Unplugged
with Eric Burdon For the Heartland
May 20, 1995
by Mark Guerrero
In the aftermath of the tragedy of the Oklahoma City bombing,
many benefits were organized to raise money for the families
of the victims. One such benefit was done in the Coachella
Valley in Southern California. The Coachella Valley
includes many cities such as Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage,
Palm Desert, and Indio. This benefit, called “Heart
To the Heartland,“ came in the form of a concert at
the Fantasy Springs Casino in the city of Indio, about 20
miles from my home. The performers included rock &
roll hall of famer Eric Burdon, formerly of the Animals, Cesar
Rosas of Los Lobos, country singer Johnny Lee of “Looking
for Love” fame, Lalo Guerrero, Chicano comedy group
Culture Clash, and others.
The day of the concert, I decided
to go to the sound check in the afternoon to say hello to
Cesar Rosas. I had just spent several days with him
and my dad at Cesar’s recording studio where work had
been done on the “Papa’s Dream” children’s
CD by Los Lobos with Lalo Guerrero. I helped with negotiations
for my dad with the record company and wound up singing background
vocals on “La Bamba.” So I showed up at
Fantasy Springs Casino in the afternoon and found Cesar at
the sound check. While we we talking Eric Burdon showed
up. Cesar introduced me to Eric while the house band
was rehearsing. They were supposed to back up Eric on
his portion of the show. Meanwhile Cesar, who was going
to back Eric in addition to doing his own set with the band,
began to rehearse some of the Animal’s songs with Eric.
I picked up an acoustic guitar and joined in. I knew
the songs and was particularly helpful with the chord changes
on “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.”
Eric decided he’d rather have Cesar and I back him up
with electric acoustics than be backed up by
the full band. I had another gig that night for which
I had to make quick arrangements to cover to be free to do
it.
For the concert that night, Eric,
Cesar, and I were joined by local harmonica player, Hurricane
Ramon. We opened with “See See Rider,” went
into “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood,” and
closed with “House of the Rising Sun.” Eric
doesn’t always do “House of the Rising Sun,”
which was the Animal’s first and biggest hit record.
We didn’t know if we were going to do it until the moment
on stage when he called the song. We hadn’t rehearsed
it, but we all knew it. The packed house went nuts.
The set went well and we got a great response. I was
amazed that Eric Burdon’s voice sounded stronger than
ever. He’s a great blues singer and a force of
nature. I was thrilled to meet and play with Eric, particularly
because I saw the Animals with Eric Burdon perform in New
York City at the Paramount Theater in 1964 when I was 14
years old. I was in New York visiting my brother who
had been living there since 1962. They sounded great
and were being given the “Beatlemania” treatment by the fans. Also, my teenage band, Mark & the
Escorts used to play many songs by the Animals including “See
See Rider,” “We Gotta Get Out of This Place,”
“It’s My Life,” "Don't Bring Me Down," and “House of the
Rising Sun.” From that context you can imagine
why it meant a lot to me to be on stage with him.
The show had quite a finale with
all the performers on stage singing “Drift Away”
by Dobie Gray. I don’t know how that song was
selected, but I happened to know it well and had done it occasionally
at my cover gigs. Johnny Lee sang a verse, everybody sang
the chorus, Eric Burdon sang the second verse, and everybody
sang the second chorus. During that chorus, I got up
the nerve to ask Eric, who was standing next to me, if I could
sing the bridge. He graciously handed me the microphone. I
sang it with the performers and audience clapping along and
Eric pointing at me in approval. It was a great moment for
me, which I have on audio and video tape for posterity.
See
photos below and a link to a video gallery where you can see
our performances of "See See Rider," "Don't
Let Me Be Misunderstood," and "House of the Rising
Sun."
Cesar Rosas, Eric Burdon, Mark Guerrero, and Hurricane
Ramon
(Fantasy
Springs Casino, Indio, California, 1995)
Eric Burdon & Mark
Guerrero
Video
"See See Rider" words
and music Traditional/Ma Rainey
