The Animals are an English rock band formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1962. Their original lineup consisted of singer Eric Burdon, guitarist Hilton Valentine, bass guitarist Chas Chandler, keyboardist Alan Price, and drummer John Steel. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound, they balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm-and-blues-oriented album material, and were part of the British Invasion of the US.
The Animals rose to prominence with their signature song and transatlantic number-one hit single "The House of the Rising Sun", and continued this success with hits such as "I'm Crying", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", "Bring It On Home to Me", "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", "It's My Life", "Inside-Looking Out", "Don't Bring Me Down", and "See See Rider". Price and Steel departed in mid-1965 and early 1966, respectively, while poor business management led the band to split up by the end of 1966. Burdon then assembled a mostly new lineup of musicians under the name Eric Burdon and the Animals; the much-changed act moved to California and achieved commercial success as a psychedelic and progressive rock band, with hits such as "Help Me Girl", "When I Was Young", "San Franciscan Nights", "Good Times", "Monterey", and "Sky Pilot", before disbanding at the end of the decade.
The original lineup of Burdon, Price, Chandler, Valentine, and Steel reunited for a one-off benefit concert in Newcastle in 1968. They later released and toured in support of two reunion albums during 1975–1977 and 1983. Altogether, the band has had 10 top-20 hits in both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100. The original lineup was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.
There are currently two incarnations of the Animals in co-existence: Eric Burdon and the Animals with original singer Eric Burdon, and Animals and Friends with original drummer John Steel.
History The Animals (1962–1966) The Animals formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1962, when Eric Burdon joined the Alan Price Rhythm and Blues Combo. The original lineup was Burdon (vocals), Price (organ and keyboards), Hilton Valentine (guitar), Bryan "Chas" Chandler (bass), and John Steel (drums).The Animals: Biography AllMusic Retrieved 28 February 2011.
Originally formed as the Alan Price Combo, they changed their name to the Animals. They were supposedly dubbed "animals" because of their wild stage act, and the name stuck.Making Time The Animals. Retrieved 2 November 2007. In a 2013 interview, Burdon denied this, stating that the name was a tribute to a friend known as "Animal" Hogg. In a 2021 interview, Steel stated that the name was given to them by Graham Bond.
The Animals performed fiery versions of the staple rhythm and blues repertoire, covering songs by artists such as Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, and Nina Simone. Signed to EMI's Columbia label, their first single was "Baby Let Me Take You Home", a rock-based rewrite of the standard "Baby Let Me Follow You Down".
In June 1964, the transatlantic number-one hit "The House of the Rising Sun" was released. Burdon's vocals and the particular arrangement, featuring Price's haunting organ riffs, created perhaps the first folk-rock hit.Marsh, Dave The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made, NAL, 1989. Entry #91.Ralph McLean, "Stories Behind the Song: 'House of the Rising Sun'", BBC, undated. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
In October 1964, the Animals visited New York City for concert dates and an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. They were transported from the airport into Manhattan in a motorcade consisting of Sunbeam Alpine Series IV top-down convertibles with fashion models riding along. The Animals sang "I'm Crying" and "The House of the Rising Sun". In December, the MGM film Get Yourself a College Girl was released, featuring the Animals and the Dave Clark Five. The Animals sang the Chuck Berry song "Around and Around" in the film.Get Yourself a College Girl (1964), Tcm.com, Retrieved 28 February 2011
By May 1965, the group was starting to feel internal pressures. Price left because of personal and musical differences, as well as his fear of flying while on tour. He went on to a successful career as a solo artist and with the Alan Price Set. Mick Gallagher filled in for Price on keyboards for a short time until Dave Rowberry replaced Gallagher. Rowberry was on hand for the hit songs "We Gotta Get Out of This Place" and "It's My Life".
Many of the Animals' hits originated from Brill Building songwriters recruited by Mickie Most, but the group, and Burdon in particular, felt this to be too creatively restrictive. As 1965 ended, the group signed a new deal with their American label MGM Records for the US and Canada, and switched to Decca Records for the rest of the world. They also ended their association with Most and began to work with MGM Records producer Tom Wilson, who allowed them more artistic freedom.Animals to Switch to MGM Billboard (25 September 1965). Retrieved 11 September 2011. In early 1966, MGM collected the band's hits on The Best of The Animals, and it became their best-selling album in the US. In February 1966, Steel left and was replaced by Barry Jenkins. A leftover rendition of Goffin–King's "Don't Bring Me Down" was the group's last hit as the Animals. The next single, "See See Rider", was credited to Eric Burdon and the Animals. By September 1966, the original incarnation of the group had split up. Their last batch of recordings was released on the album Animalism in November 1966.
Burdon began work on a solo album called Eric Is Here, which also featured his UK number-14 solo hit single "Help Me, Girl", which he heavily promoted on TV shows such as Ready Steady Go! and Top of the Pops in late 1966. Eric Is Here was Burdon's final release for Decca Records.
By this time, the Animals' business affairs "were in a total shambles" according to Chandler, and the group disbanded.Goodman, Fred (2015), Allen Klein: The Man Who Bailed Out the Beatles, Made the Stones, and Transformed Rock & Roll, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, New York, 978-0-547-89686-1, pp. 66–68.
Eric Burdon and The Animals (1966–1969)
A group with Burdon, Jenkins, and new sidemen John Weider (guitar/violin/bass), Vic Briggs (guitar/piano), and Danny McCulloch (bass) was formed under the name Eric Burdon and Animals (or sometimes Eric Burdon and the New Animals) in December 1966, and changed direction. The new lineup pursued a fusion of progressive rock, psychedelic, soul, and folk music that was far removed from their original blues-oriented sound.
Early performances by this group did not include any of the hits for which the original group had become known.T. Curtis Forbes, 'Animals' tamed for concert here—they add a violin. Newport Daily News, 21 February 1967, via Ross Hanna and Corry Arnold (2010), Eric Burdon and The Animals. Retrieved 14 March 2017. Some of the new Animals' hits included "San Franciscan Nights", "Monterey", and "Sky Pilot". Their sound was much heavier than that of the original group, with Burdon screaming more and louder on live versions of "Paint It Black" and "Hey Gyp". By 1968, they had developed a more experimental sound on songs such as "We Love You Lil" and the 19-minute "New York 1963–America 1968" from the album Every One of Us.
Zoot Money was added to the lineup in April 1968, initially as organist/pianist only, but upon McCulloch's departure, he also took on bass and occasional lead vocals.
In July 1968, Andy Summers (later the guitarist for the Police) replaced Briggs. Both Money and Summers were formerly of British psychedelic outfit Dantalian's Chariot, and much of this new lineup's set was composed of Dantalian's Chariot songs, which caught Burdon's interest.Summers, Andy (2006). One Train Later. New York: St. Martin's Press. . Page 123. Because of Money's multi-instrumental load, in live settings, bass was played alternately by Weider and Summers.Sutcliffe, Phil & Fielder, Hugh (1981). L'Historia Bandido. London and New York: Proteus Books. . Page 47–48.
By December 1968, this incarnation of the Animals had dissolved, but their double album Love Is was released internationally, featuring the singles "Ring of Fire" and "River Deep – Mountain High".
Numerous reasons have been cited for the breakup, the most famous of which involved an aborted Japanese tour. The tour had been scheduled for September 1968, but was delayed until November after difficulty obtaining visas. Only a few dates into the tour, the promoters (whom the band did not know were yakuza) kidnapped the band's manager and threatened him at gunpoint to write an IOU for $25,000 to cover losses incurred by the tour's delay. Correctly surmising that his captors could not read English, he added a note to the IOU that it was written under duress.Summers, Andy (2006). One Train Later. New York: St. Martin's Press. . Page 134–135. The yakuza released him, but warned that the band and he would have to leave Japan the next day or be killed. The Animals promptly fled the country, leaving all of their tour equipment behind. Money and Summers each pursued solo careers, Weider signed up with Family, and Burdon joined forces with a funk/R&B/rock group from Long Beach, California, called War.
Reunions of the Animals The original Animals lineup of Burdon, Price, Valentine, Chandler, and Steel reunited for a benefit concert in Newcastle in December 1968, and reformed in late 1975 to record again. Burdon later said that nobody understood why they had agreed to this short reunion. They embarked on a brief tour in 1976 and shot videos for their new songs such as "Lonely Avenue" and "Please Send Me Someone to Love". They released an album in 1977 that was aptly titled Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted. The album received critical praise. Burdon and Valentine also recorded some demonstration tapes at that time that were never released. On 12 December 1982, Burdon performed with Price and a complete lineup, foreshadowing future events.
All five original band members reunited in 1983 for the album Ark and a world concert tour, supplemented by Zoot Money on keyboards, Nippy Noya on percussion, Steve Gregory on saxophone, and Steve Grant on guitar. The first single, "The Night", reached number 48 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The band released a second single called "Love Is for All Time", which did not chart.
Songs performed on the Ark tour included some from the 1960s, but most were from the band's contemporary repertoire, such as "Heart Attack", "No More Elmore" (both released a year earlier by Burdon), "Oh Lucky Man" (from the 1973 soundtrack album to O Lucky Man! by Price), "It's Too Late", "Tango", and "Young Girls" (later released on Burdon's compilation album The Night). Their Wembley Arena concert on 31 December 1983 (supporting the Police) was released on the Rip It to Shreds live album in 1984 after the Animals had disbanded again. Their 29 November 1983 concert at the Royal Oak Theatre in Royal Oak, Michigan, was released on 27 February 2008 as Last Live Show. A film about the reunion tour was shot but never released.
Chandler died from an aneurysm in 1996, putting an end to any possibility of another reunion of the full original lineup.
Later incarnations
Since the 1990s, several groups have called themselves the Animals in part: In the 1990s, Danny McCulloch, from the later-1960s Animals, released several albums as the Animals. Presented as Animals best of/greatest hits collections, these albums contained covers of the Animals' hits, as well as new songs written by McCulloch.