When I Was Young By The Animals - Songfacts

Toggle navigation

• Home
• Categories
• Places
• Blog
  • Blogs Home
  • News
  • Lists
  • Features
  • Songwriter Interviews
  • Song Writing
  • Fact or Fiction
  • They're Playing My Song
  • Music Quiz
  • Songfacts Pages
  • Songwriting Legends
  • Songfacts Podcast
  • All Titles
  • Authors
    • Amanda Flinner
    • April Fox
    • Bruce Pollock
    • Carl Wiser
    • Corey O'Flanagan
    • Dan MacIntosh
    • Developer
    • Ed Pearce
    • Greg Prato
    • Jeff Suwak
    • Jess Grant
    • Laura Antonelli
    • Leslie Michele Derrough
    • Maggie Grimason
    • Nicole Roberge
    • Roger Catlin
    • Shawna Ortega
    • Stephanie Myers
    • Trevor Morelli
• Browse
  • Songs
  • Artists
  • Places
  • Years
  • Categories

Search

When I Was Youngby The Animals

Album: Very Best of Eric Burdon & The Animals (1967)Charted: 45 15 License This Song  artistfacts

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....
• 1967 was the year before The Animals sort of fell apart. The cause is placed entirely on bad business decisions; The Animals were getting rooked over by a dishonest manager and were losing more money than they were making. For more on the band, check out our interview with Eric Burdon.
• This song is sometimes cited as having pioneered the grunge/metal sound years before its time.
• Speaking with American Songwriter magazine in a 2013 interview, Eric Burdon said this is the first song he wrote that has stood the test of time. He explained: "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."

• More songs from The Animals
• More songs from 1967
• The Animals Artistfacts

Your name as you would like it displayed Your Locaton Your Comment send your comment

Comments: 2

• New Look Melanie from St. Pete FloridaI am interested in the instrumentation on "When I was Young?" When I listen, I hear an exotic set of strings appear to cradle the plaintive manifesto: Who is the player and what's the instrument?
• Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn April 2nd 1967, "When I Was Young” by Eric Burton & the Animals entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #77; four weeks later on April 30th, 1967 it peaked at 15 {for 3 weeks} and spent 9 weeks on the Top 100...And on June 3rd, 1967 it reached #2* {for 3 weeks} on the Australian RPM 100 Singles chart...Between 1964 and 1968 the British quintet had eighteen Top 100 records; three made the Top 10 with one reaching #1, "The House of the Rising Sun" for three weeks in 1964... For their last eight charted records their name changed from The Animals to Eric Burton & the Animals... * The three weeks that "When I Was Young" was at #2, the #1 record for those three weeks was "This Is My Song" by Petula Clark.

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Live ForeverOasis

The Oasis song "Live Forever" was written in response to "I Hate Myself And I Want To Die" by Nirvana. "Kids don't need to hear that nonsense," said Noel Gallagher.

Turn On The RadioReba McEntire

When "Turn On The Radio" topped the January 1, 2011 Country chart, Reba McEntire became the first female solo act to have a #1 hit on that tally in four straight decades.

Black StarAvril Lavigne

Avril Lavigne has a perfume named after her song "Black Star." It smells much better than her Sk8er Boi scent, which reeks of Axe body spray and road grime.

Return To InnocenceEnigma

"Return To Innocence" by Enigma is based on a Taiwanese chant by a husband and wife. The couple won a lawsuit granting them royalties from the song.

Jessie's GirlRick Springfield

"Jessie's Girl" was the #1 song in America when MTV went on the air. They put it in hot rotation right away, making the song even more popular.

Eyes Without A FaceBilly Idol

Billy Idol's "Eyes Without A Face" has a gruesome inspiration. It's based on a 1959 French movie about a surgeon who abducts young women and removes their facial features.

Editor's Picks

Mac Powell of Third DaySongwriter Interviews

The Third Day frontman talks about some of the classic songs he wrote with the band, and what changed for his solo country album.

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many SongsSong Writing

For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.

WeezerFact or Fiction

Did Rivers Cuomo grow up on a commune? Why did they name their albums after colors? See how well you know your Weezer in this Fact or Fiction.

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TVSong Writing

Shows like Dawson's Creek, Grey's Anatomy and Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the way songs were heard on TV, and produced some hits in the process.

Early Days of MTVFact or Fiction

If you can recall the days when MTV played videos, you know that there are lots of stories to tell. See if you can spot the real ones.

00s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

Do you know the girl singer on Eminem's "Stan"? If so, this quiz is for you.

Songfacts® Newsletter

A monthly update on our latest interviews, stories and added songs

What's your email? SUBSCRIBE

Information

• About Us
• Terms of Service
• Our Privacy Policy
• Google Privacy Policy
• Songfacts API
• Music History Calendar
• Song Licensing
• Affiliate Disclosure
• Contact Us
• Privacy Manager

Follow Us

• Facebook
• X (Twitter)
• YouTube

Contribution

• Message Boards
• Songfacts Writers

©2026 Songfacts, LLC