Rock legends The Animals announce Aussie farewell tour

The highly successful 1960s pioneers will play shows in NSW, South Australia and Victoria next February and March, including a show in Tweed Heads, right on the Queensland border.

While The Beatles and The Rolling Stones may have been the biggest names of the Invasion, The Animals were its bluesy backbone.

Featuring original member John Steel alongside Danny Handley, Bobby Ruiz and Barney "Boogie" Williams, fans can expect to hear the very best of the band, with hits such as The House of the Rising Sun, We Gotta Get Out of this Place and Baby Let Me Take You Home.

The band was formed when John and Eric Burden met as art-school dropouts, performing as the Pagan Jazzmen and then the Pagans.

They were performing at a church hall in Byker when a rhythm guitar player from another band named Alan Price came and asked if he could sit in on piano.

The band was impressed with his left hand boogie style, and invited him to join, which would signal their transition into a keyboard based band.

The group would go on to play as the Kansas City Five and the Alan Price Rhythm and Blues Combo, before changing their name to The Animals after moving to London.

After signing to EMI's Columbia label, their first single was a rocking version of the standard Baby Let Me Follow You Down - retitled Baby Let Me Take You Home, but it was in 1964 that they struck gold with their cover of traditional folk song The House of the Rising Sun, which would become a transatlantic number one hit.

"One minute we were five working-class Geordie lads just having a nibble at the charts with Baby Let Me Take You Home and the next minute we're jetting off to America with a number one," Steel said.

"It had an enormous effect on us and apart from that, it's a bloody good song. I still think it's the definitive version, in electric terms anyway."

Their hit We Gotta Get Out of this Place would be chosen as the anthem for the US armed forces during the Vietnam War.

Steel still loves performing with The Animals and is constantly amazed by vast age ranges of audience members who attend their shows.

"We get people of our own generation - but there's a lot of young people coming to see us! And they're really getting off on it, they know all of the songs and lyrics."

"It's just us onstage with our instruments, playing and we love what we do and I think it comes across. We get a standing ovation every time, so we must be doing something right, I guess!"

Tour Dates: Lizottes, Newcastle, February 20; Centro CBD, Wollongong, February 21; Paddington RSL, February 23; Bridge Hotel, Rozelle, February 24; Twin Towns, Tweed Heads, February 25; The Gov, Adelaide, February 28; SS & A Club, Albury, March 1; Wanstock 2024 at Shoppingtown Hall, Doncaster (with special guests Dragon and TMG), March 2

For bookings or more information click here.