THE ANIMALS - "The House of the Rising Sun"

The Animals
"The House of the Rising Sun"
Single / B-side: "Talkin' 'bout You"
Released: 19 June 1964 (UK), August 1964 (US)
Album: The Animals (Released: September 1964)
Writer: Traditional, arranged by Alan Price
Label: Columbia Graphophone (UK), MGM (US)

"The House of the Rising Sun" is a traditional folk song, sometimes called "Rising Sun Blues". It tells of a life gone wrong in New Orleans. The most successful commercial version, recorded in 1964 by the English rock group The Animals, was a number one hit in the United Kingdom, the United States, Sweden, Finland, and Canada.

The Animals's single: "The House of the Rising Sun", 1964 (US version)

The Animals - "The House of the Rising Sun" (1964 vinyl 45 RPM)

The Animals' "House of the Rising Sun" was a trans-Atlantic hit: after having reached the top of the UK pop singles in July 1964, it topped the U.S. pop singles two months later in September, when it became the first British Invasion number one unconnected with The Beatles; it was the group's breakthrough hit in both countries and became their signature song. The song was less successful in Ireland, only peaking at #10 and dropping off the charts one week later. Ireland had the showband scene and did not consider rhythm and blues a very popular type of music. The song was also a hit in a number of other countries.

The Animals' rendering of the song is recognized as one of the classics of British pop music. Writer Lester Bangs labeled it "a brilliant rearrangement" and "a new standard rendition of an old standard composition."  It ranked number 122 on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. It is also one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. The RIAA placed it as number 240 on their Songs of the Century list. In 1999 it received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. It has long since become a staple of oldies and classic rock radio formats. A 2005 Five poll ranked it as Britains' fourth favourite number one song.

The Animals' album: The Animals (US front cover)

The Animals - The House of the Rising Sun (music video)

Historians have not been able to definitively identify The House Of The Rising Sun, but here are the two most popular theories:

- The song is about a brothel in New Orleans. "The House Of The Rising Sun" was named after Madame Marianne LeSoleil Levant (which means "Rising Sun" in French) and was open for business from 1862 (occupation by Union troops) until 1874, when it was closed due to complaints by neighbors. It was located at 826-830 St. Louis St.

- It's about a women's prison in New Orleans called the Orleans Parish women's prison, which had an entrance gate adorned with rising sun artwork. This would explain the "ball and chain" lyrics in the song.

Musicologists say that it is based on the tradition of broadside ballads such as The Unfortunate Rake of the 18th century and that English emigrants took the song to America where it was adapted to its later New Orleans setting. There is also a mentioning of a house-like pub called the "Rising Sun" in the classic "Black Beauty" tale, which was set in London, England and was published in 1877 which may or may not have influenced the song's 

An interview with Eric Burdon revealed that he first heard the song in a club in Newcastle, England, where it was sung by the Northumbrian folk singer Johnny Handle. The Animals were on tour with Chuck Berry and chose it because they wanted something distinctive to sing. This interview refutes assertions that the inspiration for their arrangement came from Bob Dylan. The band enjoyed a huge hit with the song, much to Dylan's chagrin when his version was referred to as a cover. The irony of this was not lost on Dave Van Ronk, who said the whole issue was a "tempest in a teapot," and that Dylan stopped playing the song after The Animals' hit because fans accused Dylan of plagiarism. Dylan has said he first heard The Animals' version on his car radio and "jumped out of his car seat" because he liked it so much.

The Animals' version transposes the narrative of the song from the point of view of a woman led into a life of degradation, to that of a man, whose father was now a gambler and drunkard, as opposed to the sweetheart in earlier versions.  The Animals version was one of the first songs to put a rock rhythm to a folk song, something Dylan did a lot soon after.

The Animals had begun featuring their arrangement of "House of the Rising Sun" during a joint concert tour with Chuck Berry, using it as their closing number to differentiate themselves from acts that always closed with straight rockers. It got a tremendous reaction from the audience, convincing initially reluctant producer Mickie Most that it had hit potential and between tour stops the group went to a small recording studio on Kingsway in London to capture it.

The Animals - "The House of the Rising Sun" (The Ed Sullivan Show 1964)

The Animals 1964

Recorded in just one take on 18 May 1964, it started with a famous electric guitar A minor chord arpeggio by Hilton Valentine. The performance took off with Burdon's lead vocal, which has been variously described as "howling," "soulful," and as "...deep and gravelly as the north-east English coal town of Newcastle that spawned him." Finally, Alan Price's pulsating organ part (played on a Vox Continental) completed the sound. Burdon later said, "We were looking for a song that would grab people's attention."

Line-up / Musicians:
Eric Burdon – vocals
Alan Price – keyboards
Hilton Valentine – guitar
Chas Chandler – bass
John Steel – drums

Links / Reviews:
wikipedia: The House of the Rising Sun
songfacts: The House of the Rising Sun by The Animals
allmusic: The Animals - The House of the Rising Sun
americanbluesscene: A Brief History of House of the Rising Sun