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This advertisement for “The House of the Rising Sun” appeared in the July 25, 1964 issue of Record World in the United States.
Hilton Valentine, the original Animals guitarist, whose distinctive intro on the 1964 single “The House of the Rising Sun” was a key part of the British invasion, has died today (January 29, 2021). His death at 77 was announced by his wife, Germaine. Neither the cause of death nor the location has been revealed, although he has lived in the town of Wallingford, Connecticut for several decades.
Valentine was born Hilton Stewart Paterson Valentine on May 21, 1943, in what was then Northumberland, England. Like many young men in 1950s Britain, the skiffle craze hit him hard and his mother bought him his first guitar in 1956 at the age of 13. He immediately learned himself from a book titled Teach yourself a thousand chords and around the time he was orphaned at the age of 16, formed his own skiffle band called the Heppers, playing locally in venues and outdoor venues.
The Heppers eventually evolved into a rock and roll band, the Wildcats, with Valentine’s best friend Tappy Wright on rhythm guitar. When the band proved popular, they took the next step and recorded an acetate LP titled Sounds of wild cats [sic], which is considered the first and only pre-Animal music recorded by any of the original bands.
Valentine was known for tearing his shirt off and crying on his guitar to the ground. In 1963, bassist Chas Chandler heard about a wild guitarist from the Wildcats. He liked what he heard and he, keyboardist Alan Price and singer Eric Burdon asked Valentine to join the new band they were forming. Drummer John Steel joined soon after and the five-member group quickly changed their name to Animals.
Once the animals entered the studio, the guitar took a back seat to Price’s hook-laden keyboards. They were paired up with producer Mickie Most for their eponymous debut in 1964. The band began performing a cover of the standard “The House of the Rising Sun,” with an arrangement attributed to Price. Although Most initially hesitated to save it, he relented. The intro of the song features Valentine’s well-known A minor chord arpeggio before the rumble of Burdon’s voice and Price’s swirling organ. The recording was a success, topping the UK rankings before arriving in the US as part of the British invasion. He also conquered America, reaching the first place.
Related: The song’s publishing rights sparked controversy
The following year, the group followed him with a UK No.8 single, “I’m Crying”, along with four more that reached the Top 10 on both sides of the Atlantic: “Don ‘ t Let Me Be Misunderstood “,” Bring me home “,” We have to get out of this place “and” This is my life “.
The animals have proven to be a popular concert attraction, with Valentine’s friend and former band member Tappy Wright as the route director.
Watch they perform “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” in 1965
Hilton played with the Animals until their breakup in September 1966 (at which point Burdon continued with a new lineup billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals.) In 1970, Valentine recorded a solo album of which some people call it psychedelized folk music, titled Everything in your head.
Hilton Valentine (Photo: Germaine Valentine; used with permission)
Valentine has found the original programming of The Animals on several occasions since their separation. The first occasion was for a benefit concert in Newcastle in 1968. In 1977 they recorded the Before we were interrupted so brutally LP. And in 1983 they recorded a studio LP, Ark, which was followed by a world tour and the biggest hits that followed the Live album, also known as Tear it to shreds.
In 1994, Valentine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Animals. Later that year he returned to playing Animals music and toured until 2001. In 2001 he was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame along with the other Animals and had a reunion concert of two nights at the El Rey Theater.
Recently, Burdon, speaking to Guitar International, commented on the role Valentine has played in bringing out the sharp sound of the Animals. “It was really Hilton who made the first Animals into a rock band because I didn’t think the rock element was in the band until we found it. Back then, Hilton wasn’t just playing rock ‘n’ roll, he looked rock ‘n’ roll. There was a guy with the greased strand of hair combed back, a cheap leather jacket, picking shoes, black jeans and a smile on his face playing through an echoplex, which was a secret weapon to the time.
Watch Valentine performs the # 1 single from the animals
Since 2004, Valentine has focused on acoustic material, releasing several albums under the name Skiffledog. He also toured with original Animals singer Eric Burdon from 2007 to 2008.
Chandler died in 1996 at the age of 57.
In announcing the Valentine’s Day passing via Abkco Records, the label noted: “We have had the privilege of serving as custodians of The Animals catalog and his passing is felt really deeply by the entire Abkco family.
The founder / CEO of the best classical groups, Greg Brodsky, earned his first professional titles as a reporter for the music weekly Record World. He still has all of his vinyl records and enjoys going to flea markets and garage sales to expand his collection.
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