Animal

Producer

In August 1987, Hysteria was introduced to Europe with the release of “Animal” as its lead single. It immediately made the album a huge success, helping it reach the top 20… Read More

Sep. 19871 viewer62.2K views

Animal Lyrics

[Verse 1]
A wild ride, over stony ground
Such a lust for life, the circus comes to town
We are the hungry ones, on a lightning raid
Just like a river runs, like a fire needs flame
Oh, I burn for you

[Chorus]
I got to feel it in my blood, whoa, oh
I need your touch don't need your love, whoa, oh
And I want, and I need, and I lust, animal
And I want, and I need, and I lust, animal

[Verse 2]
I cry wolf, given mouth to mouth
Like a moving heartbeat, in the witching hour
I'm running with the wind, a shadow in the dust
And like the driving rain, hey, like the restless rust
I never sleep

[Chorus]

[Verse 3]
Huh! Oh! Cry wolf baby, cry tough
Going to hunt you like an, uh, uh, animal
Going to take your love and run

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[Chorus]

[Outro]
And I want (And I want)
And I need (And I need)
And I lust (And I lust)
Animal (Animal)

And I want (Take me)
And I need (Tame me)
And I lust (Make me)
Animal (Your Animal)

And I want (Show me)
And I need (Stroke me)
And I lust (Let me be your)
Animal (Animal)

And I want (I want)
And I need (Ooh, ooh, ooh)
And I lust
Animal (Animal)

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About

In August 1987, Hysteria was introduced to Europe with the release of “Animal” as its lead single. It immediately made the album a huge success, helping it reach the top 20 in eight countries including topping the chart in their homeland the UK.

In the US, where the lead single there, “Women”, had stalled at #80, “Animal” followed it up and did much better – becoming the first of five songs in a row to breach the top 20, beginning the album’s steady climb to #1 in the summer of ‘88 and being the launchpad to propel the album to 10x platinum (aka diamond) within three years.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Def Leppard say about "Animal"?

Guitarist Phil Collen told Songfacts:

We used the original one off of my original demo but it took three years before we actually completed it. I had done this demo and it was okay and there was a song in there we just couldn’t quite get. We’d revisit it and I remember we were recording vocals in Paris for something and one day Joe had done this vocal and (producer) Mutt Lange had said, “Wow, this vocal’s killer. Let’s rewrite the song around that.” So we did and it was our first English Top 10 single, so it was worth waiting. It was something that was okay, and again going back to Mutt Lange, the genius of him, he said, “Yeah, this is okay but this can be great.” That’s always his thing. “Yeah, it can be alright and it can be an okay song but we want to make it great.” And I think we achieved that.

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