The Second Take: The Complete RCA/UK Recordings (CD - 1999)

The Searchers: Mike Pender (vocals, guitar); Frank Allen (vocals, bass); John McNally (guitar); Billy Adamson (drums).

Recorded between 1971 and 1973. Includes liner notes by Colin Escott.

Digitally remastered by Eliot Goshman (May 1999, Taragon Sound & Video Studios, Deer Park, New York).

Includes liner notes by Spencer Leigh.

Personnel: Tony Jackson, Frank Allen, Mike Pender (vocals); Billy Adamson, John Blunt (drums).

Liner Note Author: Colin Escott.

Unknown Contributor Roles: Chris Curtis; John McNally.

Arranger: Johnny Arthey.

Subtitled THE COMPLETE RCA/UK RECORDINGS, the 1999 compilation SECOND TAKE is really for diehard Searchers fanatics. This is not to say that these 25 songs, recorded between 1971 and 1973, are in any way bad, but simply that neophytes are advised to start with one of the many compilations of the Liverpool quartet's classic '60s singles.

True to its name, most of SECOND TAKE consists of re-recordings of the Searchers' jangle-pop classics, with only minimal differences in arrangement and production. The songs are terrific, regardless. You can't go wrong with such tunes as "Sugar and Spice" and "Needles and Pins." While these tracks don't smack of blatant self-plagiarism (unlike Eric Burdon's endless rehashing of old Animals hits), such remakes are strictly for Searchers fans. The new material, on the other hand, prefigures the terrific power-pop records the Searchers would make in the early '80s for Sire Records. Just be warned that these are not the versions you remember from the radio. minimize