The Animals turned Carole King and Gerry Goffin’s polished pop song ‘Don’t Bring Me Down’ into a bluesy garage-rock hit in 1966. Although the recording became a major success, singer Eric Burdon disliked the group’s reliance on outside songwriters, while King initially felt The Animals had ruined her composition.

Producer Mickie Most had sought material from the Brill Building as The Animals’ popularity grew and radio demanded hit singles. The song reached the UK top ten and peaked at number 12 in the US, below ‘House of the Rising Sun’; King later told Burdon she hated their version, though she eventually admitted she had grown used to it.