Kevin Bronson on May 11th, 2013

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First off, happy birthday Eric Burdon. The lead Animal turns 72 today, and that soulful voice of his keeps on giving. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, who in January released a new solo album titled “’Til Your River Runs Dry,” has teamed with L.A. siren Jenny Lewis for a remake of the Animals’ 1965 hit “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.” The song will appear on the compilation “True Blood Vol. 4” (out May 28 via ATO Records), the latest in a series of soundtracks for the HBO series. The idea for the collaboration was hatched by the show’s music supervisor (and KCRW DJ) Gary Calamar, who this week explained how it all came together on the radio station’s blog. Conjoining the old and new school is nothing new for Calamar, who previously facilitated collaborations between Iggy Pop and Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino, Nick Cave and Neko Case and Donovan and Karen Elson. Here, Burdon’s rough-and-tumble baritone and Lewis’ piquant but sweet vocals mesh nicely, making for another interesting episode in the life of a song written almost 50 years ago and first recorded by Nina Simone.

||| Stream: “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”

Photo by Gary Calamar