Alan Price (Set)

Born Apr 19, 1941 in Fatfield, Co. Durham, England

As the organist in the first Animals lineup, Alan Price was perhaps the most important instrumental contributor to their early run of hits. He left the group in 1965 after only a year or so of international success (he can be seen talking about his departure with Bob Dylan in the rockumentary Don't Look Back) to work on a solo career. Leading the Alan Price Set, he had a Top Ten British hit in 1966 with a reworking of "I Put a Spell on You," complete with Animals-ish organ breaks and bluesy vocals. His subsequent run of British hits between 1966 and 1968 — "Hi-Lili-Hi-Lo," "Simon Smith and His Dancing Bear," "The House That Jack Built," and "Don't Stop the Carnival" — were in a much lighter vein, drawing from British music hall influences. "Simon Smith and His Dancing Bear," from 1967, was one of the first Randy Newman songs to gain international exposure, though Price's version — like all his British hits — went virtually unnoticed in the U.S. A versatile entertainer, Price collaborated with Georgie Fame, hosted TV shows, and scored plays in the years following the breakup of the Alan Price Set in 1968. He composed the score to Lindsay Anderson's O Lucky Man!, where his spare and droll songs served almost as a Greek chorus to the surreal, whimsical film (Price himself has a small role in the movie). His 1974 concept album, Between Today and Yesterday, was his most critically acclaimed work.

Discography:

Album
2004 Georgie Fame and Alan Price
2003 Between Today and Yesterday [Bonus Tracks]
2002 Geordie Boy: Anthology
2001 A Rock 'N' Roll Night at the Royal Court Theatre
1996 A Gigster's Life for Me
1985 Together
1983 Geordie Roots & Branches
1980 Rising Sun
1980 In a Word
1979 Focus on Alan Price
1979 Lucky Day
1978 England My England
1977 Alan Price
1977 Rainbows End
1976 Shouts Across the Street
1975 Performing Price
1974 Metropolitan Man
1974 Between Today and Yesterday
1973 O Lucky Man!
1971 Fame & Price
1970 The World of Alan Price
1969 Savaloy Dip
1968 Price Is Right
1967 A Price on His Head
1966 The Price to Play