The band has done more than a dozen major British tours with special guests including Spencer Davis, Stax, Booker T & The MGS, Blues Brothers guitar legend Steve Cropper, Maggie Bell (Stone The Crows) and the now deceased, great Mick Green (The Pirates, Van Morrison, Paul McCartney, Bryan Ferry). These shows were the final performances of a guitarist who is considered by many to be one of the most influential in music history.
Animals & Friends remains a leading rhythm & blues band that continues to command great international respect among their peers and fans of all ages. Their audiences respond instinctively and enthusiastically to iconic songs from The Animals' catalog, such as We Gotta Get Out Of This Place, Boom Boom, Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood, Baby, Let Me Take You Home, I Put A Spell On You and the worldwide No. 1 hit and million-selling anthem House of The Rising Sun.
THE HISTORY
In 1964, a wave of new, energetic rock 'n' roll flooded the youth of the world. At the crest of this wave were The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and, of course, The Animals. From the banks of the River Tyne, Northeast England brought its contribution: a unique blend of rhythm & blues that was eagerly embraced by the entire world.
In 1957, John Steel and co-founder Eric Burdon began their career in and around their hometown of Tyneside. They had no idea that a few years later they would be part of a group that would forever be counted among the all-time greats of British music - The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Yardbirds - and admired worldwide. Moreover, The Animals became the second British band (after The Beatles) to top the American charts with their million-selling anthem House of The Rising Sun.
Let's not forget that it was Bob Dylan's version of House of the Rising Sun that inspired this legendary band to record what history has proven to be the definitive version. There are even whispers that Dylan looked to their version as inspiration for his famous switch to electric music.
Bruce Springsteen recently revealed during a performance in the U.S. that not The Beatles or The Stones, but rather The Animals was his favorite British invasion band. "Their singles were the first full awareness of class differences I ever heard," he said. After playing a short clip of We Gotta Get Out Of This Place, Springsteen confessed, "That's every song I've ever written. Born To Run, Born In The USA, all of them."
After 50 years, the legend is still growing....
