In Town – THE ROCKIN’ BERRIES***

He’s In Town/Let’s Try Again/Ich Liebe Dich/You Don’t Know What To Do/Brother Bill/Without Your Love/All Of Me/Crazy Country Hop/All I Want Is My Baby/Lonely Avenue/Shades Of Blue/Follow Me/Ain’t That Lovin’ You Baby/Funny How Love Can Be

Birmingham based beat group The Rockin' Berries enjoyed their sole album chart success with In Town. Includes the British No. 3 hit He's In Town but unfortunately omits their other melodic smash Poor Man's Son. (UK:15)

"As mid-60s hit singles like He's In Town and Poor Man’s Son proved, The Rockin’ Berries forte was vocal harmonies that crossed the best of The Beach Boys and The Four Seasons."

"I first noticed The Rockin' Berries a couple of years ago while sitting in a pub in London. A tape of oldies was being played in the background, and suddenly a song came up which I hadn't heard before. It was a great melody played by a band that sounded a little like The Searchers or The Beach Boys. I assumed the song was called He's In Town as that line was sung several times."

"The band was obviously very talented, playing tight, great vocals (harmonies and falsettos) and a crisp guitar sound, quite similar to The Searchers, and for the time quite good production."

"I assume that the reason that they did not get their big breakthrough was the great variety in their choice of material. Spanning from pure beat-pop through ballads to cabaret and comedy. Another problem was that the band did not write much of their material, and thus were very dependent on being given the right songs."

"The Rockin' Berries were, when they chose to be, a brilliant pop group. They could also sing great comic songs. Their problem was that their fans did not appreciate this mix. They had one other problem - they didn't write their own material so all their hits (and misses) were covers."

"Good, but not great album. Represents '60s sound well - better harmonies than many groups at the time. They have a raw energy which comes across in a vivid way. It seems that they were forced down the novelty route by their manager."