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The label of the group ABKCO Music announced the death of Valentine in a statement Friday, claiming to have learned of the death of the guitarist of his wife, Germaine Valentine. The statement did not identify the cause of death.
Valentine started playing guitar as a teenager growing up in North Shields, Northumberland, the label said. After honing his skills by performing with other bands, Valentine was recruited in 1963 to form The Animals, starring Eric Burdon, keys player Alan Price, bassist Chas Chandler and drummer John Steel.
The band’s fame reached new heights with their 1964 version of “The House of the Rising Sun”, a traditional folk ballad that had previously been performed by folk singers like Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan.
But taking the Animals turned the song into a rock ‘n’ roll hit, starting with Valentine’s iconic electric guitar riff. It was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, topping the charts in the UK, US and Canada. Rolling Stone ranked it 123rd on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
In 1994, the group was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which called the Animals “master performers of existing songs, updating them with working-class harshness and giving them new life.”
Valentin stayed with The Animals for four years and would join several reunions later. He released a solo album in 1969. He has performed with a number of bands in recent years, during which time he lived in Connecticut.
“Rising Sun’s opening opus will never sound the same again!” Burdon wrote about Valentine’s death on Instagram. “You didn’t just play it, you lived it! Heartbroken by the sudden news of Hilton’s passing. We had a great time together, Geordie. From the North Shields to the whole world… Rock In Peace.
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