The Animals - The Other Side Of This Life (1966)

This is track 3 from the final album by The Animals, fronted by R&B singer Eric Burdon, released in November 1966, and written by US folk singer/songwriter Fred Neil. Over eleven years ago, closing in on twelve, I did my first Eric Burdon video, a slideshow and stop animation of the song "Help Me Girl" which you can find on YouTube and on this channel. It was one of a small number of songs done by Eric Burdon, Eric Burdon & The Animals, and The Animals that I loved through the years and was haunted enough by it to turn it into a video. I did a number of Animals and Burdon classics, from 'White Houses" to "Sky Pilot" to "House Of The Rising Sun." Another song I loved almost as much as "Help Me Girl" was "Don't Bring Me Down" which was also made into a video. But there was another song in the back of mind whose title I couldn't quite conjure up in memory until quite recently, and it was this one, "The Other Side Of This Life." For me it is right up there with "Help Me Girl" and I am glad to finally give it what I hope is a fitting and memory-jogging visual treatment. I should add that Frank Zappa collaborated with Eric Burdon in the musical production of this song, as well as a few others.

I always thought this song was a major hit for The Animals, but apparently not. It became a modest success in the United States, reaching #11 on the US adult contemporary and #58 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. More specific chart information is not available, but given its late release on November 21, 1966, it probably did not appear on the chart until December and then peak at #58 until sometime early in 1967. It will always be a major hit to me, regardless.