Eric Burdon

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Eric Burdon
Birth name Eric Victor Burdon
Born 11 May 1941 (1941-05-11) (age 67)
Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne
Genre(s) Blues rock, Psychedelic rock, Rock and roll, Funk, Blues, Soul, Latin, Brown-eyed soul, Jazz fusion, Reggae
Years active 1960s - present
Associated acts The Animals
War
Website ericburdon.com
myspace.com/ericburdon

Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941, Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne) was the singer of The Animals and War before becoming a solo artist.

Contents

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[edit] Career

He was a founding member and vocalist of the Animals, a band originally formed in Newcastle in the early 1960s. Considered one of the leading bands of the "British Invasion", The Animals garnered a worldwide following. Along with The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Dave Clark Five, and Gerry & The Pacemakers, they introduced British music and fashion to an entire generation in an explosion of outspoken music and attitude, on and off the stage. Burdon sang on such Animal classics as "The House of the Rising Sun", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", "Bring It On Home to Me", "See See Rider", and "We've Gotta Get Out of This Place". The Animals combined the traditional blues with rock to create a unique sound.

Original Animals members keyboardist Alan Price and drummer John Steel quit, and were replaced by Dave Rowberry and Barry Jenkins respectively. By 1966, the other members had left, except for Barry Jenkins, and the band reformed as Eric Burdon and the Animals, which featured future Family member John Weider. This incarnation had hits with songs such as "When I Was Young", "San Franciscan Nights", "Sky Pilot", and "Monterey".

This ensemble lasted until 1969, going through several line-up changes, and changing the name from Eric Burdon and the Animals to Eric Burdon and the New Animals.

Burdon is claimed by some to be the 'Eggman' from The Beatles song "I Am The Walrus". The reason for this is that Burdon was known as 'Eggs' to his friends, originating from his fondness for breaking eggs over naked girls. Burdon's biography mentions such an affair taking place in the presence of John Lennon, who shouted "Go on, go get it, Eggman ..."[1]

When the New Animals disbanded, Burdon joined forces with funky California jam band War. The resulting album, Eric Burdon Declares "War" yielded the classics "Spill the Wine" and "Tobacco Road". A second Burdon and War album, a two-disc set, The Black-Man's Burdon, was released later in 1970.

Burdon received a phone call on 18 September 1970 from Monika Dannemann, informing him that her boyfriend Jimi Hendrix was not waking up and was unresponsive. He told her to call him an ambulance.

In 1971, Burdon began a solo career. Around this time, he also recorded the album Guilty! (later released on CD as Black & White Blues) with the blues shouter Jimmy Witherspoon and also featuring Ike White & the San Quentin Prison Band.

Burdon rejoined briefly with the other original Animals in 1976 and 1983, but neither union lasted, although the 1983 reunion yielded the single "The Night".

He has led a number of groups named Eric Burdon Band or some variation thereof, with constantly changing personnel. His popularity has remained stronger in continental Europe than in the UK or the U.S. Today he continues to record and tour either on his own, or in front of yet another version of "Eric Burdon and the Animals". In 1990, a re-formed "Eric Burdon and the Animals" recorded a cover of the Merle Travis single "Sixteen Tons" for the film Joe Versus the Volcano, which played over the opening credits of the film.

As of 2007 toured as the headlining act of the "Hippiefest" lineup, produced and hosted by Country Joe McDonald.

On 8 February 2008 an announcement was made about Burdon and War reuniting for the first time in 37 years, to perform a concert at London's Royal Albert Hall on 21 April 2008. The concert will coincide with a major reissue campaign courtesy of the UK division of Rhino Records, who will be releasing all of War's albums including Eric Burdon Declares "War" and The Black-Man's Burdon.

On 7 June 2008, Burdon performed at the memorial service of Bo Diddley in Gainesville, FL and stated, "Bo's one of the guys who invented rock 'n' roll, He took two cultures . . . country and western and the kind of blues that used to be known as 'race music' -- and put them together".[2]

[edit] Album discography

The Animals

Eric Burdon and The (New) Animals

Eric Burdon and War

Others

  • 1971: Guilty
  • 1973: Best of The Animals (Compilation)
  • 1974: Sun Secrets (The Eric Burdon Band)
  • 1975: Stop (The Eric Burdon Band)
  • 1977: Survivor
  • 1979: Black & White Blues (Re-release of Guilty)
  • 1980: Darkness Darkness
  • 1980: The Last Drive
  • 1982: Comeback
  • 1984: Power Company
  • 1985: That's Live (Live)
  • 1987: The Singles Plus (Compilation)
  • 1988: I Used To Be An Animal
  • 1988: Wicked Man
  • 1988: The Best of The Animals (Compilation)
  • 1989: The EP Collection (Compilation)
  • 1990: The Complete Animals (Compilation)
  • 1990: Inside Looking Out: The 1965-1966 Sessions (Compilation)
  • 1992: The Unreleased Eric Burdon
  • 1994: Crawling King Snake (Re-release of Comeback)
  • 1994: The Singles Plus (Compilation)
  • 1995: Animalism [Bonus Hits] (Compilation)
  • 1997: The Best of The Animals (Compilation)
  • 1997: The Official Live Bootleg (Live)
  • 1997: Soldier of Fortune
  • 1997: I'm Ready: The Unreleased Eric Burdon #2
  • 1998: Live At The Roxy (Live)
  • 1998: The Official Live Bootleg #2 (Live)
  • 2000: The Official Live Bootleg 2000 (Live)
  • 2001: The Night (Compilation)
  • 2003: Don't Bring Me Down: The Decca Years (Compilation)
  • 2003: A's, B's & EP's (Compilation)
  • 2003: Absolute Animals 1964-1968 (Compilation)
  • 2004: Gratefully Dead 1964-1968 (Compilation)
  • 2004: Retrospective (Compilation)
  • 2004: My Secret Life
  • 2005: Athens Traffic Live (Live)
  • 2005: Rumble In London (with The Yardbirds) (Live)
  • 2006: Soul of a Man
  • 2006: Tobacco Road (Compilation)
  • 2006: Wild & Wicked
  • 2007: The Hits (Compilation)
  • 2008: Mirage
  • 2008: No More War
  • 2008: Live in Hollywood
  • 2008: Live in New Orleans
  • 2008: Ultimate Rarities Vol. 1
  • 2008: Ultimate Rarities Vol. 2

[edit] Filmography

  • 1964: Get yourself a College Girl
  • 1964: Whole Lotta Shakin'
  • 1965: Pop Gear
  • 1965: The Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood
  • 1967: It's a Bikini World
  • 1967: Tonite Let's make all Love in London
  • 1968: All my Loving
  • 1968: Monterey Pop
  • 1973: Mirage (never filmed)
  • 1979: 11th Victim
  • 1980: Gibbi - Westgermany
  • 1982: Comeback
  • 1991: The Doors
  • 1999: Snow on New Year's Eve
  • 2001: Plaster Caster
  • 2001: Screamin' Jay Hawkins: I put a Spell on me
  • 2007: The Blue Hour

[edit] Concert films

  • 1976: Rockpalast
  • 1982: Rockpalast 1982
  • 1983: GasTank
  • 1991: Finally... (Documentary)
  • 1999: Live at the Coach House
  • 2000: The Eric Burdon Band Live
  • 2001: The British Invasion Returns
  • 2003: When I was Young (Released only in Japan)
  • 2003: Yes, you can go Home
  • 2004: Rockpalast 2004 (Private)
  • 2008: In Concert - The Best Of

[edit] TV shows

[edit] Bootlegs

  • The Deluxe BBC Files
  • Mirage (up to be released 2008 in Japan)
  • Unreleased Project #2
  • Unreleased Masters and Alternative Takes (up to be released 2008 in Japan)
  • War (Live from '71)
  • Searching for a Brand New Day (Live from '86)
  • When I Was Young (Live from Oct. 1974)
  • Live at the Marquee Club 1967

[edit] Festivals

[edit] Books

  • Burdon, Eric. I Used to Be an Animal, but I'm All Right Now. Faber and Faber, 1986. ISBN 0-571-13492-0.
  • Burdon, Eric (with J. Marshall Craig). Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood: A Memoir. Thunder's Mouth Press, 2001. ISBN 1-56025-330-4.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Miles, Barry (1997). Paul McCartney - Many Years From Now. Secker & Warburg, p. 357. ISBN 0-436-28022-1. 
  2. ^ "Bo Diddley." Calgary Herald (June 8, 2008) ( http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=55a1635a-bd00-4662-9dfd-26fe5f5eb6e6 accessed 8 June 2008)

[edit] External links