|
Of all the British acts that started messing with the blues in the early ’60s, the Animals always sounded the toughest and most committed to the cause. Eric Burdon was one of the few singers in the U.K. whose guts and ferocity approached that of his influences (without sounding like he was simply copying what he’d heard), and the tough, no-nonsense attack of guitarist Hilton Valentine, bassist Chas Chandler, and drummer John Steel drove the Animals with style and power, while keyboard man Alan Price gave the band plenty of welcome melodic flair.
The Animals were also one of the few bands on the scene that failed to overstay their welcome, with the original lineup breaking up by the end of 1966 (Burdon would assemble a “New Animals” in 1967, but that band ran its course by the end of the decade), and the bulk of their recorded output is collected on The Mickie Most Years and More, remarkably the first American box set devoted to the group’s legacy. The set contains remastered versions of the Animals’ first four American albums — The Animals, The Animals on Tour, Animal Tracks, and Animalization — all in original mono and including bonus tracks, while also including the group’s very first release, a primitive but spirited four-track EP cut in a makeshift studio in 1963.
Animalization was produced by Tom Wilson and boasts a richer and more ambitious sound, while Burdon began putting new focus on songwriting and new keyboard man Dave Rowberry took a more organic approach than Alan Price.
What's here is excellent: the remastering by Adam Ayan is brilliant, preserving the full detail and power of the original tapes, and these four albums capture the Animals in peak form. David Fricke’s liner notes reveal that producer Mickie Most captured most of these tunes on first take, and the first three albums are powerful, straight-ahead blues and R&B direct from the rugged side of Newcastle. The box set honors a great, underappreciated group and is must listening for anyone interested in British blues and rock.
Tracklist:
Disc 1 – I Just Wanna Make Love to You EP (1963)
01. I Just Wanna Make Love to You
02. Big Boss Man
03. Boom Boom
04. Pretty Thing
Disc 2 – The Animals (1964, produced by Mickie Most)
01. House of the Rising Sun
02. The Girl Can’t Help It
03. Blue Feeling
04. Baby Let Me Take You Home
05. The Right Time
06. Talkin’ ‘Bout You
07. Around and Around
08. I’m in Love Again
09. Gonna Send You Back to Walker
10. Memphis, Tennessee
11. I’m Mad Again
12. I’ve Been Around
Bonus tracks
13. Talkin’ ‘Bout You (full seven minute version)
Disc 3 – The Animals on Tour (1965, produced by Mickie Most)
01. Boom Boom
02. How You’ve Changed
03. Mess Around
04. Bright Lights, Big City
05. I Believe to My Soul
06. Worried Life Blues
07. Let the Good Times Roll
08. Ain’t Got You
09. Hallelujah, I Love Her So
10. I’m Crying
11. Dimples
12. She Said Yeah
Bonus tracks
13. Baby What’s Wrong
14. F-E-E-L
15. New Year’s Radio Spot (Recorded December, 1964)
Disc 4 – Animal Tracks (1965, produced by Mickie Most)
01. We Gotta Get Out of This Place
02. Take It Easy Baby
03. Bring It on Home to Me
04. The Story of Bo Diddley
05. Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood
06. I Can’t Believe It
07. Club A-Go-Go
08. Roberta
09. Bury My Body
10. For Miss Caulker
Bonus tracks
11. Roadrunner (previously unreleased in the U.S.)
12. Don’t Want Much (previously unreleased in the U.S.)
13. We Gotta Get Out of This Place (U.K. single version)
14. It’s My Life (single only)
15. I’m Gonna Change the World
Disc 5 – Animalization (1966, produced by Tom Wilson)
01. Don’t Bring Me Down
02. One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show
03. You’re on My Mind
04. Cheating
05. She’ll Return It
06. Inside-Looking Out
07. See See Rider
08. Gin House Blues
09. Maudie
10. What Am I Living For
11. Sweet Little Sixteen
12. I Put a Spell on You
Bonus tracks
13. Don’t Bring Me Down (stereo)
14. Cheating (stereo)
15. See See Rider (stereo)
Media Info:
Bitrate: 320 kbps
Channels: joint stereo
Samplerate: 48000
Encoder: LAME 3.99
MPEG-1 layer 3
MUCH Peace n luv to all my friends at 1337x and blazinseedboxes
ENJOY!!
**thanks and all due respect to exy, and all those who care enough to share
|
