The New Seekers

The New Seekers are a British-based pop group, formed in 1969 by Keith Potger after the break-up of his group, The Seekers. The idea was that the New Seekers would appeal to the same market as the original Seekers, but their music had rock as well as folk influences. They achieved worldwide success in the early 1970s.

The group was formed after the disbanding of the successful 1960s Australian band The Seekers. Keith Potger, a member of The Seekers, put together The New Seekers in 1969, featuring Laurie Heath, Chris Barrington, Marty Kristian, Eve Graham, and Sally Graham. Potger himself also performed and recorded with the group. After one single release, the line-up was reworked in 1970 to Eve Graham, Lyn Paul, Marty Kristian, Peter Doyle, and Paul Layton. This line-up found instant success with their debut release, a cover of Melanie Safka's What Have They Done to My Song Ma, which became a top 20 hit in the US and a minor one in the UK.

Over the next year, the group released a number of singles to little recognition, but it was in June 1971 that they released their breakthrough hit, Never Ending Song of Love. The song became a big hit in the UK.

Early in 1972, the group were chosen to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest. They entered with the song Beg, Steal or Borrow, which was chosen by viewers of BBC1's It's Cliff Richard! show from six songs performed by the group on a weekly basis. They went on to finish in second place at the Eurovision Song Contest in Edinburgh, where the group received the biggest cheer of the night from the partisan audience. The song was a No.2 hit in the UK and sold well in Europe. Around this time, they also charted highly with their most successful album, We'd Like to Teach the World to Sing, which reached No.2.

The following year the group saw a slight dip, although they did score a top 20 hit with an adaptation of Pinball Wizard. Member Peter Doyle left the group this year and was replaced by Peter Oliver. The New Seekers had enjoyed a number of hits in the US by this time and toured there with Liza Minnelli in 1973. However, despite this success, the group announced their split amid much publicity. With allegations that the members were receiving little financial reward for their success, The New Seekers officially disbanded in May 1974.

In 1976, The New Seekers reformed with Kathy Ann Rae and Danny Finn replacing Lyn Paul and Peter Oliver. Although they never replicated their earlier success, the group did manage to score a few hits. This line up remained intact until 1979, when Danny Finn and Eve Graham left the group to marry. In 1980, the group attempted to represent the UK again in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song Tell Me, but it was disqualified shortly before the British heats were televised due to the fact the group had already been promoting the single.

Today's New Seekers are still popular, especially in Australia.