The Animals make it to No.1 with “The House Of The Rising Sun” in 1964
Based on an old folk song, it was the first UK No.1 to have a playing time of more than four minutes
The Animals make it to No.1 with “The House Of The Rising Sun” in 1964
Based on a traditional folk song of uncertain authorship, “The House Of The Rising Sun” by The Animals was in the U.S the first British Invasion number one unconnected with the Beatles.First released on June 19, 1964, it became The Animals signature song, while some speculate that the melody of it goes back to a 17th-century folk song titled “Lord Barnard and Little Musgrave”, also known as “Matty Groves, it was The Animals version that made it popular. The Animals’ version of “The House Of The Rising Sun” transposes the original narrative of the folk version 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, rather than the sweetheart. It is considered to be “first folk rock hit” and reportedly inspired Bob Dylan to go electric. Recorded in just one take on May 18, 1964, the song opens with a now-famous electric guitar A minor chord arpeggio by Hilton Valentine and is driven by Alan Price’s pulsating organ part played on a Vox Continental, which hugely influenced the 1960’s Rock sound. In the U.K, the song was released completely as a single, running for 4.29 minutes, making it the first U.K no.1 having that lenght, in the U.S however it was cut to 2.59. It went No.1 in the U.K on July 13, 1964. Also a huge hit worldwide, “The House Of The Rising Sun” brought notoriety to The Animals, who followed up with other hits such as “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”, “We Gotta Get Out Of This Place” or “It’s My Life”, but never with the same impact as “The House Of The Rising Sun”.
Watch the original promo film for “The House Of The Rising Sun” by The Animals
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