred Nightingale; a secret he kept from the band at the time.
After scoring with their hit "Needles and Pins", bassist Tony Jackson
, who was only allowed one lead vocal on their second album, left the band and was replaced by Hamburg pal Frank Allen
(born Francis Renaud McNeice, 14 December 1943, Hayes
, Middlesex
) from Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers
.
Chris Curtis, who had song-writing ambitions, left the band in 1966 and was replaced by the Keith Moon
-influenced John Blunt (born John David Blunt, 20 March 1947, in Croydon
, Surrey
), who in turn was replaced by Billy Adamson in 1970. In 1967, Curtis formed a new band called Roundabout with keyboard player Jon Lord
and guitarist Ritchie Blackmore
. Although Curtis's involvement in the project was short-lived, Roundabout would eventually evolve into Deep Purple
the following year.
As musical styles evolved, the Searchers could not keep up and as a result, the hits ran out. While they continued to record for Liberty Records
and RCA Records
, they ended up on the British "Chicken in a Basket" circuit, although they did score a minor US hit in 1971 with "Desdemona".
The group continued to tour through the 1970s and were rewarded in 1979 when Sire Records
signed the band to a multi-record deal. Two albums were released: The Searchers and Play for Today (retitled Love's Melodies outside the UK). Both records garnered critical acclaim but did not break into the charts. They did, however, revive the group's career.
According to John McNally, the band were ready to head into the studio to record a third album for Sire when they were informed that due to label reorganization, their contract had been dropped. It was, in fact, because so few people bought the second album, although it was beloved by fans.
In 1981, the band signed to PRT Records (formerly Pye, their original label) and began recording an album. But only one single, "I Don't Want To Be The One" backed with "Hollywood", ended up being released. The rest of the tracks, except one, would be included as part of 1992's 30th Anniversary collection.
Soon after the PRT release, Mike Pender left the group amidst great acrimony and now tours as Mike Pender's Searchers
. McNally and Allan recruited former First Class
vocalist Spencer James
to fill Pender's shoes.
In 1988, Coconut Records
signed The Searchers and the album Hungry Hearts was the result. It featured updated remakes of "Needles and Pins" and "Sweets For My Sweet" plus live favorite "Somebody Told Me You Were Crying". While the album was not a major hit, it did keep the group in the public eye.
The band continued to tour with Eddie Rothe replacing Adamson on drums and is considered to be one of the most popular 1960s bands on the UK concert circuit. The Searchers incorporate full band electric performances with an acoustic set as well. In 2010 Eddie Rothe announced that he would be leaving The Searchers to spend more time with his fiancee Jane McDonald. On 26 February he was replaced by Scott Ottaway
.
Creating ample amounts of confusion, former Searchers lead singer Mike Pender
also tours, formerly with his own band under the name "Mike Pender's Searchers" but now with various pick-up groups with whom he tours but still using the name "Mike Pender's Searchers", as he performs hits of the Searchers and some new material of his own.
(Sweets For My Sweet, Alright, Love Potion # 9, Farmer John, Stand By Me, Money, Da Doo Ron Ron, Ain't Gonna Kiss Ya, Since You Broke My Heart, Tricky Dicky, Where Have All The Flowers Gone, Twist And Shout)
(Sugar And Spice, Don't Cha Know, Some Other Guy, On Of These Days, Listen To Me, Unhappy Girls, Ain't That Just Like Me, Oh My Lover, Saints And Searchers, All My Sorrows, Hungry For Love)
(Sweets for My Sweets, Ain't That Just Like Me, Listen to Me, I Can Tell, Sick and Tired, Mashed Potatoes, Sure Know a Lot About Love, Rosalie, Learning the Game, Hey Joe, Hully Gully, What'd I Say)
(It's In Her Kiss, Glad All Over, Sea Of Heartbreak, Livin' Lovin' Wreck, Where Have You Been?, Shimmy Shimmy,Needles and Pins, This Empty Space, Gonna Send You Back to Georgia, I Count the Tears, Hi-Heel Sneakers, Can't Help Forgiving You, Sho' Know a Lot About Love, Don't Throw Your Love Away)
(Everybody Come And Clap Your Hands,If I Could Find Someone, Magic Potion, I Don't Want To Go On Without You, Bumble Bee, Something You Got Baby, Let The Good Times Roll, A Tear Fell, Till You Say You'll Be Mine, You Wanna Make Her Happy, Everything You Do, Goodnight Baby)
(Unhappy Girl, Hungry For Love, This Empty Place, Hi Heel Sneakers, It's In Her Kiss, I Count The Tears, Can't Help Forgiving You, Love Potion # 9, Sea Of Heartbreak, I Pretend I'm With You)
(Needles And Pins, Farmer John, Sugar And Spice, What Have They Done To The Rain, Take Me For What I'm worth, Love Potion #9,'Till I Met You, He's Got No Love, Someday We're Gonna Love Again, Sweets For My Sweet)
(I'm Ready, I'll Be Doggone, Does She Really Care For Me, It's Time, Too Many Miles, You Can't Lie To A Liar, Don't You Know Why, I'm Your Loving Man, Each Time, Be My Baby, Four Strong Winds, Take Me For What I'm Worth)
(Have You Ever Loved Somebody, You Wanna Make Her Happy, Hungry For Love, If I Could Find Someone, When You Walk In The Room, Don't Throw Your Love Away, This Feeling Inside, Goodbye My Love, Take It Or Leave It, Saturday Night Out)
(It's All Been A Dream, Saturday Night Out, No One Else Could Love Me, I'll Be Missing You, This Feeling Inside, So Far Away, I'm Never Coming Back, Don't Hide It Away, It's Just The Way, Popcorn Double Feature, Lovers, Western Union,
I'll Cry Tomorrow, Second Hand Dealer, Crazy Dreams, The System
Notes: Smash Hits and Smash Hits Vol. 2 are compilation albums that have been included because amazingly a number of well known (such as 'What Have They Done To The Rain' and 'He's Got No Love') charts hits never made it to a regular album. 'Hear Hear!' and 'This Is Us' are seldom mentioned on the web. They have been included because the contain songs that did not appear on other albums. The 'Play The System' album has been added because that album too contains early sixties songs songs that did not appear on previous albums.
, The Searchers was the only British group of its era that had most records issued in stereo
. Producer Tony Hatch
had mixed Searchers’ tracks in stereo to sound exactly like mono, and although a number of Searchers’ UK Pye
albums were issued in mono only, the US Kapp label issued all Searchers’ albums in stereo. Later UK Castle and Santuary CD album reissues used stereo and mono masters.
1960–February 1962
February 1962–July 1964
August 1964–April 1966
May 1966–December 1969
January 1970–December 1985
January 1986–November 1998
November 1998–February 2010
February 2010–present
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
beat group, who emerged as part of the 1960s Merseybeat
Beat music
Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a pop and rock music genre that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s. Beat music is a fusion of rock and roll, doo wop, skiffle, R&B and soul...
scene along with The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, The Fourmost
The Fourmost
The Fourmost were an English Merseybeat band that recorded in the 1960s. Their biggest UK hit single was "A Little Loving" in 1964.-Biography:...
, The Merseybeats
The Merseybeats
The Merseybeats are a Merseybeat band that emerged from the Liverpool scene in the early 1960s, performing at The Cavern Club along with The Beatles, Gerry & The Pacemakers and other similar artists....
, The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans were a four piece 1960s British Merseybeat band, best known for their hit singles with the HMV label; "Hippy Hippy Shake", the follow-up, Little Richard's "Good Golly Miss Molly", and "You're No Good", a Clint Ballard song that provided a change of pace and furnished the...
, and Gerry & The Pacemakers
Gerry & the Pacemakers
Gerry and the Pacemakers were a British beat music group prominent during the 1960s. In common with The Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin. They are most remembered for being the first act to reach number one in the UK Singles Chart with...
.
The band's hits included a remake of the Drifters' 1961 hit, "Sweets for My Sweet
Sweets for My Sweet
"Sweets for My Sweet" is a song written by the songwriting team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, originally recorded by The Drifters. The group's first single featuring Charlie Thomas on lead vocal, "Sweets for My Sweet" reached #16 in October 1961. This was one of the few post-1958 Drifters singles...
"; remakes of Jackie DeShannon
Jackie DeShannon
Jackie DeShannon is an American singer-songwriter with a string of hit song credits from the 1960s onwards. She was one of the first female singer-songwriters of the rock 'n' roll period.- Life and early career :...
's "Needles and Pins" and "When You Walk In The Room
When You Walk In The Room
"When You Walk in the Room" is a song written and recorded by Jackie DeShannon, first released by her in 1963 but covered by many artists. The lyrics of the song attempt to detail the singer's emotions when in the presence of the person he or she loves...
"; an original song written for them, "Sugar and Spice
Sugar and Spice (song)
"Sugar and Spice" is a 1963 song by Merseybeat band The Searchers written by Tony Hatch under the pseudonym Fred Nightingale. It made number two on the UK charts and number 44 in the USA charts....
"; The Orlons
The Orlons
The Orlons are an American R&B group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that formed in 1960. They received gold discs for the million selling achievements of three of their singles...
' "Don't Throw Your Love Away
Don't Throw Your Love Away
"Don't Throw Your Love Away" is a song that was originally released in 1963 by The Orlons. It was the B-side to "Bon-Doo-Wah", which peaked at No. 55 in the US charts.The song was covered by The Searchers and released in April 1964. It went to No...
"; and a cover of The Clovers
The Clovers
-History:The group formed in 1946 at Armstrong High School in Washington, D.C., with members Harold Lucas, Billy Shelton, and Thomas Woods. John "Buddy" Bailey was added soon after, and they began calling themselves the "Four Clovers", with Bailey on lead...
' "Love Potion No. 9
Love Potion No. 9 (song)
"Love Potion No. 9" is a song written in 1959 by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. It was originally performed by The Clovers.-Story:The song describes a man seeking help finding love, so he talks to a Gypsy, who determines through palm reading that he needs "love potion number 9"...
". They were the second group from Liverpool, after the Beatles, to have a hit in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
when "Needles and Pins" charted during the first week of March 1964.
Band history
Originally founded as a skiffleSkiffle
Skiffle is a type of popular music with jazz, blues, folk, roots and country influences, usually using homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a term in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century, it became popular again in the UK in the 1950s, where it was mainly...
group in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
in 1959 by John McNally
John McNally (musician)
John McNally is an English guitarist and vocalist. He was one of the original founders of The Searchers in 1957, and is still with the band over 50 years later.-External links:...
and Mike Pender
Mike Pender
Mike Pender was an original founding member of Merseybeat group The Searchers. He is best known as the lead vocalist on many hit singles by The Searchers, including the song "Needles and Pins"...
, the band took their name from the classic 1956 John Wayne
John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
The Searchers
The Searchers (film)
The Searchers is a 1956 American Western film directed by John Ford, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May, and set during the Texas–Indian Wars...
. Pender claims that the name was his idea, but McNally ascribes it to 'Big Ron' Woodbridge (born Ronald Woodbridge, 1938, ın Liverpool, Lancashire), their first lead singer. The genesis remains unresolved.
The band grew out of an earlier skiffle group formed by McNally in 1957, with his friends Brian Dolan (guitar) and Tony West (bass - born Anthony West, in 1938, Waterloo, Liverpool, Lancashire died 11 November 2010, West Way, Hightown, Merseyside). When the other two members lost interest McNally was joined by his guitarist neighbour Mike Prendergast
Mike Pender
Mike Pender was an original founding member of Merseybeat group The Searchers. He is best known as the lead vocalist on many hit singles by The Searchers, including the song "Needles and Pins"...
. They soon recruited Tony Jackson
Tony Jackson (bass player)
Tony Jackson was an English bass guitar player and singer who was a member of The Searchers.-Biography:...
(born Anthony Paul Jackson, 16 July 1938, The Dingle, Liverpool, Lancashire — died 18 August 2003, Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
) with his home-made bass guitar and amplifier, who was recruited as a lead singer, but took a back seat at first in order to learn the bass. The band styled themselves as 'Tony and the Searchers' with Joe Kelly on drums. Kelly soon left to be replaced by Norman McGarry (born 1 March 1942, Liverpool, Lancashire), and it is this line-up — McNally, Pender (as he soon became known), Jackson and McGarry — that is usually cited as the original foursome.
McGarry did not stay long, however, and in 1960 his place was taken by Chris Crummey
Chris Curtis
Chris Curtis was an English drummer and singer with the 1960s pop band, The Searchers. He originated the concept behind Deep Purple and formed the band in its original incarnation of 'Roundabout'.-Early years:...
(26 August 1941 – 28 February 2005), who later changed his name to Chris Curtis. Later that year Big Ron had a successful audition with Mecca and became a ballroom singer. He was replaced by Billy Beck, who changed his name to Johnny Sandon
Johnny Sandon
Johnny Sandon was an early rock and roll singer from Liverpool, England...
(born Wıllıam Beck, ın 1941, Lıverpool dıed 23 December 1996). The band had regular bookings at Liverpool's Iron Door Club
Iron Door Club
The Iron Door Club was a music venue at 13 Temple Street, Liverpool founded by Geoff Hogarth and Harry Ormesher. It opened in May 1960 and closed in 1964...
as 'Johnny Sandon and the Searchers'.
Sandon left the band in late 1961 to join The Remo Four
The Remo Four
The Remo Four were a 1950s-1960s rock band from Liverpool, England. They were contemporaries of The Beatles, and later had the same manager, Brian Epstein...
in February 1962. The group settled into a quartet 'The Searchers' with Jackson becoming the main vocalist. They continued to play at the Iron Door, The Cavern, and other Liverpool clubs. Like many similar acts they would do as many as three shows at different venues in one night. They negotiated a contract with the Star-Club
Star-Club
The Star-Club was a music club in Hamburg, Germany that opened Friday 13 April 1962 and was initially operated by Manfred Weissleder and Horst Fascher. In the sixties, many of the giants of rock music played at the club. The club closed on 31 December 1969 and the building it occupied was...
in the St. Pauli
St. Pauli
St. Pauli , located in the Hamburg-Mitte borough, is one of the 105 quarters of the city of Hamburg, Germany. Situated on the right bank of the Elbe river, the Landungsbrücken are a northern part of the port of Hamburg. St. Pauli contains a world famous red light district around the street Reeperbahn...
district Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
for 128 days, with three one-hour performances a night, starting in July 1962.
The band returned to a residency at the Iron Door Club and it was there that they tape-recorded the sessions that led to a Pye Records
Pye Records
Pye Records was a British record label. In its first incarnation, perhaps Pye's best known artists were Lonnie Donegan , Petula Clark , The Searchers , The Kinks , Sandie Shaw and Brotherhood of Man...
recording contract with Tony Hatch
Tony Hatch
Anthony Peter "Tony" Hatch is an English composer, songwriter, pianist, music arranger and producer.-Early life and early career:...
as producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
. Their first single was issued in US on Mercury
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
, the second on Liberty
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...
without success and then a deal was arranged with U.S. based Kapp Records
Kapp Records
Kapp Records was an independent record label started in 1954 by David Kapp, brother of Jack Kapp . David Kapp founded his own label after stints with Decca Records and RCA Victor Records. Kapp licensed its records to London Records for release in the UK.In 1967, David Kapp sold his label to MCA Inc...
to distribute their records in America. Their first album, sung mostly by Jackson Meet the Searchers
Meet The Searchers
Meet the Searchers is a 1963 album by English rock band, The Searchers. The album featured their first single released in June 1963, a version of The Drifters' "Sweets for My Sweet", as well as their version of The Clovers "Love Potion No. 9", released as a single the following year...
was released in August, 1963 and reached #2 on the British album charts by the next month. A slightly changed version of it, including the song "Needles and Pins" hit #22 in the US album charts in June 1964.
Hatch played piano on some recordings and wrote "Sugar and Spice"—the band’s UK #2 hit record—under the pseudonym Fred Nightingale; a secret he kept from the band at the time.
After scoring with their hit "Needles and Pins", bassist Tony Jackson
Tony Jackson (bass player)
Tony Jackson was an English bass guitar player and singer who was a member of The Searchers.-Biography:...
, who was only allowed one lead vocal on their second album, left the band and was replaced by Hamburg pal Frank Allen
Frank Allen (bassist)
Frank Allen is an English bass guitarist. He has played bass guitar with Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers and The Searchers , who he is still with today...
(born Francis Renaud McNeice, 14 December 1943, Hayes
Hayes, Hillingdon
Hayes is a town in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. It is a suburban development situated west of Charing Cross. Hayes was developed in the late 19th and 20th centuries as an industrial locality to which residential districts were later added in order to house factory workers...
, Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
) from Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers
Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers
Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers were a 1960s British rhythm and blues, soul and beat group who had two Top 10 hits with "One Way Love" and "Got to Get You into My Life" ....
.
Chris Curtis, who had song-writing ambitions, left the band in 1966 and was replaced by the Keith Moon
Keith Moon
Keith John Moon was an English musician, best known for being the drummer of the English rock group The Who. He gained acclaim for his exuberant and innovative drumming style, and notoriety for his eccentric and often self-destructive behaviour, earning him the nickname "Moon the Loon". Moon...
-influenced John Blunt (born John David Blunt, 20 March 1947, in Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
), who in turn was replaced by Billy Adamson in 1970. In 1967, Curtis formed a new band called Roundabout with keyboard player Jon Lord
Jon Lord
Jonathan Douglas "Jon" Lord is an English composer, pianist and Hammond organ player.Jon Lord, also known as 'Hammond Lord', is a classically trained piano player. He is recognised for his Hammond organ blues-rock sound and for his pioneering work in fusing rock and classical or baroque forms...
and guitarist Ritchie Blackmore
Ritchie Blackmore
Richard Hugh "Ritchie" Blackmore is an English guitarist and songwriter, who was known as one of the first guitarists to fuse Classical music elements with rock. He fronted his own band Rainbow after leaving Deep Purple where he was unhappy because his favourite musical style wasn't adequately...
. Although Curtis's involvement in the project was short-lived, Roundabout would eventually evolve into Deep Purple
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
the following year.
As musical styles evolved, the Searchers could not keep up and as a result, the hits ran out. While they continued to record for Liberty Records
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...
and RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
, they ended up on the British "Chicken in a Basket" circuit, although they did score a minor US hit in 1971 with "Desdemona".
The group continued to tour through the 1970s and were rewarded in 1979 when Sire Records
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
signed the band to a multi-record deal. Two albums were released: The Searchers and Play for Today (retitled Love's Melodies outside the UK). Both records garnered critical acclaim but did not break into the charts. They did, however, revive the group's career.
According to John McNally, the band were ready to head into the studio to record a third album for Sire when they were informed that due to label reorganization, their contract had been dropped. It was, in fact, because so few people bought the second album, although it was beloved by fans.
In 1981, the band signed to PRT Records (formerly Pye, their original label) and began recording an album. But only one single, "I Don't Want To Be The One" backed with "Hollywood", ended up being released. The rest of the tracks, except one, would be included as part of 1992's 30th Anniversary collection.
Soon after the PRT release, Mike Pender left the group amidst great acrimony and now tours as Mike Pender's Searchers
Mike Pender's Searchers
Mike Pender's Searchers contains lead singer and guitarist Mike Pender formerly of The Searchers. Pender left The Searchers in December 1985 hoping to explore new musical directions while preserving the classic 12-string guitar style that he helped to popularise...
. McNally and Allan recruited former First Class
The First Class
The First Class was a British pop music studio-based group, put together by songwriter and record producer John Carter.-Career:The First Class was the studio creation of the British singer-songwriter John Carter and singers Tony Burrows and Chas Mills as an outlet for material Carter wrote with his...
vocalist Spencer James
Spencer James
Spencer Frederick James is an English singer and musician. He has been the lead singer of veteran pop band The Searchers since 1986. James was also a member of the one-hit wonder band The First Class that scored a #4 hit with the song "Beach Baby".-Career:James grew up in Hayes, Middlesex...
to fill Pender's shoes.
In 1988, Coconut Records
Coconut Records
Coconut Records is a German record label formed in 1981 by producers Tony Hendrik and Karin Hartmann. Acts that have been signed to Coconut have included Bad Boys Blue, C. C. Catch, Haddaway, Londonbeat, Chyp-Notic, The Searchers, Soultans, the Weather Girls, Rammstein and Modern Talking.The...
signed The Searchers and the album Hungry Hearts was the result. It featured updated remakes of "Needles and Pins" and "Sweets For My Sweet" plus live favorite "Somebody Told Me You Were Crying". While the album was not a major hit, it did keep the group in the public eye.
The band continued to tour with Eddie Rothe replacing Adamson on drums and is considered to be one of the most popular 1960s bands on the UK concert circuit. The Searchers incorporate full band electric performances with an acoustic set as well. In 2010 Eddie Rothe announced that he would be leaving The Searchers to spend more time with his fiancee Jane McDonald. On 26 February he was replaced by Scott Ottaway
Scott Ottaway
Scott Ottaway is an English drummer and percussionist. He is the drummer for veteran Merseybeat band The Searchers, replacing Eddie Rothe in February 2010.-External links:**...
.
Creating ample amounts of confusion, former Searchers lead singer Mike Pender
Mike Pender
Mike Pender was an original founding member of Merseybeat group The Searchers. He is best known as the lead vocalist on many hit singles by The Searchers, including the song "Needles and Pins"...
also tours, formerly with his own band under the name "Mike Pender's Searchers" but now with various pick-up groups with whom he tours but still using the name "Mike Pender's Searchers", as he performs hits of the Searchers and some new material of his own.
Discography
Studio Albums- 1963 - Meet The Searchers
(Sweets For My Sweet, Alright, Love Potion # 9, Farmer John, Stand By Me, Money, Da Doo Ron Ron, Ain't Gonna Kiss Ya, Since You Broke My Heart, Tricky Dicky, Where Have All The Flowers Gone, Twist And Shout)
- 1963 - Sugar & Spice
(Sugar And Spice, Don't Cha Know, Some Other Guy, On Of These Days, Listen To Me, Unhappy Girls, Ain't That Just Like Me, Oh My Lover, Saints And Searchers, All My Sorrows, Hungry For Love)
- 1964 - Hear Hear! (U.S.)
(Sweets for My Sweets, Ain't That Just Like Me, Listen to Me, I Can Tell, Sick and Tired, Mashed Potatoes, Sure Know a Lot About Love, Rosalie, Learning the Game, Hey Joe, Hully Gully, What'd I Say)
- 1964 - It's The Searchers
(It's In Her Kiss, Glad All Over, Sea Of Heartbreak, Livin' Lovin' Wreck, Where Have You Been?, Shimmy Shimmy,Needles and Pins, This Empty Space, Gonna Send You Back to Georgia, I Count the Tears, Hi-Heel Sneakers, Can't Help Forgiving You, Sho' Know a Lot About Love, Don't Throw Your Love Away)
- 1964 - Sounds Like The Searchers
(Everybody Come And Clap Your Hands,If I Could Find Someone, Magic Potion, I Don't Want To Go On Without You, Bumble Bee, Something You Got Baby, Let The Good Times Roll, A Tear Fell, Till You Say You'll Be Mine, You Wanna Make Her Happy, Everything You Do, Goodnight Baby)
- 1964 - This Is Us (U.S.)
(Unhappy Girl, Hungry For Love, This Empty Place, Hi Heel Sneakers, It's In Her Kiss, I Count The Tears, Can't Help Forgiving You, Love Potion # 9, Sea Of Heartbreak, I Pretend I'm With You)
- 1965 - Smash Hits (Marble Arch)
(Needles And Pins, Farmer John, Sugar And Spice, What Have They Done To The Rain, Take Me For What I'm worth, Love Potion #9,'Till I Met You, He's Got No Love, Someday We're Gonna Love Again, Sweets For My Sweet)
- 1965 - Take Me For What I'm Worth
(I'm Ready, I'll Be Doggone, Does She Really Care For Me, It's Time, Too Many Miles, You Can't Lie To A Liar, Don't You Know Why, I'm Your Loving Man, Each Time, Be My Baby, Four Strong Winds, Take Me For What I'm Worth)
- 1967 - Smash Hits Vol. 2 (Marble Arch)
(Have You Ever Loved Somebody, You Wanna Make Her Happy, Hungry For Love, If I Could Find Someone, When You Walk In The Room, Don't Throw Your Love Away, This Feeling Inside, Goodbye My Love, Take It Or Leave It, Saturday Night Out)
- 1987 - Play The System
(It's All Been A Dream, Saturday Night Out, No One Else Could Love Me, I'll Be Missing You, This Feeling Inside, So Far Away, I'm Never Coming Back, Don't Hide It Away, It's Just The Way, Popcorn Double Feature, Lovers, Western Union,
I'll Cry Tomorrow, Second Hand Dealer, Crazy Dreams, The System
Notes: Smash Hits and Smash Hits Vol. 2 are compilation albums that have been included because amazingly a number of well known (such as 'What Have They Done To The Rain' and 'He's Got No Love') charts hits never made it to a regular album. 'Hear Hear!' and 'This Is Us' are seldom mentioned on the web. They have been included because the contain songs that did not appear on other albums. The 'Play The System' album has been added because that album too contains early sixties songs songs that did not appear on previous albums.
The Searchers in recording
Other than The BeatlesThe Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, The Searchers was the only British group of its era that had most records issued in stereo
STEREO
STEREO is a solar observation mission. Two nearly identical spacecraft were launched into orbits that cause them to respectively pull farther ahead of and fall gradually behind the Earth...
. Producer Tony Hatch
Tony Hatch
Anthony Peter "Tony" Hatch is an English composer, songwriter, pianist, music arranger and producer.-Early life and early career:...
had mixed Searchers’ tracks in stereo to sound exactly like mono, and although a number of Searchers’ UK Pye
Pye Records
Pye Records was a British record label. In its first incarnation, perhaps Pye's best known artists were Lonnie Donegan , Petula Clark , The Searchers , The Kinks , Sandie Shaw and Brotherhood of Man...
albums were issued in mono only, the US Kapp label issued all Searchers’ albums in stereo. Later UK Castle and Santuary CD album reissues used stereo and mono masters.
The Searchers timeline
1957–1959- Ron Woodbridge: vocals
- John McNally: rhythm guitar
- Brian Dolan: lead guitar
- Tony West: bass
- Joe Kennedy: drums
1960–February 1962
- Johnny Sandon: lead vocals
- John McNally: rhythm guitar, vocals
- Mike Pender: lead guitar, vocals
- Tony Jackson: bass, vocals
- Chris Curtis: drums, vocals
February 1962–July 1964
- Tony Jackson: lead vocals, bass
- John McNally: rhythm guitar, vocals
- Mike Pender: lead guitar, vocals
- Chris Curtis: drums, vocals
August 1964–April 1966
- Frank Allen: lead vocals, bass
- John McNally: guitar, vocals
- Mike Pender: guitar, vocals
- Chris Curtis: drums, lead vocals
May 1966–December 1969
- Frank Allen: lead vocals, bass
- John McNally: lead guitar, vocals
- Mike Pender: rhythm guitar, vocals
- John Blunt: drums
January 1970–December 1985
- Frank Allen: bass, lead vocals
- John McNally: lead guitar, vocals
- Mike Pender: rhythm guitar, vocals
- Billy Adamson: drums
January 1986–November 1998
- Spencer James: rhythm guitar, guitar synthesizer, lead vocals
- John McNally: lead guitar, vocals
- Frank Allen: bass, vocals
- Billy Adamson: drums
November 1998–February 2010
- Spencer James: rhythm guitar, guitar synthesizer, lead vocals
- John McNally: lead guitar, vocals
- Frank Allen: bass, vocals
- Eddie Roth: drums, vocals
February 2010–present
- Spencer James: rhythm guitar, guitar synthesizer, lead vocals
- John McNally: lead guitar, vocals
- Frank Allen: bass, vocals
- Scott Ottaway: drums, vocals
Further reading
- McCormack, Peter. 'The Searchers History', Needles & Pins (2005). Retrieved 18 June 2005
- Fabgear, 'Tommy Quickly & The Remo Four', The British Beat Boom
- Mike Pratt co-writer of "The System"