abstract
| - %22When I Was Young%22 is a song with a countercultural theme released in early 1967 by Eric Burdon, with The Animals and was written by five of the band members Eric Burdon (vocals), Barry Jenkins (drums), John Weider (guitar/violin), Vic Briggs (guitar) and Danny McCulloch (bass). It charted in Australia peaking #2 and stayed 4 weeks there. Later it was a hit charting #10 on the Canadian RPM chart, # 15 in the United States and #7 in the Netherlands. The song has been covered by many punk rock and heavy metal bands.This song is noted for its Indian riff, played by an electric guitar as well as a violin. It is also distinctive for its introduction featuring a heavily distorted guitar's tremolo descent from E to D. This somewhat autobiographical song told about Burdon's father, who was a soldier during tough times, as well as young Eric's adventures including his first smoke of a cigarette at 10, to his meeting his first love at 13. The final verse shows his disillusionment with society by saying:%22My faith was so much stronger then,/I believed in fellow men,/And I was so much older then./When I was Young%22.This song begins in E Minor, and ends in G Minor. The B-Side %22A Girl Named Sandoz%22 is named after the drug company that invented LSD.Later it was used for a German TV commercial. In the early 80s Burdon began to mention many stars who died at the end of the song.
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