The Beatles were the good boys with long hair (long by the early 60s standards), the Rolling Stones the bad boys, and finally, Eric Burdon and the Animals were known as the dirty boys. Formed in England in the early 60s, the Animals were a hard band to categorize. They were certainly psychedelic, but also a commercial success in spite of their persona.
Here are a few things you might not have known about this British band…
The Beatles paved the way for the British invasion, and the band had moderate success in the UK until poor management left them bankrupt, forcing the band to sell everything they had and head to California to start anew.
The Animals had early success with “House of the Rising Sun” and flew to New York to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. In a brilliant marketing ploy, Sunbeam Automotive persuaded the band to be driven to their hotel from the airport in a motorcade of Sunbeam Alpine Series IV convertibles. Each car showcased a single member of the band riding in of the car’s models from the back seat and the rooftop down.
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