Bob Dylan – House of the Rising Sun (Electric) Review

Traditionals and Bob Dylan are the best of friends. House of the Rising Sun is no stranger to the setlists of the man who would send audiences into disarray with his electric introduction. His step to the left and front of folk music with an electric guitar in hand was hugely controversial but reshaped music. There is no doubt about it and listening to the likes of these electrified traditional tracks is evidence enough. Scuttle back to 1964 when Dylan started playing around with controversial tactics and heard the quality come through. House of the Rising Sun is a surefire hit, and The Animals would enjoy similar successes with their adaptation of the classic track. Dylan was crucified because of his close ties to folk standards, but it does not make his rendition any less powerful.  

It was The Animals’ success with the track which led to the electrified release of this Dylan work. He had recorded the piece in 1961 for his self-titled debut and the thought of electric conventions had not crossed his mind at the time. But The Animals had grand success with their perfect cover and so producers got to work adding louder and larger mixes on the Dylan original. In turn, House of the Rising Sun in the hands of Dylan’s production team sounds as though it is playing catch-up with Eric Burdon and the gang. Nothing wrong with that when the vocal style of the folk classic and smooth electrics added in a couple of years later are of great quality. Tom Wilson, the producer behind this failed second push for Dylan, would have great success in these additions. They sound simple now but at the time must have been shocking and out-there suggestions. 

Adding new layers to House of the Rising Sun does not create a swaggering statement on the classy state of traditional recordings but does give it new life. Dylan tried to do this with his debut effort but it lacked something his longer-term style could deliver. Wilson must have known. Heavier percussion and a clearer shot of electric fury are added in and make for a fascinating interpretation of a track The Animals have laid claim to. That is not likely to change anytime soon. But the stunning variations heard on House of the Rising Sun have extracted it from the dusty chambers of old folk numbers. Now when the song is mentioned, the mind drifts to organ solos and the boom of musicians who would shape the latter half of the 1960s.  

Wilson’s attempt to chase the charming amplifications is understandable and works well. He did the same for Simon and Garfunkel with greater success than this House of the Rising Sun adaptation. Dylan has the vocal range for it, that much is extracted well and left untouched. Pairing it with the electric guitar and percussion which would become a staple of his studio and live work should have been a masterstroke. But Wilson was as ahead of the times as Dylan. A far superior version to the original, that much is clear. A well-worked and swaying piece of guitar work is added in and given prominence. Dylan is still the lead but those charming and considered instrumental flourishes are a boom of quality.