PERFORMER: Frank Allen (left) has been with The Searchers since 1964 and is returning to Rotorua next month. PHOTO/SUPPLIED
Frank Allen is a bit of a name-dropper, but that's what happens when you launch your career at the height of musical stardom in the wake of The Beatles.
The 70-year-old front man for The Searchers struggled to pick just one artist he would like to cover when they next
play in Rotorua next month.
"Firstly I'd pick Dionne Warwick, as we worked with her on our first tour of the United States, but we also worked with Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye ... many more. I could pick 40 or 50 songs from that era."
Allen has been lead singer of the group, best known for hits Sweets for My Sweet, Needles and Pins and Sugar and Spice, since 1964. They take to the stage at the Rotorua Civic Theatre on Friday, August 1, and Allen promises the audience two hours of entertainment including their hits, B-sides and album tracks.
He's 70 now, but still feels as young as when The Searchers first found fame. They were exciting times, he said, and this tour celebrates 50 years since their first visit to New Zealand.
