On his latest album, 1964, longtime music scene veteran Pat Guadagno covers a variety of his favorites and inspirations. While there are several great covers of familiar tracks that Pat makes his own, it felt necessary today to discuss his take on one of the most often covered classic rock tunes, “House of the Rising Sun” by The Animals.
Technically, it’s not actually a cover of The Animals, as they weren’t the first… or even anywhere close to the first… band that performed the song. In fact, it’s a folk song that dates back to the late 1800s/early 1900s, sometimes also called “Rising Sun Blues”.Though, the earliest publishing of the lyrics (and, therefore, earliest official recording of the song’s existence) was in the 1920s in a newspaper column. The unsure origins of the folk song and significant age of it have lead pretty directly to its widespread use by bands far and wide, as the song exists in the public domain.
With this in mind there are versions of this song in virtually every style and genre you can imagine. Prior to The Animals making it a number one hit, it was recorded by names big and small including notables like Bob Dylan, Nina Simone, and Pete Seeger. Since its impression into the hearts and minds of rock fans worldwide by that famous version, its been recorded by artist from Dolly Parton to Five Finger Death Punch to Gary Glitter and many more. So, in the pantheon, where does Americana troubadour Pat Guadagno stack up?
As you can hear for yourself (above), Pat’s version isn’t wildly dissimilar in feel from 1964’s most popular version of the tune. Though, the blues feel of Pat’s version seems a bit amped up, while the song itself feels a bit more stripped down. And while the overall tune feels similar, there’s a croon to his vocals that differs a great deal and a 70s singer-songwriter vibe that seems to creep in. Familiar enough to feel comforting, while different enough to feel unique.
In other words, Pat Guadagno certainly does this classic justice and it ranks rather high on the List of the Rising Run.
To hear the full 1964 album, head to Spotify now or check out more of Pat’s music and story at patguadagno.com.
The post How Does Pat Guadagno’s “Housing of the Rising Sun” Rate? appeared first on ROCK THE PIGEON.