Rising to fame in the 60s, the Walker Brothers faced stiff competition from the Beatles and Elvis to capture the hearts of teenage girls.

John Walker anticipates a slightly different crowd when he performs, backed by Manchester band the Dakotas, at Fairfield Halls a week on Thursday.

“When we were first touring you couldn’t hear yourself sing," he recalls.

"There was just a crowd of excited young ladies – you could hear them at great volume.

“Now with the sound system on stage you can listen in detail to all that’s going on and it’s a real pleasure to perform.

“Of course the original fans are all grown up now, but it’s remarkable because we get quite a cross-section coming to see us, not just grown up fans from the 60s.”

Entering the music industry in that vibrant decade, Walker’s anecdotes include some high profile names.

“Jimi Hendrix was relatively unknown when we met him," he said.

"At the time we were putting a tour together.

“Gary came to me and said, there’s this guy from America playing at a tavern in London, we have to go and see him - and obviously we wanted him on our tour.

“That was a great line up.

"Engelbert Humperdinck was on the bill too.”

Walker first toured with the Dakotas in 2004 and the group have kept audiences happy by putting The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore on the bill.

“I love the UK, this is my second home," says John.

"I’m as comfortable here as anywhere in the world and we’re really looking forward to being in Croydon again.

“There are four Walker Brothers hits that we always do and we’ll be playing other songs that I recorded as a solo artist from 1968 to date.”

Walker has made a mark on music in lesser known ways as well.

“When I was a teenager I was teaching David Marks, who became a member of the Beach Boys, to play guitar," he says.

"Across the street were the Wilson brothers and finally they came over and said teach us too.

“So I had David and Carl Wilson as guitar students for about a year and a half.”

John Walker & The Dakotas, Fairfield Halls, Park Lane, May 6, 7.30pm, £20. Call 020 8688 9291 or visit fairfield.co.uk