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THE ANIMALS (ARTIST BIOGRAPHY)
The Animals were a british rock and roll
band of the 1960s, formed in Newcastle They were part of
the british invasion, being one of the most popular
bands of their era. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound
and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by
their signature songs House of the Rising Sun and We
Gotta Get Out of This Place, the band underwent numerous
personnel changes and emerged as an exponent of
psychedelic music before dissolving at the end of the
decade.
History
First incarnation
Formed in Newcastle-upon-Tyne during 1962 and 1963 when
Burdon joined the existing Alan Price Rhythm and Blues
Combo, the original line-up comprised Eric Burdon (vocals),
Alan Price (organ and keyboards), Hilton Valentine (guitar),
(John Steel (drums), and Bryan “Chas” Chandler (bass).
The Animals’ moderate success in their hometown and a
connection with The Yardbirds manager Giorgio Gomelsky
motivated them to move to London in 1964, in time to be
grouped with the British Invasion. They performed fiery
versions of the staple rhythm and blues repertoire
(Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, Nina Simone, etc). Signed
to the Columbia Graphophone subsidiary of EMI, a rocking
version of the standard “Baby Let Me Follow You Down” (retitled
Baby Let Me Take You Home) was their first UK hit
single.
It was followed in June 1964 by the huge transatlantic
hit “House of the Rising Sun”. Burdon’s howling vocals
and the dramatic arrangement created arguably the first
folk rock hit. Whether the arrangement was inspired by
Bob Dylan’s version of the song (which in turn was
inspired by folk singer Dave Van Ronk) or by blues
singer Josh White’s (who recorded it twice in 1944 and
1949) or by singer/pianist Nina Simone (who recorded it
in 1962 on At The Village Gate, predating Dylan’s
interpretation) remains a subject of dispute, as does
whether all five Animals deserved credit for the
arrangement and not just Price.
The Animals’ two-year chart career, masterminded by
producer Mickie Most, featured singles that were
intense, gritty pop covers such as Sam Cooke’s “Bring It
on Home to Me” and the Nina Simone number “Don’t Let Me
Be Misunderstood”. In contrast their album tracks stayed
with rhythm and blues, with Hooker’s “Boom Boom” and Ray
Charles’ “I Believe to My Soul” being notable examples.
Burdon’s powerful, deep voice and the use of keyboards
as much or more than guitars were two elements that made
the Animals’ sound stand out.
By May 1965 the group was starting to feel internal
pressures. Price left due to personal and musical
differences as well as a fear of flying on tour; he went
on to a successful career as a solo artist and with the
Alan Price Set. Mickey Gallagher filled in for him on
keyboards for a spell, until Dave Rowberry replaced him
and was on hand for the hit working-class anthems “We
Gotta Get Out of this Place” and “It’s My Life”. Around
that time, an Animals Big Band even made a one-time
appearance.
Many of The Animals’ hits had come from Brill Building
songwriters recruited by Most; the group, and Burdon in
particular, felt this was too restrictive. As 1965 ended
the group switched to Decca Records and producer Tom
Wilson, who gave them more artistic freedom. In early
1966 MGM Records, their American label, collected their
hits onto The Best of The Animals; it became their
best-selling album in the U.S. In February 1966 Steel
left and was replaced by Barry Jenkins; a leftover cover
of Goffin-King’s “Don’t Bring Me Down” and the powerful
traditional “See See Rider” were the last hits as The
Animals.
By this time their business affairs “were in a total
shambles,” according to Chandler (who would go on to
manage Jimi Hendrix), and the group disbanded. Even by
the standards of the day, when artists tended to be
financially naďve, the Animals made very little money
from their successes, eventually claiming mismanagement
and theft on the part of their manager Mike Jeffery.
Second incarnation
A group with Burdon, Jenkins, and new sidemen John
Weider (guitar/violin/bass), Vic Briggs alias Antion (guitar/piano),
and Danny McCulloch (bass) was formed under the name
Eric Burdon and the New Animals (or sometimes just Eric
Burdon & The Animals) in October 1966, and changed
direction. The hard-driving blues was transformed into
Burdon’s version of psychedelia, as the former
heavy-drinking Geordie (who later said he could never
get used to Newcastle, “where the rain comes at you
sideways”) relocated to California and became a
spokesman for the Love Generation.
Some of this group’s hits included “San Franciscan
Nights”, “Monterey” (a tribute to the 1967 Monterey Pop
Festival), and the anti-war “Sky Pilot”. There were
further changes to this line-up: George Bruno (a/k/a
Zoot Money, keyboards) was added in April 1968, and in
July 1968 Andy Summers [sic] (guitar)—later of The
Police—replaced Briggs and McCulloch.
By 1969 these Animals had dissolved, and Eric Burdon
joined forces with a Latin group from Long Beach,
California called War.
The first hit under Eric Burdon & War was the funky/chill-out
song Spill The Wine. The Group with 8 members disbanded
in July 1971.
Later incarnations
The original Animals line-up of Burdon, Price,
Valentine, Chandler, and Steel briefly reunited for a
benefit concert in Newcastle in 1968, for an album in
1977 and again for an album and tour (supplemented by
Zoot Money on keyboards and Steve Grant on guitar) in
1983. Chandler died in 1996.
In the 2000s Burdon has toured with a new set of
musicians under the name “Eric Burdon and the Animals”.
Periodically during the 1990s and 2000s Valentine,
Steel, and Dave Rowberry toured under the name “(Hilton
Valentine’s) The Animals” and Valentine and Steel under
the name “Animals II”. Rowberry died in 2003. As of 2005
“Animals & Friends” was also active, consisting of Steel
and Mickey Gallagher; this group frequently play gigs on
a Color Line ship that travels between Scandinavia and
Germany.
Legacy
The original Animals were inducted into the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Their influence can be heard
in artists as varied as The Doors, Bruce Springsteen,
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Canned Heat, David
Johansen, Joe Cocker, Fine Young Cannibals and many many
more. |
