The Search For Myself - Review for SixtyPlusSurfers by Simon Fine

The Searchers was one of the most successful pop groups of the 1960s. The Merseyside band had a string of massive hits between 1963 and 1966 including classics such as Sweets for My Sweet, Sugar and Spice, Needles and Pins, Don't Throw Your Love Away and When You Walk in the Room. In 1964 The Searchers were voted second only to The Beatles in the New Musical Express poll for top vocal group.
 
Mike Pender was the lead singer and guitarist and founder member of the Searchers. After 1966, the music-buying public's tastes changed and, like many of their contemporaries, the hits dried up for the Searchers and they were less in demand for concert appearances.
 
Like many groups, their success was interspersed with changes in the line-up. Ultimately Mike Pender left The Searchers in 1985 which led to an acrimonious dispute between Mike and remaining Searchers John McNally and Frank Allen who had replaced original Searcher Tony Jackson in 1964. This led to a case in the High Court over the use of The Searchers' name. Mike Pender has continued to tour with his own band, Mike Pender's Searchers while McNally and Allen still tour as the Searchers.
 
In this autobiography, Mike recalls the history of the Searchers, from the early days in the clubs of Liverpool and Hamburg to his departure and the success of his own band as part of the current 60s music circuit.
 
The book is packed with fascinating anecdotes of the group on the road and in the studio, with many amusing references to other groups and performers of that era. The dispute between Mike and John/Frank means that there will be no reunion of the Searchers, which is sad for those of us who grew up with The Searchers.
 
As well as his musical career, Mike tells of his love for his 'one and only' girlfriend, to whom he is still married, their three children one of whom was killed in a tragic motorcycle accident. He also speaks of his passion for guitars and antique clocks.
 
The book contains many fabulous photos and illustrations from Mike's personal collection and is a must for fans of 60s music.
 
Mike Pender – The Search For Myself is published by Genuine Article Books in hardback and is available through Mike's website, Amazon and Waterstones
 
For more information about the book visit the website at www.mikependersearchers.co.uk