The Animals – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

Animals – Don’t Bring Me Down

This song starts off with organ and bass and then…then the guitar comes in with a slight tremolo power chord that makes it. This was right before The Animals split and Eric Burdon formed a new version of the Animals. Their drummer in this is Barry Jenkins and he replaced original member John Steel.

The original lineup only recorded three albums, yet nevertheless managed to break out eight Top 40 hits between 1964 and 1966. Alan Price left in 1965, and John Steel the following year. Also in 1966, Chandler left to start managing artists, and he discovered Jimi Hendrix in Greenwich Village. Now a very different group, they were known as Eric Burdon & The Animals and had six additional Top 40 hits before finally disbanding in 1968.

The biggest difference between the Animals and The Beatles, Stones, Kinks, and The Who was that the Animals didn’t write many of their songs. They kept looking at the Brill Building for songs. This one was written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. Those two wrote a lot of the sixties soundtrack on their own.

That would change soon. In 1966, The Animals changed labels to Decca and started writing their own material in the following years. They would release songs such as San Franciscan Nights, Monterey, and Sky Pilot.

Don’t Bring Me Down peaked at #12 on the Billboard 100, #3 in Canada, and #6 in the UK in 1966.

Eric Burdon: “I didn’t realize that it was a Goffin, King song until I was in a doctor’s office in Beverly Hills and Ms. King came in and sat next to me. I didn’t know it was her, I was just reading a magazine and she turned to me and said, ‘You know, I hated what you did to my song.’ I didn’t know what to say, so all I said was, ‘well, sorry.’ and then as she got up to go into the doctor’s office, she turned around and said, ‘but I got used to it.'”

Eric Burdon: “I’ve always viewed myself as a punk. The Animals could have evolved that way. We had the energy and the anger, but we didn’t stick together. When the punk scene became commercial, I was all for the politics of the movement, but the music didn’t really stand up and ultimately, it was self destructive.”

Don’t Let Me Down

When you complain and criticize
I feel I’m nothing in your eyes.,
It makes me feel like givin’ up
Because my best just ain’t good enough.
Girl I want to provide for you and
Do the things you want me to!

But oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!
Oh, baby you know!
Oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!

Sacrifices I will make,
I’m ready to give as well as take,
One thing I need is your respect,
One thing I can’t take is your neglect,
More than anything I need your love
Then trouble’s easy to rise above.

But oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!
Oh, baby you know!
Oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!

But oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!
Oh, baby you know!
Oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!
Oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!
Oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!
Oh, oh, no, don’t bring me down!

Animals – San Franciscan Nights

I bought this song on a single along with Sky Pilot when I was getting into the Animals as a pre-teen. This was not the same Animals of House of the Rising Sun and others…everyone but Eric Burdon and drummer Barry Jenkins had been replaced.

In this song Eric welcomes you to the Summer of Love in 1967 San Francisco. This new version of the Animals they were losing traction in Europe and at the spoken word beginning of this song Burdon welcomes the Europeans over to San Francisco. The song was popular and also an anti Vietnam song.

The song peaked at #1 in Canada, #9 in the Billboard 100, and #7 in the UK in 1967.

Many people complained that San Francisco is not that warm at night or any other time. Burdon and his group had recently played in San Francisco during a rare 10-day stretch of exceptionally warm spring weather, which left a strong impression.

At a concert Burdon has said the song was written about an evening with Janis Joplin in San Francisco.

Eric Burdon: “Britain is not as aware of what we are trying to communicate as the Americans. The whole world still needs a kick up the pants – the Americans are one move ahead. The record company was afraid I would offend England if I released ‘San Franciscan Nights’. They thought I had offered enough insults to England.”

From Songfacts

1967 was the year of the “Summer of Love,” and San Francisco was a hot spot for Hippies. Along with “San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair),” “San Franciscan Nights” was a popular ode to the city in those turbulent times.

The Animals were from England, but were welcomed in America along with other British Invasion groups like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. They wrote this song themselves, which takes a stand against the Vietnam War. Looking back on the song in our 2010 interview, Animals lead singer Eric Burdon said: “The ‘Love Generation’ helped the anti-war stance in the states. It certainly turned a lot of soldiers’ heads around, making them wonder why they had to be out fighting a war when back home their girlfriends were frolicking around and it caused a lot of anguish on that level. Maybe it helped politically with the so-called enemy. I’m not sure.”

San Franciscan Nights

This following program is dedicated to the city and people of
San Francisco, who may not know it but they are beautiful and so
Is their city this is a very personal song, so if the viewer
Cannot understand it particularly those of you who are European
Residents save up all your bread and fly trans love airways to
San Francisco U.S.A., then maybe you’ll understand the song, it
Will be worth it, if not for the sake of this song but for the
Sake of your own peace of mind.

Strobe lights beam create dreams
Walls move minds do too
On a warm San Franciscan night
Old child young child feel alright
On a warm San Franciscan night
Angels sing leather wings
Jeans of blue Harley Davidsons too
On a warm San Franciscan night
Old angels young angels feel alright
On a warm San Franciscan night.

I wasn’t born there perhaps I’ll die there
There’s no place left to go, San Franciscan.

Cop’s face is filled with hate
Heavens above he’s on a street called love
When will they even learn
Old cop young cop feel alright
On a warm San Franciscan night
The children are cool
They don’t raise fools
It’s an American dream
Includes indians too.

Animals – When I Was Young

The Animals were nasty sounding…more than the Stones on some of their records at this time.

This is one of the songs that have been said as having pioneered grunge music. The song was written by Eric Burdon, Vic Briggs, John Weider, Barry Jenkins, and Danny McCulloch.

This was in the middle of the psychedelic period…In 1966 the original Animals disbanded because of business mismanagement and were in debt. Eric carried on with the newly named Eric Burdon & The Animals. He left behind his Newcastle, hard-drinking ways behind, and became a spokesman for the counterculture in this period.

This song was released in 1967 and it peaked at #15 in the Billboard 100, #10 in Canada, and #45 in the UK.

Eric Burdon: “When I first wrote it I played it to George Harrison and his comment was ‘Great! You got to do more of this. You’ll know you’ll be able to sing this song when you are in your forties.’ Now I am in my 70s and I am still singing it.”

From Songfacts

“When I Was Young” was written by Eric Burdon and included on various Animals albums as well as being a single release.

Burdon’s composition marks an important turning point for the Animals: many of The Animals’ hits had been Brill Building productions, most notably the husband-and-wife team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, which was an effort by their producer Mickie Most to make this British Invasion band sound more American. Burdon found this too restricting, and the group moved to Decca Records by 1966. This was amongst their first hits after this move.

Cover versions of this song include versions by Golden Earring, Eddie Fisher, Tina Turner, and The Ramones. It’s also been featured in film soundtracks such as Doris Dorrie’s Manner….

When I Was Young

‘The rooms were so much colder then
My father was a soldier then
And times were very hard
When I was young

I smoked my first cigarette at ten
And for girls, I had a bad yen
And I had quite a ball
When I was young

When I was young, it was more important
Pain more painful
Laughter much louder
Yeah, when I was young
When I was young

I met my first love at thirteen
She was brown and I was pretty green
And I learned quite a lot when I was young
When I was young
When I was young

Pain more painful
Laughter much louder
Yeah, when I was young
When I was young

My faith was so much stronger then
I believed in fellow man
And I was so much older then
When I was young
When I was young
When I was young