Brotherly love
SOME people over a certain age may recall the package tours of the 1960s when a number of top acts would descend upon a venue and you'd have a night to remember.
Well, thanks to some tour promoters, those days are still here, and The Solid Silver 60s Show is back again!
Now in its 24th year, this tour – which brings together a wealth of talent from that decade on one bill – has been doing the rounds from February to the end of May.
That's 55 concerts in just three months.
The line-up this year is pretty special with a quintet of Sixties legends performing their best-loved hits.
Along for the third time on the SS60s is John Walker.
As one of the Walker Brothers, John (real name John Maus – the Brothers weren't related), along with Gary and Scott, took Britain by storm in 1965 when they came over from the US and scored with a string of hits.
Their hit repertoire included two chart-toppers with Make It Easy On Yourself and The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore.
After that, they broke up and all three had hits in their own right, John charting with Annabella in the summer of 1967.
Proving that you can't have too much of a good thing, the trio reconvened in the following decade and had the classic hit No Regrets.
It seemed that they were more successful in the UK than in their own country, a fact that John finds mystifying.
"We were just starting to be successful in America," he told me from his home in California.
"We'd just started a weekly TV show when we moved to Britain. The records were instant hits, I couldn't figure it out, and I still can't."
Before the Walker Brothers happened, John had another claim to fame.
"Yes, I lived near David Marks who was one of the original Beach Boys and was giving him guitar lessons. One day, his neighbour came in during a lesson and said that he was starting in a band and would be playing guitar.
"Then he asked me if I would give him lessons as well. It was Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys."
John will be treating us to mixture of music in his particular spot in the show.
"That's right," he explained, "I do four Walker Brothers hits (they had 10) and then a couple of songs from my solo CDs and some rock'n'roll."
He won't be on stage alone though, he has a special backing band.
"Yes, The Dakotas," he said. "They'll have their own spot performing songs like Little Children and Do You Want To Know A Secret, and then they'll back both myself and Wayne Fontana."
Wayne's hits include The Game Of Love and Pamela Pamela, and he has been a popular feature on many Sixties nostalgia tours.
John then mentioned the rehearsals.
"I've worked with The Dakotas before and they're a great bunch of guys.
"I'll be coming over early for the tour to get some extra rehearsal time with them. Then," he added with a laugh, "we'll pray a lot."
John always loves playing in England.
"I'm used to it," he said. "It's crazy, 'cos I've got so many friends here and my son and his family also. It's like 'home week', and I seem to be more comfortable in England."
He still keeps in touch with his former band-mates Gary and Scott.
"We keep in touch as much as we can and I may see them on the tour as they are both in Britain. In fact, Gary and I are writing a book together about the Walker Brothers."
Completing the line-up for the tour are two of the decade's top groups.
The Merseybeats had over half a dozen hits between 1963 and 1967 including the classic Wishin' and Hopin', I Think Of You (which sold a million copies) and I Love You Yes I Do.
Topping the bill and on the tour for the 11th time are The Searchers, still with original guitarist John McNally and bassist/singer since 1964, Frank Allen.
The Searchers had a trio of No.1s with Sweets For My Sweet, Don't Throw Your Love Away and the perennial Needles And Pins.
A superlative collection of Sixties greats – and you can take them home with you as well because Universal Music have just released Solid Silver Sixties – The Album.
John Walker is enthusiastic about the show. "We all have a great time on stage and it shows. Anyone who comes is gonna be in for a good time," he said. "The show is really, really good."
The Solid Silver Sixties Show will be at The Grand Theatre, Leeds on Sunday, May 24. Tickets are available on 0870 121 4901.
www.john-walker.org
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Sunday 12 February 2012
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