Lyrics Language: English Song writer/composer(s): Alan (Arr) Price
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The AnimalsHouse Of The Rising Sun Lyrics:
There is a house in New Orleans
They call the Rising Sun
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy
And God, I know I'm one
My mother was a tailor
She sewed my new blue jeans
My father was a gambling man
Down in New Orleans
Now the only thing a gambler needs
Is a suitcase and trunk
And the only time he's satisfied
Is when he's on a drunk
Oh mother tell your children
Not to do what I have done
Spend your lives in sin and misery
In the house of the Rising Sun
Well I got one foot on the platform
The other foot on the train
I'm going back to New Orleans
To wear that ball and chain
Well, there is a house in New Orleans
They call the Rising Sun
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy
And God, I know I'm one
[THE HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN [1]
Written by: Alan Price/Traditional
Performed by: The Animals [2] -1964
Albums: The Animals-1964, House of the Rising Sun-1970, Rip It To
Shreds-1984, The Sullivan Years: British Invasion-1990, Animals-2000,
British Legends-2006, et al.]
[1] Various places in New Orleans, Louisiana have been proposed as the
inspiration for the song, with varying degrees of plausibility. Only two
candidates, however, have historical documentation as using the name
"Rising Sun," both having listings in old city directories. The first
was a small short-lived hotel on Conti Street in the French Quarter in
the 1820s. An excavation and document search in early 2005 found
evidence supporting this claim, including an advertisement with language
that may have euphemistically indicated prostitution. The second was a
late 19th-century, "Rising Sun Hall," on the riverfront of the uptown
Carrollton neighborhood, which seems to have been a building owned and
used for meetings of a "Social Aid & Pleasure Club," commonly rented out
for dances and functions. Definite links to gambling or prostitution, if
any, are undocumented for either of these buildings, neither of which
still exists.]
[2] The earliest recording of this song seems to be by: Clarence "Tom"
Ashley & Gwen Foster in 1933. Other versions are recorded by: The
Callahan Brothers-1934, Roy Acuff-1938, Woodie Guthrie-1941, Lead
Belly-1948, Nina Simone-1954, Glenn Yarbrough-1957, Joan Baez-1959, Bob
Dylan-1962, The Supremes-1964, Marianne Faithful-1965, Nat Stuckey-1969,
Claude King-1970, Conway Twitty-1970, Frijid Pink-1970, Dolly
Parton-1980, Adolescents-1987, Jandek-1987, Tracy Chapman-1990, Miriam
Makeba-1994, Sinead O'Connor-1994, Peter, Paul & Mary-1995,
Evereve-2000, Bachman Turner Overdrive-2001, Brand New Sin-2006,
Sentenced-2007, et al.]
[3] Ball and chain, as used here, is a phrase that refers to a
restraining device that was used to slow down prisoners, consisting of a
heavy, solid, metal ball, attached to a chain, which is shackled to the
leg. The device is no longer used in developed countries today, but was
reported to be a standard in Sing Sing (Ossining Prison, New York State)
until the 1920s.]
Lyrics: House Of The Rising Sun, The Animals [end]
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The Animals House Of The Rising Sun Lyrics Information:
IF YOU DON'T SEE THE GREEN FOOTNOTE REFERENCE NUMBER(S) IN THE TEXT ABOVE
TRY GOING TO THE PREVIOUS VERSION BY CLICKING ON THE LINK "SEE OTHER
VERSIONS" IN THE ORANGE BOX ABOVE. ALSO SOMETIMES THE LYRICS ON PREVIOUS
VERSIONS ARE MORE ACCURATE THAN THE ONES DISPLAYED BY GRACENOTE AS THE
CURRENT VERSION.
THE HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN2a2b
Written by: Alan Price & Traditional
Produced by: Mickie Most
Performed by: The Animals 34
First released: 5
Single: June 1964 (U.K.), August 1964 (U.S.)
Album: September 1964 (U.S.), October 1964 (U.K.)
1 Ball and chain, as used here, is a phrase that refers to a restraining device that was used
to slow down prisoners, consisting of a heavy, solid, metal ball, attached to a chain, which
is shackled to the leg.
2a Various places in New Orleans, Louisiana, have been proposed as the inspiration for the
song, with varying degrees of plausibility. Only two candidates, however, have historical
documentation as using the name "Rising Sun," both having listings in old city directories.
The first was a small short-lived hotel on Conti Street in the French Quarter in the 1820s.
An excavation and document search in early 2005 found evidence supporting this claim,
including an advertisement with language that may have euphemistically indicated prostitution.
The second was a late 19th-century, "Rising Sun Hall," on the riverfront of the uptown
Carrollton neighborhood, which seems to have been a building owned and used for meetings
of a "Social Aid & Pleasure Club," commonly rented out for dances and functions. Definite
links to gambling or prostitution, if any, are undocumented for either of these buildings,
neither of which still exists.
2b The Animals' rendition of "The House of the Rising Sun," which was a #1 hit in the United
Kingdom, United States, Sweden and Canada, is recognized as one of the classic outputs of the
British Invasion. Writer Lester Bangs, who writes for Rolling Stone magazine, labelled it
"a brilliant rearrangement and a new rendition of an old standard composition." It ranked
#122 on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. It is also one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. The RIAA 6 placed it
at #240 on their Songs of the Century list. In 1999 it received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
And besides critical acclaim, it has long since become a staple of oldies and classic rock
radio formats.
3 Personnel appearing on this recording:
* Eric Burdon - vocals
* Hilton Valentine - guitar
* Alan Price - keyboards
* Chas Chandler - bass
* John Steel - drums
4 The earliest recording of this song is by Clarence "Tom" Ashley & Gwen Foster in 1933.
Also covered by (partial list):
Roy Acuff
The Adolescents
Mike Auldridge
Bachman Turner Overdrive
Joan Baez
Brand New Sin
The Callahan Brothers
Tracy Chapman
Bob Dylan
Evereve
Marianne Faithful
Frijid Pink
Woodie Guthrie
Jandek
Claude King
Lead Belly
Miriam Makeba
Sinead O'Connor
Dolly Parton
Peter, Paul & Mary
Sentenced
Nina Simone
Nat Stuckey
The Supremes
Conway Twitty
Glenn Yarbrough
et al.
5 Appears on: *
SINGLE(S):
(1)The Animals:
A-side: "House of the Rising Sun"
B-side: "Bring It on Home to Me"
(a) Columbia, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #UK-1964.
(b) ABCKO, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #4025, US-1964.
(2)The Animals:
A-side: "House of the Rising Sun"
B-side: "Boom Boom"
(a) Odeon, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #OR-2459, Japan-1964.
(b) EMI, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #EMR-20320, Japan-1965.
EP(S):
(EP1)The Animals:
Track 1: "The House of the Rising Sun"
Track 2: "I'm Crying"
Track 3: "Boom Boom"
Track 4: "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
(a) Odeon, 4-Track, 7-Inch, Red Vinyl, 45rpm EP, #OP-4062, Japan-1964.
(EP2)The Animals Sing:
Track 1: "The House of the Rising Sun"
Track 2: "Talkin' About You"
Track 3: "Gonna Send You Back to Walker"
Track 4: "Baby, Let Me Take You Home"
(a) Columbia-EMI, 4-Track, 7-Inch, Red Vinyl, 45rpm EP, #OP-4062, Italy-1965.
(EP3)Apresentamos The Animals:
Track 1: "The House of the Rising Sun"
Track 2: "Talkin' About You"
Track 3: "Take It Easy"
Track 4: "I'm Crying"
(a) Columbia-EMI, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm EP, #SLEM-2180, Portugal-1965.
(EP4)The Animals:
Track 1: "La casa del sol naciente" ("The House of the Rising Sun")
Track 2: "Ne andado por el mundo" ("I've Been Around")
Track 3: "Es mi vida" ("It's My Life")
Track 4: "Voy a cambiar el mundo" ("I'm Going to Change the World")
(a) Capitol, 7-Inch Vinyl, 4-Trackl, 45rpm EP, #EPEM-10030, Mexico-1966.
(EP5)The Animals: EMI Hits
Track 1: "The House of the Rising Sun"
Track 2: "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
Track 3: "We've Gotta Get Out of This Place"
Track 4: "Around and Around"
(a) Columbia-EMI, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm EP, #SEGS-149, Sweden-1966.
(EP6)The Animals:
Track 1: "The House of the Rising Sun"
Track 2: "Inside Looking Out"
Track 3: "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
Track 4: "Don't Bring Me Down"
(a) MGM, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm EP, #SKM-1078, Japan-1968.
* The album(s) and record(s) listed here may have different versions of the song than the
one that was transcribed. Also, this list is not intended to be the complete discography on
which this song appears.
6 The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a group which represents the
recording industry distributors in the United States. Its members consist of record labels
and distributors, which the RIAA says "create, manufacture and/or distribute approximately
85% of all legitimate sound recordings produced and sold in the United States." The RIAA
participates in the collection, administration and distribution of music licenses and
royalties and is responsible for certifying sales silver (100,000), gold (500,000), platinum
(1,000,000), and diamond (10,000,000) albums and singles in the USA.
7 Transcribed from the track on this album.
House Of The Rising Sun lyrics, The Animals related songs
