Five Great Covers by the Who

The Who released Odds & Sods on their own Track Records in October 1974. A compilation of rare tracks, the record was assembled by the band’s bassist John Entwistle in response to the proliferation of unauthorized (bootleg/pirate) collections of Who songs like Who’s Zoo.

By 1974, the Who had released six albums of new material. But along the way, the London foursome had cut and released a wide number of non-album tracks, and the band’s vault was already filling with unheard demos, songs that hadn’t found their way to release, and other rarities. Most bands could only hope to have put together a collection of leftovers as fine as Odds & Sods.

In the years since, other collections of Who rarities have seen release. But select tracks remain rarely-heard; some are all but unknown outside the circle of hardcore Who fans. And as prolific a songwriter as Pete Townshend has been (Entwistle was too, albeit to a lesser extent), the Who recorded quite a few covers along the way. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Odds & Sods, here are five notable (and comparatively rare) tracks featuring the Who performing the work of other artists.

“Heat Wave” (1966)
Written by the songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland, “Heat Wave” was first popularized by Motown group Martha and the Vandellas. Their 1963 single was a smash, charting #4 on the pop singles chart and #1 on Billboard’s r&b singles chart. The Who cut their version – a relentlessly rocking, bass-forward take – in 1966. In America, the track was included on the group’s second album, Happy Jack.

“Barbara Ann” (1966)
Who drummer Keith Moon was an unapologetic Beach Boys fan. What he wasn’t was a credible vocalist. But that didn’t stop him from recording a solo album, the wild, wooly and cheeky Two Sides of the Moon, in 1975. That LP featured Moon warbling the Beach Boys’ “Don’t Worry Baby,” but in fact Moon had cut another cover of the group’s music much earlier. The band had performed “Barbara Ann” for the BBC, and a clip of the group performing it in the studio was featured in the 1979 documentary The Kids Are Alright. A studio recording – with the whole band singing – was included on the 1990s expanded reissue of A Quick One.

“Under My Thumb” (1967)
The Rolling Stones were the target of zealous anti-drug police in London, and in 1967 Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were arrested on drug charges. In solidarity with the group, the Who recorded covers of two Stones songs: “The Last Time” and “Under My Thumb.” Many years later, the latter track would be included as a bonus cut on an expanded reissue of The Who Sell Out.

“Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” (1991)
Elton John and the Who have a long history of association: Elton famously portrayed the Pinball Wizard character in the Tommy musical film. And in 1991 when Two Rooms, an all-star tribute to Elton and songwriting partner Bernie Taupin – was put together, the Who contributed their own powerful reading of an Elton John hit, “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting.”

“Fire” (1989)
Wild and operatic singer Arthur Brown was signed to the Who’s Track Records when he released The Crazy World of Arthur Brown in 1968. Pete Townshend served as “associate producer” on the album, which featured Brown’s incendiary signature tune, “Fire.” As a single, the tune rose to the #2 spot on the U.S. singles chart, bested only by the Beatles’ “Hey Jude.” More than 20 years later when Townshend was making a solo album, The Iron Man: The Musical, he enlisted his Who band mates in making a cover of the song.