Electric Light Orchestra -- Don't Bring Me Down
An in-depth song analysis
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Initially Released On: Discovery LP album (1979 May — UK — Jet JET LX 500) |
Don't Bring Me Down was recorded at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany some time early 1979. Its recording is significant to the band's history because it was not written or recorded in the typical manner. Jeff Lynne wrote the song while in the studio late in the Discovery sessions. He sampled a drum track from a song recorded earlier in the session, slowed it down, and looped it continuously to create a new song. Using this looped beat, Jeff wrote the song on piano in the studio and immediately following created the basic backing track all by himself. Later, Jeff wrote the words and they were added to the song along with the final touches. It is unclear if other band members, if any, were involved in the song, although it is likely that Richard Tandy added the keyboard flourishes throughout. The song features no strings and is the first ELO song released to not have them included.
The song was released as a single in England on Jet records on September 1, 1979 with stock number "JET 153" with an unedited version of Dreaming Of 4000 from the On The Third Day album on the B-side. In the USA, it's the eighteenth single release and was released in July 1979, on Jet Records (distributed by CBS) with stock number "ZS9 5060" with the same version of Dreaming Of 4000 on the B-side. It was also released as the final track of side 2 on the Discovery album on May 1979 in the USA and June 1979 in England.
Don't Bring Me Down is also significant as it is ELO's highest Billboard charting single ever in the USA and is the biggest hit in many other countries as well. In the UK, it is the second highest charting single (with Xanadu as the top single in 1980). It entered the UK chart on September 1, 1979, peaked at #3 on September 22, and spent 8 weeks in the chart. In the USA, it entered the Billboard Top 100 chart on August 4, 1979, reached #4 for two consecutive weeks on September 8 & 15, 1979, spending 15 weeks in the chart and entered the Cash Box chart on July 28, 1979, reached #4 for two consecutive weeks on September 22 & 29, 1979, spending 17 weeks in the chart. It is ELO's sixteenth Billboard chart single.
Also of interest, this song features no strings and is the first ELO song ever to not use an orchestra at all. It is unclear why no strings were used. It is well documented that Jeff was getting tired of the requirement for having to use an orchestra on all his songs and the Discovery sessions were the first ELO sessions in which the band's string players were not used in the studio (and they were dismissed from the band shortly after the album's release). It is likely that Jeff completed the backing track and concluded that the song didn't need strings, so he never added them to the song. Indeed, Don't Bring Me Down was such a big success for the band that Jeff likely decided at that time that the use of strings would be reduced on all future recordings. And it was.
Jeff has remained coy about from which song he sampled the drum beat and it might be the case that he doesn't recall himself where it is from. Audio evidence shows it was taken from On The Run. A sample can be heard HERE that includes a sample Don't Bring Me Down, then a sample from the original On The Run (which is slowed down to match the beat), and finally a blend of the two.
At the beginning of the song, Jeff can be heard counting in the song (one, two-- one, two, three, four). This appears to be Jeff having a bit of a joke, as a count-in was not actually needed for the song. Because it's not actually a live in studio performance, but rather a song that is fabricated from the sampled drum beat and Jeff himself playing various instruments to make the backing track, the count-in was probably added after the backing track was recorded.
The chorus uses the nonsense word "grroosss" (as it is written in the liner notes) which has caused much confusion and amusement over the years. This word has no meaning and was simply a word that Jeff had made up on the spot as he was recording the lyrics. While recording at Musicland Studios in Germany, the German engineer, Mack, expressed his surprise at Jeff's use of a German word in his lyrics. The German word "Grüß" (written as "grooss" in the standard Latin alphabet) means "greeting" in German. It was totally by accident that Jeff's made up word "grroosss" sounded like the German word, but the decision was made to leave it in the song. Later, upon the song's release, many people misinterpreted this word as "Bruce" as if Jeff were singing the song to an imaginary person named Bruce (which would be odd considering that in the song, he is singing to a female). In any case, Jeff noted that during live shows, many fans sang the lyric as "Bruce" rather than "grroosss". Shortly afterwards, he began singing it as "Bruce" as well. This new lyric is most noticeable on the Zoom Tour Live DVD concert.
At the song's end is a sound that many fans have had difficulty identifying over the years. It is confirmed to be a fire door that is slammed at Musicland studios in Germany. It can be heard HERE (with enhancement on the door slam so it can be heard clearly). It is uncertain why the slamming door part was included, but it likely was intended just as an amusing ending to the song and/or the Discovery album, as if the band were finished playing and were immediately leaving the building.
Finally, the song seems to be popular with NASA. It was dedicated to the NASA Skylab space station, as it was about to reenter the Earth's atmosphere on July 11, 1979. In 1995 or 1996, it was used as the wake-up call song for space shuttle astronauts. Weather problems at the shuttle landing sites meant that the astronauts were on an unexpected and extended mission that resulted in a record setting time in space for a shuttle mission.
Structure and Lyrics
Below is the structure of the fullest, most complete version of the originally released song as available on the standard issues of the Discovery album.
-Drum Intro with Count-In
-Guitar and Piano Intro
-Verse 1
You got me runnin', goin' out of my mind
You got me thinkin' that I'm wastin' my time
Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down
-Verse 2
You wanna stay out with your fancy friends
I'm tellin' you it's got to be the end
Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down
-Chorus 1
Don't bring me down, grroosss
Don't bring me down, grroosss
Don't bring me down, grroosss
Don't bring me down
-Verse 3
What happened to the girl I used to know?
You let your mind out somewhere down the road
Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down
-Verse 4
You're always talkin' 'bout your crazy nights
One of these days you're gonna get it right
Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down
-Chorus 2
Don't bring me down, grroosss
Don't bring me down, grroosss
Don't bring me down, grroosss
Don't bring me down
-Verse 5
You're lookin' good just like a snake in the grass with no guitar backing
One of these days you're gonna break your glass with no guitar backing
Don't bring me down, no no no no no no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down
-Short guitar and piano bridge #1
-Verse 6
You got me shakin', got me runnin' away
You get me crawlin' up to you everyday
Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down, down, down, down, down, down
-Short guitar and piano bridge #2
-Verse 7
I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor
Don't bring me down
-Door slam
Variations
There are only two known non-live variations of the original Don't Bring Me Down They are:
-Don't Bring Me Down (Standard Release)
-Don't Bring Me Down (Edited 18 Greatest Hits LP Version)
It is somewhat surprising that Don't Bring Me Down was never edited for single release as typically radio stations want shorter songs and at four minutes plus, this song pushes the limits. Perhaps by the late 1970s, the desire for shorter songs had dropped and an edit was no longer necessary. All releases even include the door slam sound at the end, which was unlikely to be heard on radio. The only known variation is an edit, from the 1984 Australian 18 Greatest Hits LP it replaces the last "I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor, Don't bring me down" line of the sixth verse with the same lines of the final verse, cutting everything in-between.
Song Section Lyric/Part Don't Bring Me Down (Standard Release) Don't Bring Me Down (Edited 18 Greatest Hits LP Version) Intro Drum Intro with Count-In YES YES Guitar and Piano Intro YES YES Verse 1 You got me runnin', goin' out of my mind YES YES You got me thinkin' that I'm wastin' my time YES YES Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo YES YES I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Verse 2 You wanna stay out with your fancy friends YES YES I'm tellin' you it's got to be the end YES YES Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo YES YES I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Chorus 1 Don't bring me down, grroosss YES YES Don't bring me down, grroosss YES YES Don't bring me down, grroosss YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Verse 3 What happened to the girl I used to know? YES YES You let your mind out somewhere down the road YES YES Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo YES YES I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Verse 4 You're always talkin' 'bout your crazy nights YES YES One of these days you're gonna get it right YES YES Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo YES YES I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Chorus 2 Don't bring me down, grroosss YES YES Don't bring me down, grroosss YES YES Don't bring me down, grroosss YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Verse 5 You're lookin' good just like a snake in the grass with no guitar backing YES YES One of these days you're gonna break your glass with no guitar backing
YES YES Don't bring me down, no no no no no no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo YES YES I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Short guitar and piano bridge #1 Short guitar and piano bridge #1 YES YES Verse 6 You got me shakin', got me runnin' away YES YES You get me crawlin' up to you everyday YES YES Don't bring me down, no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo YES YES I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES - Don't bring me down, down, down, down, down, down YES - Short guitar and piano bridge #2 Short guitar and piano bridge #2 YES - Verse 7 I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor YES YES Don't bring me down YES YES Door slam Door slam YES YES
Music Chart
These are the known statistics for the various countries' music charts. If you can fill in the missing information or know of charting information in other countries, please let me know at the email address listed at the bottom of this page.
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10 Week 11 Week 12 Week 13 Week 14 Week 15 Week 16 Week 17 Week 18 Week 19 Week 20 Week 21 Week 22 Week 23 Week 24 Week 25 Week 26 Week 27 UK Chart Entry Date: September 1, 1979 38 11 4 3
(September 22, 1979)5 10 20 36 USA Billboard Top 100 Chart Entry Date: August 4, 1979 41 18 14 6 5 4
(September 8, 1979)4
(September 15, 1979)10 10 11 13 39 41 73 97 USA Cash Box Top 100 Chart Entry Date: July 28, 1979 48 36 28 15 12 10 8 6 4
(September 22, 1979)4
(September 29, 1979)9 11 21 27 42 61 96 USA Record World Top 40 Chart Entry Date: August 4, 1979 Peak of 3
during a run of 18 weeks on the chartGermany Top 70 Chart Entry Date: September 22, 1979 26 20 8 8 5
(October 20, 1979)5
(October 27, 1979)5
(November 3, 1979)5
(November 10, 1979)7 9 10 13 13 17 21 25 28 34 35 44 49 39 50 64 70 67 70
Releases
Here are all the known USA and UK releases of the song:
Don't Bring Me Down (Standard Release)
- Running Time: 4:06
- Released On: Discovery LP album (1979 May — UK — Jet JET LX 500)
Discovery LP album (1979 June — USA — Jet FZ 35769)
Don't Bring Me Down 7" single (1979 July — USA — Jet/CBS ZS9 5060)
Don't Bring Me Down 7" single (1979 September 1 — UK — Jet JET 153)
Don't Bring Me Down 12" single (1979 September 1 — UK — Jet JET 12-153)
Four Light Years LP album (1980 — UK — Jet JET BX2)
A Box Of Their Best LP album (1980 — USA — Jet Z4X 36966)
Discovery Half Speed Mastered LP album (1980 — USA — Jet HZ 45769)
Don't Bring Me Down Golden Oldies 7" single (1980 December — USA — Jet/CBS ZS8 5153)
The Best Of ELO LP album (1981 — UK — Tellydisc TELLY 7)
Discovery CD album (1983 — USA — Jet ZK 35769)
Discovery LP album (1987 — UK — Epic 450083 1)
Discovery/Time LP album (1989 — UK — Epic 465224-1)
The Very Best Of The Electric Light Orchestra CD album (1989 — UK — Telstar TCD 2370)
Afterglow CD album (1990 June 15 — USA — Epic Associated Z3K 46090)
ELO Classics CD album (1990 — USA — CBS Special Products A 21583)
Don't Bring Me Down Collectables 7" single (1991 — USA — Jet/CBS ZS8 5153)
ELO's Greatest Hits Volume Two LP album (1992 — UK — Epic 471956 1)
ELO's Greatest Hits Volume Two CD album (1992 — UK — Epic 471956 2)
The Very Best Of The Electric Light Orchestra CD album (1994 — UK — Dino DINCD90)
Discovery 24KT Gold CD album (1995 — USA — Jet/Epic/Legacy ZK 64646)
Strange Magic: The Best Of Electric Light Orchestra CD album (1995 — USA — Legacy/Epic Associated Z2K 64157)
Donnie Brasco: Original Soundtrack Various Artists CD album (1997 February 25 — USA — Hollywood Records 162 102-2)
Light Years: The Very Best Of Electric Light Orchestra CD album (1997 — UK — Epic 489039 2)
Out Of The Blue Tour - Live At Wembley / Discovery VHS videotape (1998 December 8 — USA — Image Entertainment ID4561ER)
Out Of The Blue Tour - Live At Wembley / Discovery DVD (1999 January 19 — USA — Image Entertainment ID4562ERDVD)
Out Of The Blue Tour - Live At Wembley / Discovery DVD (2000 June 16 — UK — Eagle Rock Entertainment EREDV 058)
Flashback CD album (2000 November 21 — USA — Epic/Legacy E3K 85123)
Flashback CD album (2000 December 11 — UK — Epic/Legacy 500931 2)
Discovery CD album (2001 June 11 — UK — Epic 5019052)
Discovery CD album (2001 June 12 — USA — Epic/Legacy EK 85420)
The Ultimate Collection CD album (2001 October 22 — UK — Sony Music STVCD126)
Mullets Rock! Various Artists CD album (2003 March 11 — USA — Epic 86826E2K)
The Essential Electric Light Orchestra CD album (2003 April 1 — USA — Epic/Legacy EK 89072)
The In-Laws Various Artists CD album (2003 May 20 — USA — Rhino 8122738862)
The Collection CD album (2003 — UK — Marks & Spencer MS4800Q)
Out Of The Blue Tour - Live At Wembley / Discovery DVD (2004 October 5 — USA — Eagle Vision 801213008292)
All Over The World: The Very Best Of Electric Light Orchestra CD album (2005 June 6 — UK — Sony 5201292)
All Over The World: The Very Best Of Electric Light Orchestra CD album (2005 August 2 — USA — Epic/Legacy EK 94489)
ELO Classics CD album (2007 October 9 — USA — KRB Music Companies KRB7045-2)Don't Bring Me Down (Edited 18 Greatest Hits LP Version)
- Running Time: 3:42
- Released On: 18 Greatest Hits LP album (1984 — Australia — K-tel NA 674)
Don't Bring Me Down (Time Tour)
- Running Time: 5:23 (approximate)
- Written By: Jeff Lynne
- Produced By: Jeff Lynne
- Engineered By: Unknown
- Performed By: Jeff Lynne (vocals, guitar), Bev Bevan (drums, percussion), Richard Tandy (piano, synthesizer, electric piano), Kelly Groucutt (bass, backing vocals), Mik Kaminski (violin, synthesizer), Louis Clark (string synthesizer), Dave Morgan (acoustic guitar, vocoder)
- Released On: Unreleased (bootlegged)
Don't Bring Me Down (Heartbeat '86, March 15 1986)
- Running Time: 5:12 (approximate)
- Written By: Jeff Lynne
- Produced By: Jeff Lynne
- Engineered By: Unknown
- Performed By: Jeff Lynne (vocals, guitar), Bev Bevan (drums), Richard Tandy (keyboards), Mik Kaminski (violin), Louis Clark (string keyboards), Dave Morgan (guitar, keyboards), Martin Smith (bass, backing vocals)
- Released On: Unreleased (bootlegged)
Don't Bring Me Down (Balance Of Power Tour)
- Running Time: 5:22 (approximate)
- Written By: Jeff Lynne
- Produced By: Jeff Lynne
- Engineered By: Unknown
- Performed By: Jeff Lynne (vocals, guitar), Bev Bevan (drums), Richard Tandy (keyboards), Mik Kaminski (violin), Louis Clark (string keyboards), Dave Morgan (guitar, keyboards), Martin Smith (bass, backing vocals)
- Released On: Unreleased (bootlegged)
Don't Bring Me Down (New York City, April 20, 2001)
- Running Time: 5:27 (approximate)
- Produced By: Jeff Lynne
- Engineered By: Unknown
- Performed By: Jeff Lynne (lead vocals, guitar), Richard Tandy (keyboards), Rosie Vela (backup vocals), Marc Mann (keyboards, guitar), Gregg Bissonette (drums), Matt Bissonette (bass), Peggy Baldwin (cello), Nancy Stein-Ross (cello)
- Released On: Unreleased (bootlegged)
Don't Bring Me Down (May 2001)
- Running Time: 4:09
- Produced By: Jeff Lynne
- Engineered By: Unknown
- Performed By: Jeff Lynne (lead vocals, guitar), Richard Tandy (keyboards), Rosie Vela (backup vocals), Marc Mann (keyboards, guitar), Gregg Bissonette (drums), Matt Bissonette (bass), Peggy Baldwin (cello), Sarah O'Brien (cello)
- Released On: Zoom Tour Live VHS videotape (2001 November 5 — UK — Aviva International B00005Q5ME)
Zoom Tour Live DVD (2001 November 13 — USA — Image Entertainment ID1334DDDVD)
Zoom Tour Live VHS videotape (2001 November 13 — USA — Image Entertainment ID1333DD)
Zoom Tour Live DVD (2003 July 28 — UK — Sony BMG 74321 89860 9)
Tours
Don't Bring Me Down was played on all tours following its release.
Only the live performance from the PBS performance for the aborted Zoom tour has been officially released. Performances of from the Time and Balance Of Power tours have not been officially released, although they have been bootlegged from various sources.
Both the Time and Balance Of Power tours, as well as the Heartbeat '86 charity concert, used the same alternate arrangement of the song. In the show setlists, it was the next to last song performed with a long drum intro to get the crowd worked up. Verse 4 was replaced with a guitar solo. Verse 5 was followed with three "I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor, don't bring me down" lines before ending the song and completely cutting the short piano bridge sections. In addition to these song changes, on the Time tour, Kelly sang harmony vocals throughout the song. On the Balance Of Power tour, bassist Martin Smith sang all harmony vocals.
For all performances (except for a few early Time tour performances) the song was interrupted by an audience participation section. For this section, Jeff stopped singing on the last part of verse 5 ("no, no..." to "don't bring me down"), allowing the audience to sing it. Following this last part, Kelly Groucutt on the Time tour and Jeff on the Balance Of Power tour tried to get the audience to sing it louder and they played it again. Claiming he was not satisfied with the audience's performance, Jeff (on all tours) again tried to get the audience to sing even louder and the band played the part again. Satisfied, the song continued with verse 5's "no no no no no no no no no no" line.
The arrangement for the aborted Zoom tour and the Storytellers performance was another completely different arrangement. This time, Rosie Vela sang all harmony vocals throughout. Verse 4 was replaced with a guitar solo and an additional "I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor, don't bring me down" line was added after the guitar solo. The "Don't bring me down, no no no no no no no no no no, ooh-ee-hoo" line of verse 5 used a very different rock-a-billy type of beat and guitar bit that seemed to take many fans by surprise. The first guitar and piano bridge was extended greatly, with significant piano contributions from Richard Tandy. And finally an additional "I'll tell you once more before I get off the floor, don't bring me down" line was added to the song's end.
Also of note, all live performances of the song changed the "ooh-ee-hoo" sections in the verses to "ooh-ooh-hoo".
Pictures
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| UK 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET 153 | UK 12" single * Jet * JET 12-153 | USA 7" vinyl single * Jet * CBS ZS9 5060 | UK Discovery album * Jet * JET LX 500 | USA 7" vinyl single * Golden Oldies Jet * CBS ZS8 5153 |
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| USA 7" vinyl single * Collectibles Jet * CBS ZS8 5153 |
Argentina 7" vinyl single * Epic * 40.208
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
Canada 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET ZS9 5060 | Canada 7" vinyl single * Columbia * E4-1058 |
France 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET 153
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
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Germany Promo 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET S 503
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
Germany 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET S 503 |
Italy 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET 503
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
Japan 7" vinyl single * Jet * 06SP 414
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
Malaysia 7" vinyl single * JBR * JBRE 223
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
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Mexico 7" vinyl single * Epic * MEX-71779
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
New Zealand 7" vinyl single * Jet * JS 009
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
Spain 7" vinyl single * Jet * JET 153 |
South Africa 7" vinyl single * Jet * SSC 1896
Image used with kind permission of Jon Lock |
Cover Versions
Use in Movies and TV programs
Sheet Music
Sheet music for this song is unavailable at this time.
Promotional Videos and TV Performances
There was a promo video produced as part of the Discovery videos prepared for each song on the album. The Don't Bring Me Down video features the band in a crystal city playing the song with red overtones over the film. Interestingly, although the song features no string parts, the string players are shown all madly playing piano and various keyboards. The video also starts off with cartoon images of a marching woman and a neon hot dog, which make a reappearance about halfway through the video. NOTE: The version of this video released on home video and DVD has the last half the video cut off by the rolling of the credits for the video.
The band played this song live on television during the Heartbeat '86 stage performance that was broadcast in the UK. The VH1 Storytellers and PBS Zoom Tour Live performances were also filmed and broadcast in the USA.
Quotations
This page is intended to be a complete record of information on the Electric Light Orchestra song Don't Bring Me Down. If you notice any errors or omissions, please contact me at elofan@juno.com and let me know. I strive for accuracy.Don't Bring Me Down (Standard Release)
The drum beat for Don't Bring Me Down was taken from a slowed down part of the drum track for the instrumental bridge of On The Run, which Jeff Lynne looped and enhanced. This song was sampled for The Jungle Bros. 1998 song Because I Got It Like That."Jeff Lynne: 'On Don't Bring Me Down, I did all that. I did the whole backing track and everything in about two hours. And I wrote the words in about twenty minutes. Put 'em all down, finished the whole record in a day. But my job... played all the instruments meself.' Bev Bevan: 'The beginning of Don't Bring Me Down, I thought, What on earth is he playing there. Y'know, he's got my old... one of my old drum tracks and he's in there messing around with it, pounding this thing out on the piano. And it ended up being one our favorite ever ELO tracks.' Jeff Lynne: Made a big long loop so that it went, BOM! BAH! BOM! BOM! BAH! And then just played that about four times and then recorded about four minutes of it on the twenty four track. And that's when I started pounding the piano along with it. It's a ghost drummer on that one.'"
Jeff Lynne and Bev Bevan (August 8, 1980 - The ELO Story radio show)"Don't Bring Me Down, I actually love that. [unintelligible] That's a great thing to play [in concert]."
Bev Bevan (1986 - British radio interview by Paul Sexton)"With the song Don't Bring Me Down Jeff had abandoned the original E.L.O. concept for the first time, as it didn't include any strings. This single however became the biggest hit for the group. Jeff: 'On Don't Bring Me Down I did all that, did the whole backing track and everything in about two hours and wrote the words in about 20 minutes and finished the whole record, mixed it the same night and it was finished, you know, within a day! And it was the biggest hit we ever had.' It was one of the few songs Jeff wrote in the studio..."
Patrik Guttenbacher, Marc Haines, & Alexander von Petersdorff (1996 Unexpected Messages)"We weren't singing 'Bruce', no. We were actually singing 'groos' which I don't know what it meant. At the time, I just said it. I was singing the lead vocal and there was a hole and I went, 'groos.' And when we got to the end of the track, Mack, the engineer said, 'How did you know that?' And I said, 'What?' And he said, 'Groos.' He said it means 'greetings' in German. And I went, 'Oh, that's good. Well let's keep it in.' Because it sounded like a daft word and it means 'greetings' so... Anyway, as soon as we got on the road with it, everybody's singing 'Bruce' I ended up singing 'Bruce' as well. [The door closing at the end of the song is] just a metal fire door in the studio in Musicland. It's a big heavy, y'know, heavy thing. And it seals the building off, y'know, completely off from any fire. Yeah, that's one of quite a few [that uses a drum loop from another song] actually. It is a mystery [what song was used for the drum loop in Don't Bring Me Down] to me. I've forgotten how I looped that one. I remember winding the tape 'round like two mike stands and somebody with a pencil... just to get the right length at, uh, at fifteen. I remember doing it. I've done loads of loops like that, y'know, before the days of ProTools and stuff. Y'know, you used to have to improvise a lot on techniques."
Jeff Lynne (circa late 1990s or early 2000s - Off The Record interview with Uncle Joe Benson)"No, kids, Lynne's not singing 'Bruce' in the backing vocals for the [Discovery] album's inspired rocker Don't Bring Me Down. 'No,' [says Jeff Lynne,] 'it's groos-- just a word I made up in the studio to fill up this hole. Everybody loved it so I left it in. Mack-- our great engineer at Musicland-- said, How'd you know that? He told me that groos sounded just like the German word for Greetings. But everyone heard it as Bruce and at all the shows I ended up singing it that way too.'"
David Wild (2000 liner notes for Flashback)"I looped two bars of drumming taken from a different song on Discovery (you'll have to guess which one) and then I overdubbed eight grand pianos, a cement mixer, and two crates of Newcastle Brown Ale and that got the ball rolling."
Jeff Lynne (2000 - Flashback)"It's a great big galloping ball of distortion. I wrote it in the studio at the last minute, 'cos I felt there weren't enough loud ones on the [Discovery] album. This was just what I was after."
Jeff Lynne (2001 - Discovery Remaster)"One of their biggest hits, Don't Bring Me Down, struck a death-knell for the band by having, gasp, no strings attached. Soon after the album, the string players were abruptly dismissed with a letter signed by all the other members of the band."
Jim Irvin (August, 2001 - The Bullring Variations article in Mojo)"Don't Bring Me Down (the first ELO single not to feature strings and producers favourite for sampling) became the group's biggest single hit (No 3 in the USA and No 4 in the UK in August 1979)."
Author Unknown (March 31, 2003 - website only expanded liner notes for ELO 2 remaster CD)
Editor's note: Actually the chart positions are reversed. It was #4 in the USA and #3 in the UK."Discovery, released in 1979, was ELO's most successful album worldwide and produced yet more hits, including... Don't Bring Me Down, the first ELO song not to feature strings."
Rob Caiger (2003 liner notes for The Collection)"Don't Bring Me Down, perhaps the band's most memorable song, was also distinguished because it was their first hit that didn't use a string section."
Jaan Uhelszki (April 1 2003 liner notes for The Essential Electric Light Orchestra)"No, Don't Bring Me Down wasn't by Roxy Music..."
Dom Passantino (October 24, 2005 - Stylus online magazine)"ELO's Jeff Lynne made three of the most over-the-top enjoyable radio hits of the 1970s: Evil Woman, Don't Bring Me Down and Turn to Stone."
Peter Relic and Brian Hiatt (November 17, 2005 - Rolling Stone issue #967)"The band's biggest hit has also created an enduring controversy that rages to this day on internet message boards: what, exactly, does Lynne say after he's sung 'Don't bring me down? It sounds like 'Bruce, some say it's 'gross, but the answer seems to be that it's the German word Grss [sic], from the expression of greeting, 'Grss dich.' It's an in-joke, apparently."
David Cheal (December 8, 2005 - The Daily Telegraph)
Don't Bring Me Down (Edited 18 Greatest Hits LP Version)
This version, found on the Australian 18 Greatest Hits LP from 1984, differs from the original Discovery version in that it replaces the last "down" of the sixth verse with the very last "down" of the song, cutting everything in-between.
Don't Bring Me Down (Time Tour)
Don't Bring Me Down (Heartbeat '86, March 15 1986)
Don't Bring Me Down (Balance Of Power Tour)
Don't Bring Me Down (New York City, April 20, 2001)
Don't Bring Me Down (May 2001)
Robert Porter
July 2008