Overall, the group balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles such as "We Gotta Get Out of This Place" and "It's My Life" against rhythm and blues–oriented album material.

The Animals released separate UK and US albums, a practice common to other British Invasion bands of the time such as the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.

The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes in the mid-1960s and suffered from poor business management.

An incarnation using the name "Eric Burdon and the Animals" moved to California in 1967 and achieved commercial success as a psychedelic outfit, before disbanding at the end of the decade.

The Animals' studio album releases varied significantly between the UK and the US; even those with the same or similar names had different contents.