* LEGENDS *
SPILL THE WINE:
An Exclusive Interview with the Iconic
ERIC BURDON
By Ro White
Eric
Burdon
is a bona fide rock & roll hall-of-famer with a career spanning over four
decades. For Eric it all began back in 1963 when he stepped in front of
the microphone as the front man for British stalwarts The Animals.
Along with The Beatles, Rolling Stones, and Kinks, he helped
define the 'British Invasion'.
By 1967 Burdon reformatted the band with a whole new lineup and a more
progressive sound as Eric Burdon & the Animals. After many magical
moments from the Monterey Pop Festival, Burdon penned some of the most
astonishing music of the late sixties including San Franciscan Nights, Sky
Pilot, White Houses, and a Girl Named Sandoz.
In the early seventies Burdon joined with War to create a rich body of
work that included the psychedelic Spill The Wine and the peace and
brotherhood anthem They Can't Take Away Our Music.
He's recorded with Jimmy Witherspoon and a host of others and just
recently released Soul of a Man to critical acclaim. This writer
interviewed Eric shortly before his headlining appearance at Hippiefest held at
DTE in Clarkston Michigan
Review: I read "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood and was
impressed that a tough Newcastle lad could be so kind and sentimental - quite a
difference from other bios that were filled with narcissism and name dropping.
How do you see your personal evolution? How is it that you found your balance
and integrity?
Eric Burdon: I am just a sentimental pussy at heart but being from
Newcastle on an English /Scottish borderlands, we have a reputation for being a
tough lot. So you have to have a front, plenty of face. Having a strong voice
helped me to get through it.
Review: Did anyone in particular contribute to your change?
Burdon: I had a teacher at school that changed my life. All it takes is
one, you know.
And I never understood why teachers don't get paid more. Our early development
and our kid's lives depend on them.
Review: In your book you talk about your recording of House of the Rising
Son as a career-defining momentŠand finding the actual "House" is New Orleans
and being heartened by its beautyŠ
Burdon: I remember like it was yesterday, the day I first visited the
House, on St Louis Street in the French Quarter. But it's all over since Katrina
hit the city. Now "New Orleans" is just a sweet memory for me.
Review: You also mentioned that the fabulous Don't Let Me Down (what a
great production and incredible lead vocalŠthe fuzz tone guitar riff was way
cool) as one of your favorites. Are there other songs from your rich catalog of
music that you consider amongst your best or personal favorites?
Burdon: Back in the mid 60's recording in the field, so to speak, was a
very rare event. But we flew a 4 track recording board out to Nassau in the
Bahamas. One of the tracks we cut was Don't Bring Me Down, which proves
to me that the art of recording is to capture the atmosphere of the moment,
bringing it down to earth and putting it on tape. A few days later a fight in
the band really got out of hand and quite destructive. I'd had enough. I headed
for California and put together the New Animals.
Review: I always loved Sky Pilot the ballsy anti-war message, the
perfectly nuanced lead vocal, layered instrumentation - and those incredible
bagpipes, a great bass line and soaring harmonies. Have you ever performed it
live? If so how were you able to re-create the sound? Did it go over well?
The message still resonates today with the world on the brink of destruction.
How do you view your anti-war/pro peace spiritual masterpiece today in the
context of current warfare?
Burdon: Since I recorded the song I performed it many times live. But
the original recording burns bright in my memory. It happened at a time that the
Royal Scotch Guards pipe and drum marching band were on a good will tour of the
US. We managed to assemble them in the studio at 9.00am. We paid them in cases
of beer. The song I wrote refers to World War I Army Chaplains, which the troops
refer to as Sky Pilots. At the time I saw on the TV a news report from Vietnam
where a priest was blessing napalm bombs with holy water. I was repulsed. Coming
from a military family, except for my father, who was a conscientious objector.
I cannot ignore or lose respect for the warrior credo. But it makes me sick to
see young men wasted on a wrong war at a wrong time over a big lie.
Review: How do you keep and nurture your energy and inspiration to
perform?
Burdon: I don't think about it 'til I step up to the microphone and face
the crowd.
Review: The portrait you paint in your autobiography about the unsavory
business practices in the music industry is a tragic yet familiar story. Have
you regained the rights to your Animals catalog? How do you see the role
of the music licensing agencies - ASCAP, BMI, SESAC in the corruption of the
music business? Do they protect your properties?
Burdon: I really believe that the music business is one of the most
heartless septic pools filled with bottom feeders and that artists for most of
the part are eaten alive due to their good hearts and innocence. At the moment,
I'm in the middle of a fight to gain the name "The Animals" in the UK.
Otherwise, it's a wonderful world.
Review: What is the set list for your current tour/Hippie Fest? With such
a massive catalog how did you decide which songs to include?
Burdon: It's really difficult to decide. Half an hour on stage is like 5
minutes when you are up there. The guys in the band don't get the chance to have
a solo. The truth is we are doing our best to please everyone. This time, I have
added a great violin player, Bobby Furgo, to recreate the sound of the
psychedelic era. Jack Bruce is great and we have a lot of fun with Flo
and Eddie
Review: In your autobiography, you described your use of mind-altering
substances such as LSD. What effect did the use of drugs have on your creative
process and performances? Albert Hoffman, the chemist who created LSD
recently died. Your song A Girl Named Sandoz seemed to be a tribute of Dr.
Hoffman. Did you ever meet him? How did Hoffman influence you?
Burdon: I never got to meet the good doctor, but in order to celebrate
his memory I took my last LSD trip the day he died. It was difficult to explain
then in the 60's and it's impossible to explain it now.
Review: I loved your early R&B/Blues songs especially BOOM BOOM BOOM. John
Lee Hooker lived in Detroit for several years and a few of his friends have
played my club - Alberta Adams and Johnny Bassett. Bassett was a TOTAL gentleman
and called Alberta just before she went onstage to wish her luck. Do you find
yourself and your friends doing the same thing before a gig?
Burdon: John Lee was a beautiful man. I stayed at his home in Detroit
back in the sixties. He invited me to play his last birthday party at Humphrey's
in San Diego. In June 2001, I was recording my album "My Secret Life" in LA when
I heard the news that John Lee was dead. The same day I recorded a song "Can't
Kill the Boogieman" in dedication.
Review: One of your former bandmates from War said that you were an
inspiring presence and that you taught them the art of improvising. Some of your
Animals records sound like you were improvising lyrically in songs like It's My
Life. True? Or was the improvising in rehearsal simply written into the songs?
Burdon: Don't matter to me if the song I record was written by someone
else or self-penned. When it comes to recording, it's normal for me to jam out
some extra emotions, to put down my own personal stamp on tracks. My early
background is in Jazz, from back in New Castle when I was a kid, and it just
won't go away.
Review: What's your weirdest drunk ?
Burdon: These days I just enjoy a good glass of red wine.
The SHOW* Hippiefest
Saturday August 2nd, 2008
I didn't quite know what to expect with this "Hippiefest" concert when I
plunked down close to $100 for two pavilion seats. It seemed a bit of a sham, as
several of the performers were never quite identified with the Summer of Love in
1967.
Now, Eric Burden had solid Flower Power credentials, having written
Monterey, San Franciscan Nights, and Sky Pilot right in the middle of
the movement. Jack Bruce was certainly there, having spent 1966 through
1968 with the short-lived but incredibly influential Cream, a band whose
ambitious fusion of rock, jazz and blues was influenced by psychedelics.
Melanie
(Left) was a hippie princess who wrote songs too irresistible to be dismissed
and her Lay Down (Candles in the Rain) is a bona fide Hippie-anthem. The other
performers like Joey Molland of Badfinger and Terry Sylvester
of the Hollies were never quite associated with that period at all -
though they were both performing in the mid-to-late sixties.
This 22-date tour is produced by Toby Ludwig and Ron Hausfield for
Flower Power Concerts. Initially the concert was conceived as an attempt to
re-create the spirit of the sixties generation - a high concept indeed - and to
promote social awareness.
And to think I thought they were just in it for the money.
The show opened on a good note with Joey Molland as the emcee looking and
acting like a bloody Beatle, and I tell ya, he's no wanker. He's got charm and
humor and he's a good dancer. Terry Sylvester opened the show. He's got
the credentials, having been in several influential British bands including the
Escorts, Swinging Blue Jeans and The Hollies. He started with Carrie
Ann and proceeded to sing all those lovely Hollies hits - Bus Stop, He Ain't
Heavy, and Long Cool Woman, ably accompanied by the fantastic Hippiefest band.
Who are these dudes? I thought Terry was just gonna sing those Graham Nash
bits in the chorus while the band played through the verses with the audience
singing from two nightmarish karaoke monitors positioned on either side of the
stage. Silly me.
Molland was up next and did an admirable job trying to sound like Pete Ham
and Tom Evans but bugger me and leave me bleeding, I'd have preferred
that Joey do all HIS Badfinger songs 'cos they're so damn good. Songs like
Constitution, Give it Up, Suitcase, Love is Gonna Come at Last, and Better Days.
Joey is cool, no doubt.
Now Melanie - she's a different story - a bona fide earth-mother, child
of the sun and she writes songs that will NOT leave you alone - some even became
commercials that sold everything from fruit juice to automobiles and everything
in between. You probably know them all - What Have they Done to My Song,
Beautiful People, Brand New Key. And though she mentioned it about a half dozen
times, Melanie never sang her Hippie-anthem. DAMN HER. But she sang well and
gave us a good vibe. I know because I sat in the second row, up close and
personal, and she laid them vibes all over me. I was drenched in 'em.
I was looking forward to hearing Jack Bruce again. The only other time
was in a Ringo All-Starr Show. I was hoping he could stretch out a little more,
despite the limitations of this format. In 2003, Jack was diagnosed with liver
cancer and almost died due to complications with the transplant operation. Today
he is much thinner and appears a bit fragile, looking more like Ginger Baker
than Jack Bruce. But my lord, Bruce rocked his ass off. The Hippiefest
band clearly enjoyed playing such timeless and progressive music, grinning
ear-to-ear and playing like their life depended on it.
He opened with an acoustic As You Said and then battered us senseless with
Sunshine of Your Love, Sitting On Top of The World, I Feel Free, We're Going
Wrong and a magnificent White Room. The crowd responded enthusiastically. He
brought us all back there, back when the music sounded so new and progressive.
Bruce prepared us for something very special - a powerhouse performance by the
legendary Eric Burdon and his new Animals (right), which includes an old
Animal, guitarist Hilton Valentine, lookin' really cool
The band was hot and played flawlessly. The rhythm section was tight as a vise
and the harmonies were glorious. Burdon was in fine voice and his nuanced vocals
were reined-in just enough to embellish the messageŠit was quite a message. They
opened with When I Was Young. The tempo was slowed down just a bit and
Burdon hit all the notes with his unique phrasing, accents and articulation. He
can squeeze them notes until they holler for help.
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
had an updated reggae arrangement that suited the song quite well; the violinist
added a nice flavor. Sky Pilot was simply wondrous. Burdon sang well, the
harmonies were spot-on and the message came across loud and clear. And the
soldier remembered the wordsŠ Thou Shall Not Kill A Masterpiece!
It's My Life
was a heavy rockin' tour-de-force, sung soulfully by Burdon with a powerful
fist-in-the-air chorus. When Burdon sings I ain't no saint, believe it, brother.
Let's join him, let's join the real world!
The final song was his career defining anthem, The House of the Rising Sun.
It included some obscure lyrics not on the original recording. It seemed
to be a very emotionally laden tribute. Burdon was there. He discovered its
existence in New Orleans and found it to be a place of beauty and peace. But
it's lost now, a victim to Katrina, which came through his voice in the song.
Following two fantastic encores - the hard-rockin' Paint it Black with
Burdon's plea to "Pray for Peace" and John Lee Hooker blues rocker Boom Boom
Boom - I was backstage looking for my hero. I was gonna ask him about his
latest CD Soul of a Man. I just bought it and gave it a quick listen and it
sounded great. I loved his autobiography and wanted to talk a little more about
the eggmen, the success of the Spill the Wine video on MTV's Psychedelic Lunch
and the story he told of a fresh-faced photographer he met in New York in 1966.
Her name was Linda Eastman. They would link their arms, open their minds
and take on the world. He wrote a song about it entitled Everyone of
Us:
Brown girl from the Bronx showed me her home
She took me there time and time again
Love was our sweet summer's game
And when I got to America
I say it blew my mind
Ultimately, I checked out and went back home, tired and happy. I finally got
an opportunity to pay witness to one of the rock & roll's greatest voices, a
voice that is at once spiritual and sensual - an extraordinary presence.
We need him.
Check out his new website @ ericburdon.com