Post by wingsj0 on Jan 28, 2006 16:35:41 GMT
One of the biggest pop bands from the nineteen sixties The Searchers, recently performed a concert at The Cutting Rooms in New York. After Wendy Burton the Searchers fan club secretary made the announcement on the bands web site and the my-generation list I contacted her in the hope that we at TBGOAO fanzine would be able to publish news of the bands USA show’s in this edition of TBGOAO and ask the band a few questions about the trip. Original band member Frank Allen has done the fanzine more than proud, and here's what he had to say about The Searchers concert and tour.
I read on the my-generation yahoo group & The Searchers Official web site you played a few shows in the USA recently. How did the show's go?
Frank Allen: Even better than expected. In fact the whole trip was a delight. I enjoy working abroad much more than holidaying and this one was so relaxing and so much fun that it was a shame that it was so short. But it bodes well for the future.
Which venues did you play & would you perform there again?
Frank Allen: We were actually there ostensibly for just one show, at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, which we’ve done twice before. Going to the States for a single show is not really an economically viable proposition but originally there were plans to tack it onto the end of a six week long package tour that was being set up. In the end the US promoters didn’t get their act together as quickly as we liked, bearing in mind that offers were coming in for dates in the UK and we pulled out. These people seem to think that you are just waiting around for them with nothing to do. But it’s never like that for us. Life has always been busier for us than most outfits and we are too old and too wise to be messed about.But we were still committed to the Mohegan. So we sorted out some promotional work with a view to the long term outlook. Radio interviews, promotional appearances around New York and Maryland and meetings with New York agents with the aim of setting up future work. I think it was successful. The Mohegan has changed since we were last there. It has doubled in size and now has a 10,000 seat arena and a glass walled monolith of a hotel thirty six storeys high.. It really is quite spectacular. The stage we play on is the Wolf Den, which is the more street cred rock and roll stage. Julie Grant (remember her from her recording days on Pye?) who was a girlfriend of mine in the 60s, has lived out there for a long time now and had booked us into the casino. She explained that Ronnie Spector had been there the night before and was great but that because of the holiday season, the Oz-fest nearby and various other things going on the crowd was a bit light. She was preparing us for the same. But in fact it was packed to capacity with others standing watching from the open sided walls around the room. The atmosphere was excellent and without doubt it was the best reception we`ve ever had there.
The conditions for artistes there are pretty marvellous and they have big names. Rod Stewart was due two days after us and Sting and Annie Lennox had appeared only days before. They treat you very well to say the least. You could eat your way to the size of a village during mealtimes and even then there is a fridge next to the dressing room filled with drinks and titbits. Cold meats and goodies like chocolate covered strawberries. On top of that there are hot chafing dishes with samosas, chicken satay and a whole lot of other stuff most of which we simply couldn`t eat.
After our sound check the stage manager suggested that it was inconvenient for us to walk through the room with our suits for the evenings performance, although in fact no one would have turned a hair, and that they would send a limo for us. At 7.15 a long black stretch limousine picked us up at the lobby and drove us around the outside of the hotel, into the underground car park and dropped us at the stage door, which took all of two minutes. That’s style. It could turn a lad’s head.
How was the whole experience for you as a band?
Frank Allen: It was a very pleasant experience indeed. We are a group who are very much enjoying each other’s company these days and we laughed from beginning to end. It was fun driving down the freeways, spotting the New York skyline coming into view. Just seeing the names of places in America is still a thrill. And there was time to do a bit of sight seeing. We did the usual visit to the guitar shops on 48th Street and shopped in Macy’s. And on the last day, with a five hour wait before check in at Newark Airport our backline roadie, John Semark, and I took the train into Manhattan for a bit more sightseeing. We got the E train down to Ground Zero. That was quite moving as you would expect. From there it’s just a short walk to Battery Park and a view of the Statue of Liberty. It was his first time in the States and he wanted to see everything. We managed a couple of drinks in a bar in Greenwich Village before we had to get back to Newark. We even passed by the Bitter End where we played in the mid 80s and checked out our name on the list of acts who have performed there.
We took both of our crew with us this time. Sometimes we use just one on foreign trips but it’s a bit more efficient with both and it’s only right that they should enjoy the perks of foreign travel when possible. These days we can afford to take on things simply because we will enjoy them and not because they will be financially important. Recently we flew to the Philippines for two shows and just loved every minute of it. It was a twenty hour flight each way but we all look very positively on such things and not one of us complained or found it a great ordeal. It was a privilege being able to travel to such an exciting place at someone else’s expense. You have to realise the value of these things and not play the self indulgent pop star game.
We played the Hard Rock Cafe and the Araneta Coliseum which was the venue we played back in 1966. That was the tour when Chris Curtis was behaving rather oddly. We went on to Australia to tour with the Stones and by the end of that he had decided he no longer wanted to be a Searcher. Such a shame. He was a nice guy, very funny and very talented. If he hadn’t left I would never have become a front man. That was his job which he did quite spectacularly. He was definitely a one off.
And when was the last time you performed in the USA with The Searchers?
Frank Allen: The last couple of times in the States were three and four years ago, both for shows at the Mohegan although on the second trip we also played the Resorts Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. That was fun because we had to catch an Amtrak train and these things feel quite adventurous.
Before that we had a few years from '81 to around '87 when we regularly popped over there for club dates. And of course the unforgettable British Invasion Tour of 1986 with Gerry & the Pacemakers, Freddie and the hilarious Dreamers who became our best pals and Chad and Jeremy. Six weeks of fun. We stopped for a while because we were inundated with work here and it was better paid too. On top of which we found American agencies very inefficient in setting up dates which rather belies the myth that they are all powerful whiz kids who can fix things with a snap of their fingers. Some are excellent but others are a bit of a waste of time.
The problem these days is that, particularly since September 11th, the problem of work visas and the expense and time involved tends to put you off. Work visas can take sixty to ninety days to process if you don’t fast track. And sponsors are necessary for the dates. It’s a complicated process. On top of that every member of the group, including the roadies, has to appear in person at the US Embassy in London for an interview which was something that was never necessary before. It’s an absolute pain. We almost pulled out because believe me this was not a money making exercise by any means. In the end we’re all very glad we went. We are now aware of all the logistics and problems with regard to how we will approach it in the future.
The package tour that didn’t happen would have meant that we would have had to pull out of a big charity event we had agreed to at Wentworth Golf Club. The Dreamscope Ball. It’s a British Airways charity supported by Cliff Richard and we were asked to do it a couple of years ago but we had already been engaged for a P&O cruise and so had to decline. Cliff was performing that year too and we hated turning it down because he’s been so good to us over the years having us on the Event at Wembley in '89 and the Millennium New Year’s Eve concert in Birmingham, not to mention recording a tribute segment for our video and writing a foreword to my book Travelling Man (a riveting read and still in print!!!).
Anyway when they asked us this time we said yes. And then it looked as though we might have to renege. Thank goodness we didn’t. Not only was Cliff going to get up and sing with us but we got an e-mail from Tony Blair, who was guest of honour, asking what chords he should learn. We suggested Johnny B Goode and had an amp and a Stratocaster set up for him. Unfortunately by the time we went on it was after midnight and he was flying to the NATO conference in Turkey the next day so after the auction and his speech his party had to leave. Shame. But we dragged Cliffie up to do Move It and then the aforementioned Johnny B Goode. And at the end of our set we called him and Cilla Black up to join us on Needles & Pins and When You Walk In The Room. A pretty memorable night.
On tour what are your favourite songs to play, and is it easy to choose a set list?
Frank Allen: A difficult one that. Of the hits it would be When You Walk In The Room I suppose. Outside of that it would tend to be something new that we’ve introduced. It’s always a boost for us to have fresh material to play although we never overbalance. We are very aware of the fact that we are a nostalgia act and proud of it.
Current favourite of the new additions would be Every River and a terrific new closer we’ve found called Seven Nights To Rock. The set list has a pattern which is always the nucleus and depends on whether it is a concert or a dance set. Sometimes we don’t know how it’s going to go until we hit the stage but we know each other so well that it only takes a glance and we all know it’s going to change and what it will change to. We are pretty loose and we are a totally live band so it’s no problem switching songs. If someone shouts out for something and we know it and feel it fits we can slip it in with no trouble. As I always say, we may be crap but we’re live crap and that’s important.
Describe a typical day in the life on the road as a touring band.
Frank Allen: Nothing to tell really. It’s the crew, Phil Hayes and John Semark, who have the most to do. They set off early and arrange all the gear mid afternoon followed by sound checks. Quite tedious and hard work but they seem to enjoy it and we try not to interfere with them. They are very efficient and are left to their own devices unless there is a particular problem. They are the nicest people you could wish to meet. Polite and helpful to everyone. If you can’t get on with them you can’t get on with anyone.
For the group it’s simply a matter of getting in the car and driving to a town. Not a lot you can say about that. We have nice vehicles to ride in these days. John McNally and I have matching C class Mercedes cars and Spencer at present is using a people carrier although you can never tell what he’ll have from one day to the next. Ed has an Audi but tends to go with Spencer. He doesn’t like driving. I’m not mad about it either but I much prefer to travel on my own. I find company very claustrophobic unless the whole group is together as we were in the States. And then it is just so much fun. That’s when I really do enjoy the company.
A typical day out there is driving to the next place, with food stops along the way, checking into the hotel and then checking out the town. Shopping if we have time, or simply looking around. There might be interviews to take care of. That tends to fall to John or myself. Quite often we try to grab an afternoon nap before getting ready for the show. On foreign trips, with no driving to consider, we take the chance to socialise and do a bit of moderate drinking in the hotel or wherever we can find. Sometimes drinking is less moderate than others but on the whole we are a pretty controlled bunch. This does not include McNally or Ed as neither of them drink.
I also read that The Searchers might be appearing in the line-up of the next Solid Silver 60's show is this true? (I enjoy going to see these shows).
Frank Allen: We certainly are. And it’s going to be huge. I understand that it starts on February 11th next year and will finish somewhere around the end of May/beginning of June. I do know the proposed line-up but I’d better not let you have it in case Flying Music have changed their minds.
Jo Rishton
With Frank Allen.
I’d like to thank Frank Allen for answering my questions on The Searchers USA trip and for giving us a fascinating account of The Searchers shows in New York, and made up the shows went well.
Many thanks to Wendy Burton from the Searchers Official web site for forwarding this interview to Frank Allen and for all the help and support she has given TBGOAO it’s sincerely appreciated.[/b]
During the Swinging 60’s The Searchers were top of the hit parade! The band released songs such as Sweets For My Sweets, When You Walk In The Room, Needles And Pins, Love Potion # 9, Where Have All The Flowers Gone, to list a few! The Searchers were one of the most popular bands from the sixties, and to this day they still continue to pack in the audiences wherever they play in the world thirty years on.
This article/interview has been approved by Frank Allen.
Jo Rishton
Official Site: www.the-searchers.co.uk
Please note all articles on this site are (C) to The Beat Goes On And On Fanzine and may not be used without permission.
I read on the my-generation yahoo group & The Searchers Official web site you played a few shows in the USA recently. How did the show's go?
Frank Allen: Even better than expected. In fact the whole trip was a delight. I enjoy working abroad much more than holidaying and this one was so relaxing and so much fun that it was a shame that it was so short. But it bodes well for the future.
Which venues did you play & would you perform there again?
Frank Allen: We were actually there ostensibly for just one show, at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, which we’ve done twice before. Going to the States for a single show is not really an economically viable proposition but originally there were plans to tack it onto the end of a six week long package tour that was being set up. In the end the US promoters didn’t get their act together as quickly as we liked, bearing in mind that offers were coming in for dates in the UK and we pulled out. These people seem to think that you are just waiting around for them with nothing to do. But it’s never like that for us. Life has always been busier for us than most outfits and we are too old and too wise to be messed about.But we were still committed to the Mohegan. So we sorted out some promotional work with a view to the long term outlook. Radio interviews, promotional appearances around New York and Maryland and meetings with New York agents with the aim of setting up future work. I think it was successful. The Mohegan has changed since we were last there. It has doubled in size and now has a 10,000 seat arena and a glass walled monolith of a hotel thirty six storeys high.. It really is quite spectacular. The stage we play on is the Wolf Den, which is the more street cred rock and roll stage. Julie Grant (remember her from her recording days on Pye?) who was a girlfriend of mine in the 60s, has lived out there for a long time now and had booked us into the casino. She explained that Ronnie Spector had been there the night before and was great but that because of the holiday season, the Oz-fest nearby and various other things going on the crowd was a bit light. She was preparing us for the same. But in fact it was packed to capacity with others standing watching from the open sided walls around the room. The atmosphere was excellent and without doubt it was the best reception we`ve ever had there.
The conditions for artistes there are pretty marvellous and they have big names. Rod Stewart was due two days after us and Sting and Annie Lennox had appeared only days before. They treat you very well to say the least. You could eat your way to the size of a village during mealtimes and even then there is a fridge next to the dressing room filled with drinks and titbits. Cold meats and goodies like chocolate covered strawberries. On top of that there are hot chafing dishes with samosas, chicken satay and a whole lot of other stuff most of which we simply couldn`t eat.
After our sound check the stage manager suggested that it was inconvenient for us to walk through the room with our suits for the evenings performance, although in fact no one would have turned a hair, and that they would send a limo for us. At 7.15 a long black stretch limousine picked us up at the lobby and drove us around the outside of the hotel, into the underground car park and dropped us at the stage door, which took all of two minutes. That’s style. It could turn a lad’s head.
How was the whole experience for you as a band?
Frank Allen: It was a very pleasant experience indeed. We are a group who are very much enjoying each other’s company these days and we laughed from beginning to end. It was fun driving down the freeways, spotting the New York skyline coming into view. Just seeing the names of places in America is still a thrill. And there was time to do a bit of sight seeing. We did the usual visit to the guitar shops on 48th Street and shopped in Macy’s. And on the last day, with a five hour wait before check in at Newark Airport our backline roadie, John Semark, and I took the train into Manhattan for a bit more sightseeing. We got the E train down to Ground Zero. That was quite moving as you would expect. From there it’s just a short walk to Battery Park and a view of the Statue of Liberty. It was his first time in the States and he wanted to see everything. We managed a couple of drinks in a bar in Greenwich Village before we had to get back to Newark. We even passed by the Bitter End where we played in the mid 80s and checked out our name on the list of acts who have performed there.
We took both of our crew with us this time. Sometimes we use just one on foreign trips but it’s a bit more efficient with both and it’s only right that they should enjoy the perks of foreign travel when possible. These days we can afford to take on things simply because we will enjoy them and not because they will be financially important. Recently we flew to the Philippines for two shows and just loved every minute of it. It was a twenty hour flight each way but we all look very positively on such things and not one of us complained or found it a great ordeal. It was a privilege being able to travel to such an exciting place at someone else’s expense. You have to realise the value of these things and not play the self indulgent pop star game.
We played the Hard Rock Cafe and the Araneta Coliseum which was the venue we played back in 1966. That was the tour when Chris Curtis was behaving rather oddly. We went on to Australia to tour with the Stones and by the end of that he had decided he no longer wanted to be a Searcher. Such a shame. He was a nice guy, very funny and very talented. If he hadn’t left I would never have become a front man. That was his job which he did quite spectacularly. He was definitely a one off.
And when was the last time you performed in the USA with The Searchers?
Frank Allen: The last couple of times in the States were three and four years ago, both for shows at the Mohegan although on the second trip we also played the Resorts Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. That was fun because we had to catch an Amtrak train and these things feel quite adventurous.
Before that we had a few years from '81 to around '87 when we regularly popped over there for club dates. And of course the unforgettable British Invasion Tour of 1986 with Gerry & the Pacemakers, Freddie and the hilarious Dreamers who became our best pals and Chad and Jeremy. Six weeks of fun. We stopped for a while because we were inundated with work here and it was better paid too. On top of which we found American agencies very inefficient in setting up dates which rather belies the myth that they are all powerful whiz kids who can fix things with a snap of their fingers. Some are excellent but others are a bit of a waste of time.
The problem these days is that, particularly since September 11th, the problem of work visas and the expense and time involved tends to put you off. Work visas can take sixty to ninety days to process if you don’t fast track. And sponsors are necessary for the dates. It’s a complicated process. On top of that every member of the group, including the roadies, has to appear in person at the US Embassy in London for an interview which was something that was never necessary before. It’s an absolute pain. We almost pulled out because believe me this was not a money making exercise by any means. In the end we’re all very glad we went. We are now aware of all the logistics and problems with regard to how we will approach it in the future.
The package tour that didn’t happen would have meant that we would have had to pull out of a big charity event we had agreed to at Wentworth Golf Club. The Dreamscope Ball. It’s a British Airways charity supported by Cliff Richard and we were asked to do it a couple of years ago but we had already been engaged for a P&O cruise and so had to decline. Cliff was performing that year too and we hated turning it down because he’s been so good to us over the years having us on the Event at Wembley in '89 and the Millennium New Year’s Eve concert in Birmingham, not to mention recording a tribute segment for our video and writing a foreword to my book Travelling Man (a riveting read and still in print!!!).
Anyway when they asked us this time we said yes. And then it looked as though we might have to renege. Thank goodness we didn’t. Not only was Cliff going to get up and sing with us but we got an e-mail from Tony Blair, who was guest of honour, asking what chords he should learn. We suggested Johnny B Goode and had an amp and a Stratocaster set up for him. Unfortunately by the time we went on it was after midnight and he was flying to the NATO conference in Turkey the next day so after the auction and his speech his party had to leave. Shame. But we dragged Cliffie up to do Move It and then the aforementioned Johnny B Goode. And at the end of our set we called him and Cilla Black up to join us on Needles & Pins and When You Walk In The Room. A pretty memorable night.
On tour what are your favourite songs to play, and is it easy to choose a set list?
Frank Allen: A difficult one that. Of the hits it would be When You Walk In The Room I suppose. Outside of that it would tend to be something new that we’ve introduced. It’s always a boost for us to have fresh material to play although we never overbalance. We are very aware of the fact that we are a nostalgia act and proud of it.
Current favourite of the new additions would be Every River and a terrific new closer we’ve found called Seven Nights To Rock. The set list has a pattern which is always the nucleus and depends on whether it is a concert or a dance set. Sometimes we don’t know how it’s going to go until we hit the stage but we know each other so well that it only takes a glance and we all know it’s going to change and what it will change to. We are pretty loose and we are a totally live band so it’s no problem switching songs. If someone shouts out for something and we know it and feel it fits we can slip it in with no trouble. As I always say, we may be crap but we’re live crap and that’s important.
Describe a typical day in the life on the road as a touring band.
Frank Allen: Nothing to tell really. It’s the crew, Phil Hayes and John Semark, who have the most to do. They set off early and arrange all the gear mid afternoon followed by sound checks. Quite tedious and hard work but they seem to enjoy it and we try not to interfere with them. They are very efficient and are left to their own devices unless there is a particular problem. They are the nicest people you could wish to meet. Polite and helpful to everyone. If you can’t get on with them you can’t get on with anyone.
For the group it’s simply a matter of getting in the car and driving to a town. Not a lot you can say about that. We have nice vehicles to ride in these days. John McNally and I have matching C class Mercedes cars and Spencer at present is using a people carrier although you can never tell what he’ll have from one day to the next. Ed has an Audi but tends to go with Spencer. He doesn’t like driving. I’m not mad about it either but I much prefer to travel on my own. I find company very claustrophobic unless the whole group is together as we were in the States. And then it is just so much fun. That’s when I really do enjoy the company.
A typical day out there is driving to the next place, with food stops along the way, checking into the hotel and then checking out the town. Shopping if we have time, or simply looking around. There might be interviews to take care of. That tends to fall to John or myself. Quite often we try to grab an afternoon nap before getting ready for the show. On foreign trips, with no driving to consider, we take the chance to socialise and do a bit of moderate drinking in the hotel or wherever we can find. Sometimes drinking is less moderate than others but on the whole we are a pretty controlled bunch. This does not include McNally or Ed as neither of them drink.
I also read that The Searchers might be appearing in the line-up of the next Solid Silver 60's show is this true? (I enjoy going to see these shows).
Frank Allen: We certainly are. And it’s going to be huge. I understand that it starts on February 11th next year and will finish somewhere around the end of May/beginning of June. I do know the proposed line-up but I’d better not let you have it in case Flying Music have changed their minds.
Jo Rishton
With Frank Allen.
I’d like to thank Frank Allen for answering my questions on The Searchers USA trip and for giving us a fascinating account of The Searchers shows in New York, and made up the shows went well.
Many thanks to Wendy Burton from the Searchers Official web site for forwarding this interview to Frank Allen and for all the help and support she has given TBGOAO it’s sincerely appreciated.[/b]
During the Swinging 60’s The Searchers were top of the hit parade! The band released songs such as Sweets For My Sweets, When You Walk In The Room, Needles And Pins, Love Potion # 9, Where Have All The Flowers Gone, to list a few! The Searchers were one of the most popular bands from the sixties, and to this day they still continue to pack in the audiences wherever they play in the world thirty years on.
This article/interview has been approved by Frank Allen.
Jo Rishton
Official Site: www.the-searchers.co.uk
Please note all articles on this site are (C) to The Beat Goes On And On Fanzine and may not be used without permission.