Gerry and the Pacemakers from that show have now been included on the album: 'Gerry and the Pacemakers Live at the BBC', released on Parlophone Records in October 2018. Since then Gerry has occasionally toured with various line-ups of the band on the oldies circuit. Drummer Freddie Marsden died on 9 December 2006 in Southport, age 66. On 15 March 2017 Gerry Marsden collapsed onstage at a Gerry and the Pacemakers concert in Newport, South Wales, UK, and was helped offstage after telling the audience he was scheduled to undergo knee surgery the next week. Marsden did not return, and a spokesperson said only
Gerry and the Pacemakers famous songs, "Ferry Cross the Mersey", refers to the River Mersey that flows past Liverpool. Gerry Marsden formed the group in 1959 with his brother Fred, Les Chadwick, and Arthur McMahon. They rivalled the Beatles early in their career, playing in the same areas of Hamburg, Germany and Liverpool. McMahon (known as Arthur Mack) was replaced on piano by Les Maguire around 1961. They are known to have rehearsed at Cammell Laird shipping yard at Birkenhead. The group's original name was Gerry Marsden and the Mars Bars, but they were forced to change this when the Mars Company, producers of