[4] Buckingham originally wanted "Don't Look Down" to be the album's first single, although it was overlooked in favor of "Wrong" in North America and "Countdown" in Europe.
Janet Robin, who was one of the guitarists on the Out of the Cradle tour, recalled that Buckingham was involved in making creative decisions for certain shots in the video.
"[10] Timothy White of Billboard said that the song falls "well within rock's melodic tradition" and features "eccentric constructions and sudden harmonic shifts, each surprise element enhancing their overall appeal.
Considine of Rolling Stone thought that "the song effortlessly captures the balance between languor and lift found in many Fleetwood Mac singles, flowing easily from the measured cadences of the verse to the manic climax of the chorus.
Buckingham doesn't stop there, though; he fills the track with all sorts of ear candy, from Mexicali string-band flourishes to sampled voices that bounce the tune along like pinball bumpers.