GIG NUMBER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY
Who
Opening up the multi-storey car park next door to the venue is a stroke of genius and, thanks to the prompt restaurant service, we reached the theatre around 7pm and took to our seats after a brief wander, making everyone stand up to let us past. There were more young people than I expected but most were clearly accompanying the old, and I really do wonder who made their greatest hits album such a chart success. Gifts for (grand)parents I presume? My main thought wasn't the show ahead but the fact I'd seen Button Moon and Harry Corbett playing the same room, admittedly quite a while ago! There was no support band and The Searchers were playing a long set with an extended interlude, which is a snazzy idea some modern bands could learn from! The lights went down and a rotating light was shined in our eyes to indicate show time and there fortunately was some applause, unlike the pitiful silent opening that had greeted Dave Berry in the same room (from probably the same people). There was a cheesy intro commentary bit saying "please welcome The Searchers" and they briefly teased us with When You Walk In The Room before launching into the inevitable Sweets For My Sweet.
This was followed with a nice but unnecessary cover version of Mr. Tambourine Man, which proved they can make their guitars "shimmer" quite nicely but that their voices are too uneven to harmonise properly, with Spencer Davis overwhelming the other guys. Also I was left feeling that the sound quality had been so much better four years before at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, but it still wasn't bad. Sugar And Spice had been criminally omitted last time so it was nice to hear it but less impressive when they cut it short to launch into a medley including Da Doo Ron Ron, which was a bit silly considering it would had taken only 150 seconds to have played Sugar And Spice in its entirety! Their banter was undoubtedly recycled but amusing and was a core part of the show, including regular references to playing Switzerland and stopping off at the Dignitas clinic, plus Niagara Falls being an impressive water feature. It was slightly let down by the fact you couldn't hear John's witty comebacks, or probably have understood his accent anyway, but tales of seeing Cliff Richard live and touring Australia were a pleasant indicator that the band were comfortable in front of this audience. Perhaps a bit too comfortable, lending it all a slightly Butlinsesque air.
They also said that if we had flash cameras then taking photos was mandatory (strangely enough, no-one did) as they felt a bit lacking in attention from the paparazzi. Most of the chat came from Frank and some of it definitely was top drawer, such as implying that the hand gestures for a hit hadn't generated much crowd participation from German fans, possibly due to its similarity to the Nazi salute! They also encouraged us to join in, pointing out that, unlike guys like Pavarotti, they don't mind us singing along! The drummer, who incidentally is married to Jane McDonald, looked rather pleased with himself, surveying this banter and smiling along as if he hadn't heard it all before, and it definitely was a golden moment when he was introduced as a Boris Johnson tribute act. Frank Allen spent much of the set blinking uncomfortably, probably due to the bright lights, and he read out a few birthday messages, plus the singer was berated for wearing his tie in a "most unSearcher-like fashion"! They were in the same smart suits as usual and, as much as maintaining an image is nice, never changing it over their entire careers is perhaps a bit much. For example, The Beach Boys had a better image but they eventually moved on. I doubt even Mike Love would be shameless enough to perform in the blue and white shirts anymore!
I suppose I should talk more about the music, but there's not too much to say. They played absolutely everything, which is fantastic but, with nothing to gripe about, you do almost perversely come away disappointed! What Have You Done To The Rain was nice but some of the "aaahs" of the old folks before they played some rare oldies was a bit too much to take. They also paid tribute to Roy Orbison and teased us with the intro of Pretty Woman before playing a song by him I didn't know instead. They also delved down some unexpected avenues by playing the biggest hit of Spencer Davis's previous band which, unsurprisingly, I'd never heard before! Love Potion No. 9 was as good as I'd expected and Goodbye My Love sounded rather strong and the first half of the set ended with their wildly popular cover of Seven Nights To Rock. Everyone seemed to be familiar with it, suggesting they'd all seen The Searchers before and my very quick research suggests it's a Bruce Springsteen song. Unsurprisingly he hadn't played it at Glastonbury a few months before, the self-indulgent tosser!
During the 20-minute interlude I enjoyed a white Magnum and we thankfully got to stretch our legs before taking our seats again. By the way, our seats were on "eye level" with the stage and slap bang in the middle, so were definitely the best in the house. The band came back onstage with a brief reprise of Seven Nights To Rock which was a nice trick, making it seem like they'd never left us. The fact they'd changed into slightly darker shirts however was testament that they had though. They covered Twist And Shout, drawing attention to how much better The Beatles had "nailed it", before admitting their strategy of seeking out flop American songs and reworking them, the prime example being the short and very sweet Don't Throw Your Love Away. Surprisingly their selections from the late 1970s and 1989 were of a similar standard to their earlier hits, making you think how cruel it was that they'd been ignored but people do have a tendency to ignore good stuff! Their best cover was inevitably Young Girl, which definitely seems to have become a highlight of their set, causing those down the front rows to get up and boogie in their typically embarrassing manner.
Needles & Pins was nice enough but all I can think about is how The Ramones had done it so much better and the band thanked their two support staff, although the fact all their instruments had been set up in advance made me wonder if the band did it mostly for themselves? It was inevitable that When You Walk In The Room was the one which got most people on their feet and it definitely is a 60s classic and they waved their goodbyes as Land Of Hope And Glory started up, a moment so patriotic and English it almost seemed racist to hear it in the modern world! I distinctly recall hearing that The Searchers had criticised Status Quo for playing far less shows yet being much more popular so it was surprising when they returned for a romp through Rockin' All Over The World with John taking lead vocals. It made me think that I'd be seeing the real thing just three weeks later (or at least I would had done if they hadn't cancelled!), and the Quo are much better at rocking out with their guitars! They faked their ending again with another burst of Land Of Hope And Glory and it was the exact opposite of Super Furry Animals and their strict no encores policy. I can barely remember it now but I think they also played a rendition of You'll Never Walk Alone too for God's sake!
They finished off with a medley of their six biggest hits which segued nicely into each other and should have been an amazing thing but their eagerness to please in repeating their best songs came across as slightly shameless. They certainly didn't leave us begging for more as there simply was nothing else you could have asked for, so there's very little point in going to watch them again! We rose to our feet for a final round of applause and a third attempt at Land Of Hope And Glory and we made our way as quickly as we could out of the fire exit, not bothering to meet the band who were signing and selling CDs in the main foyer. Despite being tired I drafted some of the review upon my return home, but did run out of time which is why I've probably forgotten some details! I doubt The Searchers could have been better so the fact I wasn't overly impressed is a hugely positive sign that music is simply better nowadays. When I say nowadays I obviously mean a few years ago as 2008/9 hasn't been the best time for new acts, and my choice of gigs hasn't been the most forward thinking. I still try to adopt a positive attitude to new music - in fact I'm listening to the UK Top 40 as I write this - but I have a strongly developed sense of how good The Searchers are in the grand scheme of things: Below "my" bands, but they're still not too shabby!
Mark: 7.0/10
The Searchers
Where
Cannock Prince Of Wales Centre
When
25th October 2009
Price
£17.00 (FREE for me!)
Who with
Dad
Position
Seated, towards the back
Comments
It almost goes without saying that this was my worst gig of the year, but my Dad offered to pay and it was a night out so it would have been rude to refuse. Nevertheless I'd maintained a ridiculously high gigging standard for 2009 and, although not on the same level, this concert wasn't a waste of time. At the Solid Silver 60s show I'd only seen The Searchers play a short greatest hits set so a fuller viewing for free was worth it. Plus I'd heard the songs in quite a bit more depth and researching bands more carefully before I see them is a lesson I've learned well. I'd still say Love Potion No. 9 is the only track I love but the quality of their b-sides and later tunes was better than I'd expected. I'd spent the week before listening to their songs and the weekend itself quite lazily, in fact writing up the SFA gig review you can see above this one. We set out to Cannock for a fairly early tea as these seated shows tend to start promptly. We enjoyed a crazily huge Indian meal with the largest prawn puree I'd ever seen followed by a large biriyani and the inevitable keema naan. As if that wasn't enough, it came with an unannounced vegetable sauce contained entire potatoes, and if I'd had known we'd be fed so well I'd had starved myself beforehand! It was still a fantastically cheap meal, so much so that I had no qualms in offering to pay.
