BYRON Bay's East Coast Blues and Roots Festival will return in April and bring with it a huge array of visiting international acts.
One band making the trip down under is '60s blues-rock band Eric Burdon and the Animals. The Animals and Burdon will be at Newcastle Panthers on April 15 before heading two shows at the festival.
They were part of the English blues scene of the early '60s and one of the most noteworthy bands of the British Invasion.
Formed in a port city and coal-mining hub in northeast England, the Animals reflected their earthy upbringing with blues-based rock'n'roll. The group derived its inspiration and much of its early repertoire from American blues and R&B, adapting them with a British working-class sensibility.
Gruff-voiced Burdon put a distinct stamp on songs such as It's My Life, We Gotta Get Out of This Place and their version of Bob Dylan's House of The Rising Sun. It was with this song that The Animals became the first British group since The Beatles to chart at number one in America.
The original line-up lasted only until 1966 but Burdon continued with new recruits and the band enjoyed more hits with Monterey and San Franciscan Nights. Burdon and The Animals continue to tour Europe and the US and in 1994 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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