Throwback Thursday: The Animals, “House of The Rising Sun.”

Throwback Thursday: The Animals, “House of The Rising Sun.”

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On this day in 1964, English blues rock band, The Animals, reached number one on the singles charts in the UK with their rendition of “House of The Rising Sun.” With it’s howling vocals and haunting organ riffs, the song is viewed by many music historians as the first mainstream, folk rock hit. Although The Animals popularized this particular ballad, musicologists have traced its theme and wordage back to a 16th century. The song was eventually brought to the US, where the location changed from England to New Orleans by Southern performers. The oldest published version of the song dates back to 1925, and the oldest known recording is by Appalachian musicians from 1933. Woody Guthrie recorded a version in 1941, and Bob Dylan followed suite 20 years later. But it wasn’t until The Animals’ 1964 version of the song that it became a mainstream hit, and eventually, a rock classic.