A British Musical Invasion

The British are coming to Rahway, and they’re fully armed with guitars, drums and a hit parade of 1960s pop.

The British Invasion 50th Anniversary Tour, which hits the Union County Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, Feb. 25, features a bevy of 1960s English luminaries including Peter Asher (Peter & Gordon), Denny Laine (the Moody Blues, Wings), Chad & Jeremy, Billy J. Kramer, Mike Pender’s Searchers, and Terry Sylvester of the Hollies. Between them, the artists scored 40 Top 40 hits worldwide.

“This tour is all about a lot of good music and having a good time,” Asher said by phone. “These old guys can still sing!” (Asher also serves as emcee for the evening).

The Beatles’ arrival in America on Feb. 7, 1964, officially marked the migration of rock-and-roll from across the pond to these shores. But there were plenty of additional British bands making waves in the early and mid-1960s. Peter & Gordon’s 1964 hit, “A World Without Love,” reached No. 1 in both the U.K. and the U.S. During the same year, Chad & Jeremy scored a U.S. Top 10 smash with “A Summer Song.”

The Searchers are best known for their No. 1 hit version of “Needles and Pins.” Kramer’s chart-toppers included “Bad to Me” and “Little Children.” Sylvester replaced Graham Nash in The Hollies in 1969 and sang on the popular single, “Sorry Suzanne.”

“People like to be reminded of those songs,” Asher said. “We’ll see people in the audience sometimes crying or laughing becasue a song is so visceral and has such an intense connection to people’s lives.”

The British Invasion concert is also a multi-media event, with a video of rarely seen footage and memorabilia playing before the concert and during intermission.

Asher has had a diverse and distinguished career. In addition to performing with Peter & Gordon - Gordon Waller died in 2009 - Asher was an executive at Apple Records, the record label formed by The Beatles.

At Apple, Asher discovered, signed and produced legendary singer-songwriter James Taylor. He later formed his own management company, handling a roster that included Linda Ronstadt, Joni Mitchell and Carole King. He is also a record producer.

Asher worked closely with Paul McCartney at Apple. The Peter & Gordon breakthrough hit, “A World Without Love,” was written by McCartney. The Beatle dated Asher’s sister, Jane, in the mid-1960s.

“Paul and I became friends and for a couple of years he stayed in the guest room in my family’s home,” Asher said.

He said the audience on Wednesday can expect to hear “A World Without Love” as well as additional Peter & Gordon hits including “I Go to Pieces” and “Nobody I Know.”

“Each artist will play 4 or 5 songs and we have an amazing [backing] band,” Asher said.
“We’re revisiting a period of great music, optimism and good-natured faith in the future,” he said. “If we can bring some of that back then it’s all the better.

IF YOU GO: The British Invasion 50th Anniversary Tour. 8 p.m. Wednesday Feb. 25. $35, $50, $75. Union County Performing Arts Center, 1601 Irving St., Rahway. 732-499-8226 or www.ucpac.org.