Eric Burdon
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood."
Burdon
sings the blues
He brings his singular sound
By Tim Ryan
to Honolulu
Star-BulletinEric Burdon, former lead singer of the British band The Animals -- is thought by many to be one of the finest white blues singers. His work with the Animals, War, Robbie Krieger, Brian Auger and others is both wide-ranging and intense. The Animals were part of the budding, homegrown, U.K. blues scene of the early '60s and one of the most noteworthy bands of the original British Invasion. Formed in Newcastle-on-Tyne, a port city and coal-mining hub in northeast England, the Animals reflected their earthy upbringing with hard-charging, blues-based rock 'n' roll.
But it the gruff-voiced Burdon who imparted rage and anguish to such anthems as "It's My Life" and "We Gotta Get Out of This Place." With the 1964 release of "House of the Rising Sun" -- a traditional folk song recorded by Josh White and Bob Dylan -- the Animals became the first British group after the Beatles to chart a No. 1 single in America.
The Star-Bulletin caught up with Burdon in Kona where he was vacationing. He last performed here in 1992 with Brian Auger.
SB: Do you still enjoy performing?
EB: God yes, I wouldn't know what else to do. The new technology, the computer world, has grabbed hold of one leg and wants to pull me under, but I keep resisting by still working with a human voice and seeing what effect that still has on people. My (singing) approach is the same. Why would I change? The more negative your negatives are, the stronger your positives are. You have to go through the downs before you get to the ups, the dark before you get to the light.
SB: What do you enjoy about Hawaii?
EB: Well, there is the ocean, isn't there? I was born by the ocean, but a very different kind, the North Sea, where it rains sideways 10 months of the year. Makes for hardy seamen but miserable (expletive) folks.
SB: How's your health?
EB: Well, I'm asthmatic, but the problem is not in my lungs but my tubes, man. I have to live with that and deal with that, in fact I embrace it. It's sort of what makes me the type of singer and writer I am. You try living with a hand around your throat. It'll change your attitude.
SB: The Animals were part of the triumvirate of the British invasion with the Rolling Stones and the Beatles.
EB: I'm here because someone has to pose a serious threat to Mick (Jaggar). I'll kick his ass anytime if given the chance; $150 million for a bloody tour, give us a break here.
SB: How many times have you sung House of the Rising Sun?
EB: Christ, I don't know, but I do forget the words. I can't remember my own bloody telephone number. And there's always some people who complain that I should do the songs the original way. Hell, I still play to full houses all over the world, haven't had a record deal since the 1970s and they still complain.
SB: Why was "House" so popular?
EB: In terms of musicology, it's in a minor key and that key always had connections to religious music; so it stirs the imagination. It has a mysticism about it and is erotic with a sense of the forbidden. See, I don't perform, I live out experiences. To me, every song is a play.
SB: What's your favorite song?
EB: "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood."
SB: Why don't the original Animals do a reunion?
EB: Are you kidding? How would you like to spend the next six months locked on a bus, driving around the United States with a bunch of kids you went to high school with? Hey man, it just doesn't work.
Eric Burdon & I Band
Special guests: Willie Chambers, formerly of Chambers Brothers and Morrison
