Seekers member brings ‘world of his own’ to the Capital

THE Seekers’ own vocalist and guitarist Keith Potger will visit Bendigo to present his celebration of the folk-pop group and its many achievements, including becoming the first Australian outfit to have a number one record in America.

He will also perform a few of his solo ballads and some personal favourite covers from the 60s to the 80s.

Harking back to the early 60s, Potger said a little-known fact is that The Seekers began with four male members.

“We had Athol Guy, Bruce Woodley, myself, and the fourth member was Ken Ray, who had a marvelous high voice,” he said.

“Around the latter part of 1962 Ken met this wonderful lady and they decided to get married, so he decided he better not mix marriage with being in a group.

“It was all very amicable, so no problem there, but instead of replacing him with a bloke, we went looking around for a girl.

“Judy Durham, as she was known in those days, was making quite a name for herself, singing in jazz bands and such like in Melbourne.

“So on Monday, the 3rd of December in 1962, Judith Durham came and sat with Bruce and Athol and me and we started singing, and it was as straightforward as that.”

He said the ensuing worldwide success “felt fantastic, of course”.

“It affected us all the same way because we all respected each other and got on with each other, and we enjoyed celebrating our successes together,” Potger said.

“Everything seemed to happen pretty much organically and we were very happy to be part of it.”

Potger said he’s looking forward to bringing the show to Bendigo.

“It’s been many years since I’ve been there,” he said.

“It’ll be a real mixture of Seekers classics and some stories from my time in the music business, and also some of my original material just to show people that I can write songs when I’m in the mood to.

“If you want to be entertained and relive some of the memories you have of the Seekers, then come along because that’s what you’ll get.”

Keith Potger presents his matinee performance of Celebrating the Seekers – 60 Years on Wednesday 13 May at the Capital Theatre.

Tickets can be purchased at Gotix.