Posted on 02/10/2024 9:13:27 PM PST by nickcarraway
As far as folk songs are concerned, few have enjoyed the success or longevity of ‘The House of the Rising Sun’. First popularised by The Animals, who topped singles charts in the UK, US and Canada with their rendition in 1964, a wide range of artists from Alt-J to Five Finger Death Punch have recorded versions of the track over the years.
A traditional narrative folk song, ‘House of the Rising Sun’ tells the tale of a place in New Orleans, usually theorised to be either a pub or a brothel, which acts as the catalysts for a young man’s downfall. The actual location at the centre of the track is widely disputed, with the only attribute known for definite being that it was located in New Orleans. The Animals seemed to subscribe to the idea that the song was centred around a brothel, with lead singer Eric Burdon once telling the LA Times, “[New Orleans] are trying to build up tourism, and here’s this Brit singing about a whorehouse.”
So, who is actually responsible for the song? Well, like many traditional folk songs, ‘House of the Rising Sun’ is shrouded in mystery. For years, music scholars and folk aficionados have argued over the origins of the song. It is thought to have first appeared, in its usual form, in the early 1900s, but some argue it has its roots in old English folk music going back to the 16th century.
Thematically, ‘House of the Rising Sun’ is said to have its origins in the ballad ‘The Unfortunate Rake’, which dates back to the 1500s, though there is little in the way of evidence directly connecting these two songs. Ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax once theorised that the 17th-century song ‘Matty Groves’ might hold the origins of the melody to ‘House of the Rising Sun’, but a subsequent study showed no relation between the two.
Lomax continued his study of folk songs, noting that the term ‘Rising Sun’ appeared in various English folk songs as the name of a pub or brothel, suggesting that the location was changed to New Orleans by performers in the American south.
In 1925, Robert Winslow Gordon published lyrics to the song in Adventure Magazine, but the first recorded version of the song appeared in 1933 under the name ‘Rising Sun Blues’. Clarence “Tom” Ashley, one of the artists involved in the recording, claimed to have been taught the song by his grandfather – thereby suggesting that the song was known long before the turn of the 20th century in America.
There are a multitude of theories surrounding the origins of ‘The House of the Rising Sun’, with one theorist even suggesting the song is French in origin, dating back to the time of King Louis XIV. The likelihood is that the song, as we know it, is simply an amalgamation of traditional folk songs, both English and American in origin, that were passed down through the generations without ever being written down or recorded until the 20th century.
Tom Clarence Ashley & Gwen Foster: House Of The Rising Sun (1933)
leadbelly - house of the rising sun
The House of the Rising Sun trough History (1933-2016)
Why would a gambler need a suitcase and a trunk? Shouldn't one or another suffice?
Rumour has it this song was about a house where terrible things took place. Ritual killings and such.
I always thought the House of the Rising Sun was the Orleans Parish Prison.
Or at least that’s what I thought every time I drove by the Orleans Parish Prison,
“And it’s been the ruin of many a poor boy
And God, I know I’m one”
That one line, playing in my head, kept me out of lots of trouble in New Orleans.
I’ve heard the chord procession we’re familiar with since back in the early sixties was from Dave Van Ronk. Dylan got it from Van Rink and the Animals from Dylan.
Bob Dillon’s rendition was about boys going to a bordello.
Dylan, not Dillon. My mistake.
That’s definitely a nicer interpretation.
The animals apparently brought it over from England and reworked the lyrics for the American audience.
It’s about a brothel.
Good info...thanks.
I loved that song by the Animals first time I heard it. Became obsessed to learn it on the guitar for a girl I knew.
To get it right, I practiced it so much that I had blood on my strings and fret board. Didn’t get the girl. She ended up getting married 7 times! Glad I escaped that one with just the song. Still love it too!
Nina Simone does a great job on the song.
There is a group of YouTubes where young people hear some of these songs (supposedly) for the first time. Their reaction the House of the Rising Sun by The Animals and Unchained Melody by Bobby Hatfield are priceless.
I can remember Joan Baez singing it at Club 47 before we’d ever heard of Dylan. We folkie schoolkids of course learned it right away.
Internet says she recorded it in 1960.
The Animals butchered it. I’d shut the radio off if a DJ had the temerity to play it.
Where does an “Ethnomusicologist” find a job?
I have a copy of "Rising Sun Blues". The sound quality is pretty bad. Sounds pretty much like he was "singing into a can". I keep it in my playlist because it is a bit of musical history that most folk don't know.
I seem to recall reading many years ago that it was an opium den.
O2
It’s written as a woman’s song.
Animals changed the words.
Woody Guthrie.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX_bEDqxHFw
Lyrics are from the perspective of a woman.
It was a woman’s song, lamenting her life, telling her baby sister not to do like she has done.
Club 47!
My cousin’s aunt and uncle ran its successor, Passim for decades at 47 Palmer Street, Harvard Square. Good great times, those were.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.