The New Seekers

The New Seekers
The New Seekers in 1972
Background information
Origin	England, United Kingdom
Genres	Pop, folk, gospel, rock, MOR, country
Years active	1969–1974, 1976–present
Labels	Phillips, Polydor, CBS, EMI, Universal, Elektra (US), MGM (US)
Associated acts	The Seekers
Members	Paul Layton Donna Jones Francine Rees Mick Flinn Mark Hankins
Past members	Eve Graham Lyn Paul Marty Kristian Peter Doyle Peter Oliver Keith Potger Sally Graham Laurie Heath Chris Barrington Kathy Ann Rae Nicola Kerr Danny Finn Caitriona Walsh Vikki James Brian Engel Vivien Banks

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 with hits including "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", "You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me" and "Beg, Steal or Borrow".

The group was formed after the disbanding of the successful 1960s Australian group 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 (no relation to Eve Graham) who was a member of The Young Generation. 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" (titled in the U.S. as "Look What They've Done To My Song, Ma"), which became a top 20 hit in the US, #3 in Canada, 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 first of many hit songs to be produced by David Mackay, and a cover of the American hit by Delaney & Bonnie). The song became a big hit in the UK, spending five weeks at No.2 in the singles chart and was one of the biggest selling singles of the year. Towards the end of 1971, the group recorded an adaptation of the Coca-Cola jingle, "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke", which had gained much interest. Reworked as "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", the song became a worldwide success. It made No.1 in the UK for four weeks and sold just under a million copies. In the US, the song was also a hit, reaching No.7, and in Canada it reached no.3. It became a No.1 hit in many other countries and is the most recognised song by the group.