The Best Who Covers Ever

Head back to the beginning.

30. Juliana Hatfield — My Wife

The lyrics to “My Wife” were written by Juliana Hatfield, right? I mean, she went back in time, of course, and handed them to the Who’s John Entwistle and he recorded them first, but they were hers originally, right? That’s my headcanon for this cover’s existence, anyway, because Hatfield takes lyrics that feel like an offbeat spoken word poem and sets them right. It’s similar to when the beat drops in a song with a metric fakeout (think “Bodysnatchers” by Radiohead) and all of a sudden it’s clear that what you just heard before, and thought was okay, was in fact all wrong.

Hatfield’s vocals are the star in a song whose original seemed to have included them purely for the purpose of exposition. On the flip side, it’s hard to compete with Keith Moon, so Hatfield’s drummer doesn’t even try, and the horn section is also cut. However, this is a fun interpretation that just goes to show how much a talented singer can bring to a song that seemed like it was doing just fine until she showed up. – Mike Misch

29. David Bowie — Pictures of Lily

David Bowie has always had some admiration for The Who. He recorded two Who songs for his 1973 covers album Pin Ups, both from the very beginning of their career. (Their first and second singles as The Who, as a matter of fact.) Half a decade later, Townshend joined Bowie for a track on Scary Monsters. When Substitute: The Songs of The Who was being assembled, Townshend apparently requested Bowie contribute a new cover, something he hadn’t done in over 25 years. Which brings us to Bowie’s third cover of the band, “Pictures of Lily.”

Much like like his “I Can’t Explain” cover 27 years earlier, Bowie slows “Pictures of Lily” way down, till it plods. He layers different vocal parts on top of each other, and the delivery of the main one is much more sedate than the attitude he filled his earlier Who covers with. It’s basically a ballad in his hands, albeit one with a bit of a stoner rock vibe. For good measure, Bowie busts out his stylophone, which he made famous with “Space Oddity” 40 years earlier. It’s a fitting conclusion to his trilogy of Who covers. – Riley Haas

28. Sheryl Crow — Behind Blue Eyes

Sheryl Crow has exactly the sort of voice that this plangent and plaintive lament calls out for. If Roger Daltrey brought out his possibly best ever vocal for the original, Crow effortlessly adds a whole extra layer of ennui. As such, the arrangement needs little fiddling with, the drummer even incorporating the whole Moon schtick of falling downstairs in a wooden overcoat. A lovely version that demonstrates you sometimes only need a decent set of pipes and the confidence not to add a reggae or zydeco beat. – Seuras Og

27. Toots and the Maytals — Squeezebox

If reggae and the Who don’t seem anything like a match, it’s because they’re not. Well, not to my mind, at least. But the 2010 tribute Out Here in the Fields: Legends of Reggae Celebrate the Who brings the understanding, from the title inward. Toots and the Maytals are the biggest names on the album, so it’s appropriate they lead it off. In their hands, “Squeezebox” has the familiar half-speed lope that you can’t help bobbing along to. The band doesn’t exactly remove the sexual innuendo embedded in the lyrics, but it’s not concerned with it – the point of the song is to convey joy, and that absolutely comes across. – Patrick Robbins

26. Mary McCaslin — Pinball Wizard

While seriously underrated folk music cult hero Mary McCaslin was a fine songwriter in her own right, she positively slayed in the cover department (Her rendition of The Supremes “You Keep Me Hangin’ On”, is absolutely freakin’ staggering, listen here). Led by Mary’s matter-of-fact vocal and nimble banjo picking, her 1977 recording of “Pinball Wizard” is an oddball sweetheart of a cover. There’s no booming bombast to be found here, just some earnest singing, and gracious picking. It’s a little weird and delicately disconcerting… and full of endless joy. – Hope Silverman

25. Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs — The Kids Are Alright

In this duet, Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs increase the tempo of “The Kids Are Alright” a few ticks, removing some of the laid-back jauntiness of the original. The rock elements of snappy drums and wailing electric guitar are a little more prominent here, too. These small changes have the combined effect of more adamantly trying to convince us that the “kids are alright,” rather than a more easygoing delivery of that message. When Sweet and Hoffs’ vocals come together or echo one another, the added emphasis shows a united front. – Sara Stoudt

24. Gorky Park — My Generation

The Russian metal band Gorky Park was one of the more intriguing pop cultural icons of the late ‘80s. Their music and image embodied the thawing of US-Soviet relations. Singing in English, but with heavy Russian accents, their videos earned heavy rotation on MTV as they blended images of Soviet oppression with symbols of reconciliation. This cover of “My Generation” appeared on their self-titled 1989 debut album. While the original was a sarcastic countercultural ‘60s anthem signifying a changing of the guard, this cover is brimming with hopeful optimism about the coming of a new age. The band plays it as a loud, fun hair metal cover. They used the words “This is my generation” for a call and response singing along, then blended elements of traditional Russian folk music. For one brief moment, they united their countrymen with metalheads around the world. – Curtis Zimmermann

23. Graham Parker — Substitute

Originally released as a single in 1966, and later included on the 1971 compilation album Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy, the Who’s “Substitute” tells the sad story of a man who knows that he is merely a placeholder for the man his girlfriend truly wants. Its lyrics cleverly parallel that harsh reality with references to other things that aren’t what they seem to be. Graham Parker recorded a cover of the song for his 1992 album Burning Questions, but it wasn’t officially released until 2003, on a compilation album, The Official Art Vandelay Tapes. Parker slows the tempo down, turning the original’s anger and frustration into something sadder and more pathetic, underscored by the distorted, fuzzy guitars. – Jordan Becker

22. Tina Turner — I Can See For Miles

Recorded as part of her last album working with her ex-husband Ike Turner, Tina Turner’s cover of “I Can See For Miles” was part of an album side’s worth of rock covers, inspired in part by her appearance as “The Acid Queen” in the film version of The Who’s Tommy. The covers mostly get disco or soul makeovers and “I Can See For Miles” gets one of the most disco-y makeovers, with pulsating bass, an opening synth and rhodes duel, and a classic ’70s soul string arrangement. But if that sounds kind of incongruous, Turner sings her heart out and makes the song entirely her own, completely dominating the very ’70s and very idiosyncratic arrangement around her. With another singer it might not have worked, given how far from the original the aesthetic and instrumentation are, but in Turner’s hands it’s kind of revelatory. – Riley Haas

21. Southern Culture on the Skids — Happy Jack

SCOTS are one weird set of dudes, leaving many a listener confused as to whether they were mucking about or just generally deranged. Their cover of “Happy Jack” leaves you none the wiser. The Skids take one of the less robust of Townshend’s canon, being unashamedly lightweight pop, and apply as much hayride yeehaw as they do their clear affection for the song. A a result, the outcome is as far removed from Townshend’s Eel Pie Island as you can get, banjo seldom a staple of his requirements. A quick glance at the band’s appearance gives some clue as to their confused perception of the world, and the song’s parent album, the all-cover Countrypolitan Favorites, includes many such a confusing mash-up, and is to be applauded. With nearly 40 years on their clock, they continue to baffle and bemuse. – Seuras Og

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