| Gerry & The Pacemakers Biography. Gerry Marsden - guitar/vocals (born September 24th 1942, Liverpool) Leslie Maguire - piano (born December 27yh 1941, Wallasey) Les Chadwick bass guitar (born May 11th 1943, Liverpool) Freddie Marsden - drums (born November 23rd 1940, Liverpool) Gerry Marsden first began playing guitar in a skiffle group in the Fifties. He progressed through several rock groups, often including his brother Freddie on drums. Eventually he formed a group of his own, The Mars-Bars. With addition of bassist Chadwick in 1959 they became The Pacemakers. They turned professional in 1960 and McGuire was drafted in from the Undertakers to replace original pianist Arthur Mack.Like many of the Liverpool groups they were offered work in Hamburg, and enjoyed a successful two-month residency at the Top Ten Club. Returning to England, they signed a management deal with Brian Epstein in June 1962. They were quickly offered a contract with Columbia and placed under the wing of producer George Martin.Unprecedented at the time (and for many years afterwards), Gerry & The Pacemakers' first three singles all went to the No. 1 spot in the UK charts. "How Do You Do It", which had been rejected by the Beatles, - "I Like It", especially written for them by Mitch Murray, and "You'll Never Walk Alone", from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "Carousel". "You'll Never Walk Alone" entered the realms of British folklore when it was adopted as an anthem by soccer supporters the length and breadth of the nation.The next release was "I'm The One". Written by Gerry himself, it broke the run of chart toppers, but still made the No. 2 spot.During the early part of 1964 the group toured extensively, taking in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and the United States where they made an appearance on the prestigious "Ed Sullivan Show".They were also featured in a film titled after one of their songs "Ferry Cross The Mersey" (1965). But by then their star was waning. Although they continued to sell records in ever decreasing numbers, it became apparent that their future lay in family entertainment, a process which culminated in Gerry abandoning rock 'n' roll to become a children's television and cabaret performer. |