"If you are expecting good copies of some of their classic hits, you need to go elsewhere. If you are a real fan of the band, some of the unreleased recordings and orignal recordings are worth the listen. A precursor to their Sire recordings which showed that the group still desire to stretch and grow when not laden with redoing old hits."
SEARCHERS EARLY 70s MATERIAL A REVELATION
ehfc@worldnet.att.net | Los Angeles, CA USA | 09/20/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The British Invasion's most underrated act, The Searchers signed to RCA Victor in the early 70s, primarily in order for the label to squeeze some easy dough out of the band by redoing their Pye(UK)/Kapp (US) hits. What the label failed to comprehend was that the band was on an upswing with its own material, writing some really fine stuff with obvious commercial potential. But the powers that be at RCA couldn't (or wouldn't) see the forest thru the trees. Yes, The Searchers still were recording some covers, such as "Solitaire" (before anyone else had), but self-penned songs such as "And a Button", "Sing Singer Sing" (a #1 in Malaysia; should have been #1 everywhere else, too), and "The World is Waiting for Tommorrow" showed that their songwriting skills were something to be reckoned with. But the label, sadly, didn't have confidence in the band, and they were dropped prematurely. This is evident in the number of unreleased tracks here, all of which are high caliber. Buy this for them, not for the re-recordings, which are OK but mostly lack the punch of the originals. Their hearts really weren't in re-visiting their past. They were forging ahead in fine form. It's a pity their record company could only look backwards."
A diamond in POP history The Searchers
Håkan Almroth | Kalmar, Småland Sweden | 02/11/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The Liverpool popgroups really showed how to make music.The sound is uncoverable,especially that which came from The Searchers.They gained really success and made many hits,but all tounderrated in compareness to The Beatles.Why they never spotted so many no 1 hits after 1966 has only reason:BAD PROMOTION & conservative DJ. Here in Sweden they dissapeard after 1967,sad to say. The Searchers are & where frontmens in sound and texts(=Dont throw your love away, an example.) they also wrote many chartoppers,why did they fail?????BAD PROMOTION. Who were the people behind??? PYE-records,the agent,???I dont know. Buy this record and find that they played todays sond&music 1972!! I have been listening to them since 1963.Håkan Almroth Kalmar Sweden email:hakan.almroth@netscape.net"
A Frustrating but Exciting Chapter in Searchers History!
Morten Vindberg | Denmark | 03/31/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"In 1971 the Searchers signed with the new British division of RCA along with another of the great bands of the sixties, the Kinks.
After their period with hits for Pye records had dried up around 1966, they changed to Liberty records, which did not help their career back on the right track. The Searchers still had ambitions to much more than just being a sixties revival band; unfortunately this was the idea RCA had with the band. The company wanted them to re-record their old Pye hit-songs. The Searchers did this in hope it would give them opportunities to record new material as well.
These re-recordings was released on a 1972 album called "Needles and Pins", often referred to as "Second Take". Though the re-recordings were quite well done, they did not have the magic of the originals. Fortunately two new songs also found way to the album. The great single Desdemona( a minor hits in the States ) and their own "Come on Back to Me".
These two tracks and most of the bonus-tracks make this CD a fine investment; and it certainly documents that RCA did a very poor job in re-lauching the Searchers.
The Searchers still wrote and recorded great material, but only few people noticed. "The World is Still Waiting for Tomorrow", the B-side to "Desdemona" is another fine example of this.
They also recorded a fine version of "Solitaire" for a 1973 single. The five last songs are previously unreleased, and were probably recorded for an aborted second RCA album. A big shame because "Bite it Deep" and "Don't Shut Me Out" are the Searchers at their very best; and quite close to the sound they found with their two Sire albums that were to come.
Conclusion; this is a frustrating chapter in Searchers history, but still an important and exciting one."