Carole King has expressed regret over her role in writing the 1962 song ‘He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)’, recorded by The Crystals. The song portrayed domestic violence as evidence of love, a message that alarmed the group and repelled many listeners, and it has become more troubling in light of producer Phil Spector’s later history of abuse and murder conviction.

King wrote the music while her then-husband and songwriting partner Gerry Goffin wrote the lyrics, reportedly inspired by their babysitter Eva Boyd describing an assault by her partner as proof that he loved her. The Crystals were reluctant to record it, and it failed to become a hit as radio stations and audiences reacted negatively. In her 2012 memoir, King said she felt “complicit” and wished she had not contributed to it, while recognising that the song reflected a damaging view of abusive relationships held by some victims.