By Jorge Casuso
July 19, 2017 -- Eric Burdon and The Animals, a seminal band in the blues-tinged "British Invasion" that took America by storm in the early 1960s, will perform Thursday as part of the 33rd Annual Twilight Concert Series on the Santa Monica Pier.
As the lead singer for the Animals, Burdon stamped his personal vocal style on a string of hits that included an electric rendition of the blues standard "The House of the Rising Sun," which likely rivals "Louie Louie" as the most played rock song by garage bands in the 60s.
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The band's string of hits -- "We Gotta Get out of This Place" "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and "We Gotta Get out of This Place," among others -- featured Burdon's deep and powerful voice that earned him the 57th spot on Rolling Stone's list of The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.
After the Animals disbanded, Burdon joined the Califonia funk rock band War, which scored a hit with the 1970 song "Spill the Wine," a meandering, surreal escapade that included a prominent flute and a woman speaking in Spanish. |
Its famous chorus -- "Spill the wine, take that pearl" -- is among the most popular misheard lyrics in rock, with the words "take that pearl" giving rise to numerous, and often humorous, alternatives that include "dig that girl" and "big fat girl."
Burdon performed over the years with reconfigured versions of the Animals and as a solo act reprising hit songs spanning his more than 50-year career. His latest album, "Til Your River Runs Dry," was released in 2012.
Thursday's opening act is the Southern California band Mr. Elevator, which features vintage synthesizers, organs and electric pianos, that distinguishes their sound "within the fuzzy, distorted contemporary Psych-Pop scene," concert organizers said.
The Thursday night summer series -- billed as "Southern California's largest free concert series" -- features bands whose styles range from world music, pop and rock, to blues, funk and jazz.
Once again, DJs from media partner KCRW will present each concert in the series, which is co-produced by RH&S Concerts, a partnership between Spaceland Presents and Rum & Humble.
