John McNally (born 30 August 1941) is an English guitarist.[1] He was a member of The Searchers, a band he formed in 1959, who were a big part of the Mersey sound in the early 1960s. He was the longest serving member of the group, touring in the band from 1957, until their retirement in 2019, as well as their 2023 farewell tour.
McNally was born in Walton, Liverpool. His love for music first came as a child, when his older brother, Frank, would bring back records from the United States, whilst working out at sea in the Navy:[2]
First of all he’d bring country stuff like Eddy Arnold and Hank Williams, the next minute it was Johnny Cash, then Gene Vincent, Elvis, and Eddie Cochran.
John first learned guitar as a child when Georgie McGee, a friend of his older brother, taught him a few guitar chords.
In 1957, after being suggested to do so by friend Tony West (1937-2010), McNally formed a band. The band started off playing skiffle and, after an everlasting line-up which resulted in just McNally as the sole founding member still in the band, broke off into a new band in 1959, containing McNally, Mike Pendergast (Mike Pender), Tony Jackson, Chris Crummey (Chris Curtis), and William Francis Beck (Johnny Sandon). The new band was named the Searchers, named after the 1956 film of the same name. Sandon left in 1960, and the four remaining members proceeded to tour in Hamburg, Germany.
Everyone was being signed up (to a record label) and we didn’t want to miss the boat. We wanted to make a demo at the Iron Door (club), organising a company to nip in with all the gear. So we did 11 tracks and he sent them all around the companies, and luckily Tony Hatch at Pye Records picked up on it. We were on our way back to the Star-Club to do another stint when he asked us to come and record Sweets for my Sweet, which we did ahead of the ferry.
In the bands earlier years, McNally rarely sang lead or co-lead on their releases or performances, with singing mainly done by guitarist Mike Pender, bassists Tony Jackson and Frank Allen, or drummer Chris Curtis, however, John did slightly contribute, singing the line "Now looky here" in their version of Don and Dewey's Farmer John, from their debut album Meet The Searchers. In the following years going into the 20th century, John has since contributed to lead vocals on stage, such as singing lead on their live performances of Mr. Tambourine Man.
Unlike the other members of The Searchers who played in bands, and even formed one of their own, McNally has never recorded with any other act, than the Searchers.
Following the departures of Tony Jackson in August 1964, Chris Curtis in mid 1966, and Mike Pender in December 1985, McNally was the last original member of the classic 1960s line-up who remained in the band. Shortly before the band were set to perform in the Sixties Gold Tour in September 2017, McNally suffered a stroke and took a three-month break from touring.[4]
McNally remained with the band over 60 years, touring alongside Frank Allen, who replaced Tony Jackson in August 1964, until their last concert on 31 March 2019.[5] It was announced on the band's website in 2021 that they would undertake a further farewell tour in 2023.[6] The tour contained McNally, Allen, Spencer James (who had replaced Pender in 1985), and new member Richie Burns, and started on 13 April, at the Wimborne Tivoli in Wimborne, Dorset, and is set to end on 17 June 2023, at the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool, Merseyside, where the band originated from.[7]
In his late teens, Buddy Holly was a great influence on John, and when Holly performed at the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool on 29 March 1958, McNally had plans on going to see him, but was unable to due to his job; Mike Pender stated that he saw Holly at the performance, but does not remember a lot about it.[2]Bert Weedon'sPlay in a Day Guide to Modern Guitar Playing book has also been said to be an influence on John.[11]
In 2006, McNally received a telephone call from a band in Manchester, who asked him to meet him; upon going to see the band, he was surprised by the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Nils Lofgren, who had all claimed that McNally and the Searchers had inspired and influenced them.[12]
Personal life
McNally attended St Mary's College. John McNally has been married to Mary McNally since 1964.[13] Prior to working full time as a musician, McNally worked at the Alfred Holt’s Blue Funnel line, where his brother also worked, doing office work and delivering mail.[2] Since he was a child, John has enjoyed watching and playing football.[2]
I never felt the need to move out of Merseyside, I didn't like the London scene in the 1960s so I never stayed. A couple of the lads (Searchers members) did like it and went the wrong way. They got involved with drugs and stuff.
Health
As a child, McNally fell ill with Tuberculosis, and learned the guitar around the time he had fallen ill, often saying that hadn't he contracted TB, he wouldn't have bothered learning the guitar.[14] Shortly before the band were set to perform in the Sixties Gold Tour in September 2017, McNally suffered a stroke and took a three-month break from touring.[4]
Gerry and the Pacemakers, were a British beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein, and were recorded by George Martin. Their early successes alongside the Beatles were instrumental in popularizing the Merseybeat sound and launching the wider British beat boom of the mid-1960s.
The Merseybeats are an English band that emerged from the Liverpool Merseybeat scene in the early 1960s, performing at the Cavern Club along with the Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers, and other similar artists.
Jangle or jingle-jangle is a sound typically characterized by undistorted, treble-heavy electric guitars played in a droning chordal style. The sound is mainly associated with pop music as well as 1960s guitar bands, folk rock, and 1980s indie music. It is sometimes classed as its own subgenre, jangle pop. Music critics use the term to suggest guitar pop that evokes a bright mood.
Chris Curtis was an English drummer and singer. He was best known for being with the 1960s beat band The Searchers. He originated the concept behind Deep Purple and formed the band in its original incarnation of 'Roundabout'.
The Searchers are an English Merseybeat group who emerged during the British Invasion of the 1960s. The band's hits include a remake of the Drifters' 1961 hit, "Sweets for My Sweet"; "Sugar and Spice" ; remakes of Jackie DeShannon's "Needles and Pins" and "When You Walk in the Room"; a cover of the Orlons' "Don't Throw Your Love Away"; and a cover of the Clovers' "Love Potion No. 9". With the Swinging Blue Jeans, the Searchers tied for being the second group from Liverpool, after the Beatles, to have a hit in the US when their "Needles and Pins" and the Swinging Blue Jeans' "Hippy Hippy Shake" both reached the Hot 100 on 7 March 1964.
Anthony Paul Jackson was a British musician. He was known for being a member of the Merseybeat band The Searchers.
Michael John Prendergast, known professionally as Mike Pender, is an English singer and guitarist. He was an original founding member of Merseybeat group the Searchers. He is best known as the lead vocalist on many hit singles by the Searchers, including the song "Needles and Pins" and "What Have They Done to the Rain?".
Mike Pender's Searchers contains lead singer and guitarist Mike Pender, formerly of The Searchers. Pender left The Searchers in December 1985 hoping to explore new musical directions while preserving the classic 12-string guitar style that he helped to popularise. Mike Pender's Searchers showcase the classic hits from Pender's many years with The Searchers in addition to his all-new material and a blend of popular rock standards by classic artists such as Buddy Holly, The Drifters and Roy Orbison.
Paul Reynolds is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the new wave band A Flock of Seagulls. AllMusic writer Tom Demalon praised Reynolds for his unique guitar style, which set his band apart from other synth-heavy acts of the time.
Leslie Charles Maguire was an English musician and retired who was a principal member of the Merseybeat band Gerry and the Pacemakers from 1961 to 1966.
Sugar and Spice is the second studio album by the British rock band The Searchers released in 1963. This album features the band's second big hit single "Sugar and Spice". With two successful Top 5 albums in three months, and two other Top 3 hit singles at the time, the group proved to be the strongest to emerge from Liverpool next to the Beatles and Gerry and the Pacemakers. They solidified their position further with another album track, "Ain't That Just Like Me", which was later released in the US and hit #61 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Anthony "Tony" Crane MBE is an English musician, who is best known as the co-founder of the Merseybeats. Tony has toured with the Merseybeats since its inception in 1961.
Faron's Flamingos were an English Merseybeat band. Despite their lack of commercial success, they remain an important part of Merseybeat history and have the distinction of being the first major example of the "Mersey Motown" sound with their release of "Do You Love Me".
Searchers is the seventh studio album by the English rock band The Searchers, sometimes referred to as a comeback album. It is the Searchers' first album of original songs since their 1965 Take Me for What I'm Worth and the first which entered Billboard Top 200 since The Searchers No. 4. Album contained songs originally written by Tom Petty, Bob Dylan or The Records and featured guest appearances by Bob Jackson, ex-Badfinger, on keyboards.
The Iron Door Sessions is a compilation live album by English rock band The Searchers. It contains acetate recordings of them performing at Iron Door Club in 1963, few months before their breakthrough in the UK. The Searchers re-recorded some of these tracks in the studio later and issued on their albums or singles. Traditional Maggie May is the same song made famous by The Beatles.
BBC Sessions is a 2004 compilation double album featuring performances by English band The Searchers. All songs were originally broadcast on various BBC Light Programme radio shows from 1964 to 1967. The two-CD set consists of many of the band's hits or album tracks, 30 songs, including six songs which had never been recorded by them in the studio and 12 tracks of dialogue, mainly handled by drummer and band's spokesman Chris Curtis. The songs are essentially "live in studio" performances.
The Searchers 30th Anniversary Collection 1962–1992 is a compilation album of songs by the English rock band The Searchers released by Sequel Records. This collection including all of their A-sides released on Pye Records, nearly all B-sides and many of their album tracks. The third disc featured rarities, plus previously unreleased material intended for unfinished LP from 1983.
"He’s Got No Love" is a song written by Chris Curtis and Mike Pender and released by British pop rock group The Searchers. The song was released as a single in July 1965 by Pye Records in the United Kingdom and later on Kapp Records in the United States. It became a hit in 1965 in both countries.
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