Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hi. I just picked up a copy of "The Searchers No.4". I noticed that this album has been praised here on the forum, and I agree; it is a good album, and it shows how the group's sound was evolving as time passed. The LP has brought a few questions to mind, and maybe you can help me answer them:

1) Who sings lead on "Be My Baby"? I still haven't gotten to the point where I can instantly recognize a Searchers lead singer--other than the unmistakable Tony Jackson--but that voice on "Be My Baby" is certainly not Mike or Chris. Is it Frank, perhaps?

2) The composer's credit for "You Can't Lie To A Liar" says "Curtis-Pender" on the LP, but "Hampton/Churchill" in the 30th Anniversary Collection. Considering that the LP lists the wrong title and composer for "Be My Baby," I'm inclined to believe the Anniversary Collection, but just to be sure..........

3) The front cover lists a song called "Can't You Just See Me" instead of "I'm Your Loving Man"--surely your usual record company error of the sixties, but did The Searchers ever record a song called "Can't You Just See Me"? I've never seen it in any discography.

4) Whatever happened to Terence J. Cantwell, president of The Society for the Preservation of The Searchers?

Thanks in advance for your help.

_I WAS WONDERING ABOUT TERANCE J. CANTWELL AND

THE SOCIETY FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE SEARCHERS

MYSELF . FOR YEARS THE ONLY INFORMATION I HAD ON

THE SEARCHERS CAME FROM LINER NOTES .

_FRANK ALLEN SINGS ON "BE MY BABY" IT CAN BE

DIFFICULT TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE AMONG MIKE ,

CHRIS , AND FRANK A LOT OF TIMES . I THANK GOD

FOR MICHAEL DENGER'S SITE TO TELL ME WHO SANG

WHAT , AND OTHER THINGS ABOUT THE GROUP .

I have one that's been driving me nuts for 25 years. I think "Goodnight, Baby" is a re-make of a hit (or near miss) by another group/singer, and I can't, for the life of me, remember who (or if I'm hallucinating). Any help?

S.J, if you want to hear the ultimate evolution of the Searchers' sound, try the "Sire Sessions" CD.

RJHC--Thanks for the info on Frank. I had a feeling he did the lead there. I agree with you on Mike Denger's site. It helps to know who sang what parts on which songs because then you can distinguish among the different lead singers. For example, I wasn't aware that it was Chris who sang the bridge on "Goodbye, My Love." I have always loved the part where he goes, "But I can't go on sharing you, sharing you"--it was a very distinctive sound. John--ah, the "Sire Sessions." Never heard any of that material, but I'll put that CD on my list. "Goodnight, Baby"....you've got me curious and I've never even heard the song! That's on "The New Searchers LP," right?

1. It is Frank - and he also sings lead on I'll Be Doggone. There's another version of this song on Take Me For... sung by Chris. This remained unreleased in Europe until the 90s.

2. You Can't Lie is written by the Searchers. I have a list from Frank indicating who wrote what (On my other computer). So I will write again about this subject as soon as I have checked it out.

Michael

SJ,

Right you are. "Goodnight Baby" is the last rack on Side Two of the Kapp issue.

S.J,

"Goodnight Baby" is the last track on Side Two of the Kapp LP (vinyl). It's also on the "Pye Anthology" 2 CD set, CD 2, track 6;and the "30th Anniversary Set" (which I've missplaced).

John--"Goodnight Baby" is not on my copy of the 30th Anniversary Collection. I have the US Collectables issue, as opposed to the UK Sequel issue, but I didn't think that made a difference.

Michael--Now I would not have guessed that Frank sang lead on "I'll Be Doggone." Thanks for all the info, and your great site as well.

I just realized that we have a John and a Mike here....how funny. Is there a Tony, a Frank, or a Chris who posts here regularly?

Okay, now, I've been looking at Searchers discographies and I noticed something....my copy of "No. 4" has "Can't You Just See Me" instead of "I'm Your Loving Man" listed on the front cover. But I recently noticed that one of the discographies out there has a picture of that album cover, with "I'm Your Loving Man" on it! Is my copy an early pressing.....a rare early pressing? Was the mistake later noticed and corrected? Or is my copy an unheard-of variation?

What about your copies of "No. 4"?

I've never heard of a Searchers track called "Can't You Just See Me". Sounds like a misprint to me, but unlikely to be of any great value, I would have thought.

I had the Searchers autograph my copy of Nr.4 back in 1985, when they were appearing at the Bitter End in New York. They were all startled to see the track "Can't You Just See Me", while they could not or would not answer whatever became of Terrence J. Cantwell. By the way, it is the Chris Curtis version of "I'll Be Doggone" that is featured on Nr.4--to this day my favorite Searchers album, US or UK.

Paul--you must be a mindreader. I had been listening closely to the different versions of "I'll Be Doggone" on the 30th anniversary collection and the verison on No. 4, and I was going to come here and point out that Chris, not Frank, sings "I'll Be Doggone" on No. 4. This is the version on disc three of the 30th anniversary collection; Frank's version is on disc two. Now, does that mean that Frank's version was not released in the US until that 3 disc set came out? Interesting that the two different versions were released in the different markets.

And Paul, thanks for the other No. 4 info as well--this whole thing with Terrence J. Cantwell is a real mystery!