Burdon Animals

Sun Secrets is nothing for Eric Burdon (Animals) to be ashamed of artistically. With approximately 24 minutes per side, Sun Secrets is a far cry from The Black Man's Burdon and the rhythms of the group War. As Mountain guitarist Leslie West would do a year after this when he formed the Leslie West Band, Burdon beats him to the punch with a self-titled group that rocks - rocks harder than the Animals, rocks harder than War. It's innovative reinvention, and quite pleasing, not only to hear the three-piece unit blitzing behind the singer as he reinterprets Animals classics like "When I Was Young," "It's My Life," or the Hendrix/Cream riff-laden version of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," but on the instrumental title track as well…

The Animals are an English rhythm and blues and rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature song and transatlantic No. 1 hit single, "House of the Rising Sun", as well as by hits such as "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", "It's My Life", "I'm Crying" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". The band balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm and blues-orientated album material. They were known in the US as part of the British Invasion.

Five CD set featuring all of the albums recorded by Eric Burdon & the Animals for the MGM Records label issued between October 1967 and December 1968. Eric Burdon & the Animals came together in December 1966 when the original Animals had ground to a halt. Vocalist Eric Burdon recruited Vic Briggs (guitar, piano), John Weider (guitar, violin, bass), Danny McCulloch (bass) and Barry Jenkins (drums) to form a new group which changed direction away from raucous rhythm and blues and embraced psychedelic rock and the influences of the emerging counter-culture…

Esoteric Recordings is pleased to announce the release of a new boxed set featuring all of the albums recorded by Eric Burdon & The Animals for the MGM Records label issued between October 1967 and December 1968.
The set features the albums “Wind Of Change” (both stereo and mono versions), “The Twain Shall Meet”, “Everyone Of Us” and “Love Is”, all newly re-mastered from the original master tapes, along with ten bonus tracks drawn from the band’s single releases, including the classic B-sides A Girl Named Sandoz, Ain’t That So and Gratefully Dead, all remastered from recently located original master tapes. Also included is an illustrated booklet with new essay and a replica poster. “When I Was Young: The MGM Recordings” is a fine tribute to the music of Eric Burdon & the Animals…

Esoteric Recordings is pleased to announce the release of a new boxed set featuring all of the albums recorded by Eric Burdon & The Animals for the MGM Records label issued between October 1967 and December 1968.
The set features the albums “Wind Of Change” (both stereo and mono versions), “The Twain Shall Meet”, “Everyone Of Us” and “Love Is”, all newly re-mastered from the original master tapes, along with ten bonus tracks drawn from the band’s single releases, including the classic B-sides A Girl Named Sandoz, Ain’t That So and Gratefully Dead, all remastered from recently located original master tapes. Also included is an illustrated booklet with new essay and a replica poster. “When I Was Young: The MGM Recordings” is a fine tribute to the music of Eric Burdon & the Animals…

Recorded in 1973-1974, Mirage was one of the finest albums of the 1970s by Animals front man Eric Burdon. The soundtrack for a proposed United Artists film with the Vietnam War as its subject matter, the music recorded by Burdon such as Dragon Lady, River of Blood, Mind Arc and Driftin / Geronimos Last Stand was some of the finest of his career. Exploring the genres of rock, psychedelia and African beats, the sessions also saw Burdon record the song Mirage, written by Jimi Hendrix on the night he died. Sadly, first the film and latterly a proposed double album release by Atlantic Records were shelved and the Mirage album and sessions were consigned to the archives. This CD release on Esoteric Recordings makes for the album's CD debut in the UK.

Recorded in 1973-1974, Mirage was one of the finest albums of the 1970s by Animals front man Eric Burdon. The soundtrack for a proposed United Artists film with the Vietnam War as its subject matter, the music recorded by Burdon such as Dragon Lady, River of Blood, Mind Arc and Driftin / Geronimos Last Stand was some of the finest of his career. Exploring the genres of rock, psychedelia and African beats, the sessions also saw Burdon record the song Mirage, written by Jimi Hendrix on the night he died. Sadly, first the film and latterly a proposed double album release by Atlantic Records were shelved and the Mirage album and sessions were consigned to the archives. This CD release on Esoteric Recordings makes for the album's CD debut in the UK.

Sidestepping the horrendous title, Gratefully Dead 1964-1968, it's nice to see an Animals compilation that digs a bit deeper into their catalog, album tracks, B-sides, and curios, as opposed to rehashing the same old hits ad nauseam. The first ten tracks are mainly covers of blues and R&B tunes that were staples in the early Animals repertoire circa 1964 to 1966, such as "Dimples," "Bright Lights Big City," "Talkin' 'Bout You," and "Smokestack Lightning." The remaining 11 tracks from 1967 and 1968 are credited to the second lineup of the band now called Eric Burdon & the Animals, who plunge into psychedelic blues by way of bizarre tunes such as "Gratefully Dead," "It's All Meat" (which is a sped-up "Spoonful"), "Closer to the Truth," "Year of the Guru," and "White Houses."

Recorded December 8th, 1963 at Craw-Daddy Club, Richmond and at the Club A Go Go, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England on 30 Dec. 1963.
Sonny Boy Williamson was, in many ways, the ultimate blues legend. By the time of his death in 1965, he had been around long enough to have played with Robert Johnson at the start of his career and Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Robbie Robertson at the end of it. In between, he drank a lot of whiskey, hoboed around the country, had a successful radio show for 15 years, toured Europe to great acclaim, and simply wrote, played, and sang some of the greatest blues ever etched into Black phonograph records…