Rock

This Sixties rock song was written by the husband and wife songwriting team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. They originally wrote it for The Righteous Brothers, for whom they had written the mega-hit “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’.” However, the British record producer Mickie Most got a hold of Mann’s demo of the song and thought it would be great for The Animals. Group member Chas Chandler added a distinctive bass line. (For those who like this sort of trivia, there’s been a brouhaha about a difference in lyrics on the second version between the U.K. and the U.S. releases. Evidently, for the U.S., a mistaken earlier version had “See my daddy in bed -a’dyin'” instead of the U.K. versions which had “watch my daddy in bed a-dyin’. While the U.S. version made it onto the U.S. versions of their 1965 album Animals Tracks and 1966 album The Best of the Animals, over the years reissues have the corrected British version.)

The song went to #2 on the U.K. Singles Chart and in Canada. It went to #13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” became very popular with the U.S. Armed Forces stationed in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. It’s been said that every band that played in an armed forces club had to play that song. Accolades include listing on Rolling Stone magazine’s “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time” and The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.”

The Animals formed in Newcastle and then moved to London. The group had many changes over time, but on this track were Eric Burdon (vocals), Dave Rowberry (keyboards) , Hilton Valentine (guitar), John Steel (drums), and Bryan “Chas” Chandler (bass).

Here are the lyrics:

“In this dirty old part of the city
Where the sun refused to shine
People tell me there ain’t no use in tryin’

Now my girl you’re so young and pretty
And one thing I know is true
You’ll be dead before your time is due, I know

Watch my daddy in bed a-dyin’
Watched his hair been turnin’ grey
He’s been workin’ and slavin’ his life away
Oh yes I know it

He’s been workin’ so hard
(Yeah!) I’ve been workin’ too, baby
(Yeah!) Every night and day
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!)

We gotta get out of this place
If it’s the last thing we ever do
We gotta get out of this place
’cause girl, there’s a better life for me and you

Now my girl you’re so young and pretty
And one thing I know is true, yeah
You’ll be dead before your time is due, I know it

Watch my daddy in bed a-dyin’
Watched his hair been turnin’ grey, yeah
He’s been workin’ and slavin’ his life away
I know he’s been workin’ so hard

I’ve been workin’ too, baby
(Yeah!) Every day baby
(Yeah!) Whoa!
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!)

We gotta get out of this place
If it’s the last thing we ever do
We gotta get out of this place
Girl, there’s a better life for me and you
Somewhere baby, somehow I know it

We gotta get out of this place
If it’s the last thing we ever do
We gotta get out of this place
Girl, there’s a better life for me and you
Believe me baby I know it baby
You know it too”

If you are interested in reading about and listening to another song by The Animals, please click here for “House of the Rising Sun.”

Check Out The Groove Pad for More 1960s Music

The Pass the Paisley Groove Pad is a resting stop, a place to chill out and listen to the featured song on the stereo. If the mood strikes you, click on the juke box to access and listen to the 50+ free online music there. The TV has several channels, with selections updated twice a week. Every now and then, Pass the Paisley hosts an all-request of 1960s and 1970s songs for a Be-In at the juke box in the Groove Pad. Keep on truckin’. Hope you enjoyed “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” by The Animals.