Pete Townshend will never be mistaken for Willie Nelson, but there do indeed exist country songs by The Who. They are of the quintessential rock bands. From their earliest singles, to the long-form rock operas like Tommy and Quadrophenia, the group made some of the best albums of the ’70s.
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The Who draws from all kinds of musical elements. When Townshend, Roger Daltrey, and John Entwistle began as The Detours in the middle of 1962, they played many popular songs of all genres, including jazz, pop, R&B, and country. As they moved toward more original material and added drummer Keith Moon, they took on the name The High Numbers. After a failed single, they took on the name The Who, and the rest was rock ‘n’ roll history.
From the classic guitar, bass, and drums lineup to experimentation with different instruments such as harpsichord, synthesizer, accordion, French horn, and banjo, The Who were always evolving. Townshend would often demo songs with just a guitar. Hearing some of those early skeletons of the songs allows the listener to imagine how traditional country instruments could be added. Is it too late for an entire album of country music Who? These five songs are listed in chronological order.
[RELATED: The 5 Most Memorable Rock Operas by The Who]
1. “Soon Be Home” on A Quick One (1966)
The Who’s second album, A Quick One, contained the mini-opera “A Quick One While He’s Away”. Comprised of multiple movements, it is not a country song, but it contains sections almost completely stereotypically “hayseed.” The “Soon Be Home” section is straight out of the Navajo Trail.
When the band requested that cello parts be added, they were informed by their manager of the budget restraints they were under. The result was band members singing the word “cello” in those parts.
2. “Here for More,” B-side to “The Seeker” (1970)
A rarity in the Who repertoire, this song was written by Roger Daltrey alone. Townshend told Uncut magazine in 2023, “I’m surprised that Roger hasn’t tried to write more songs. When I first got him songwriting, he did a session with me at my home studio in Twickenham and wrote ‘Here For More.’ I remember saying to him, ‘This is like a fucking Buddy Holly song. It’s absolutely magnificent!… I think he doesn’t have the patience for it.”
The loping bass line and chiming acoustic rhythm guitars add another dimension to the lead guitar. It still sounds like The Who, but it’s country.
3. “I Don’t Even Know Myself,” B-side to “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (1971)
The harmonica kicking off this one is reminiscent of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, and the barrelhouse piano rolls along with the slide guitar. When the break comes with the percussive backdrop, the bass goes country. The rest of the song, Entwistle, plays typical Who bass lines. You can take The Who out of London, but you can’t take the London out of The Who.
In 1974, Cameron Crowe interviewed Townshend for Penthouse magazine, “I wrote a couple of songs in a period where people were writing extensive analysis of my character and stuff like this. And I thought, ‘Well, fuck it. You don’t know me. I don’t know myself. How can you know me?’ And the other thing was that people were attributing so much to dope at the time, and I felt that was very stupid. People just didn’t seem to be looking any further than they were seeing.
4. “Now I’m a Farmer” on Odds & Sods (1974)
The beginning is reminiscent of classic ’70s Who songs. It doesn’t seem to have anything to do with country music. But hold on, the lyrics come in, and it’s about farming. At about 2:10, it goes full-country. Farmer Pete is living the good life.
Townshend states in the Odds & Sods liner notes, “It’s a drug song, all about the good life out in the fields growing those fantastic phallic ornamental gourds that you can use to… to… to make gorgeous fruit bowl arrangements… This track is from the period when The Who went slightly mad; we put out several records called ‘DOGS,’ and at least one about finding ‘one’s inner self.’ Gourds, mate, that’s the secret of life… GOURDS.”
Some sources say this song was included in the early draft plans for 1969’s Tommy. It was put on the back burner and didn’t get a proper release until it was included in the compilation with other songs of that ilk.
5. “Squeeze Box” on The Who by Numbers (1975)
In the liner notes for Scoop, his 1983 compilation album of unreleased songs and demos, Townshend said, “I had bought myself an accordion and learned to play it… The polka-esque rhythm I managed to produce from it brought forth this song.”
Townshend remembered in his 2012 memoir Who I Am, “It was Ronnie Lane who encouraged me to consider ‘Squeeze Box’ for the album. It was a rank outsider as a song, not even included in the songs I had first suggested to Roger. I had written it entirely for my own amusement, to show off my abilities on an accordion I bought at a local music shop. One evening, I played Ronnie my demo, and he loved it. He said it sounded like a crazy Country & Western polka. He also thought it was time for me to give up on The Who.”
“Squeeze Box” was the lead single from The Who by Numbers in 1975 in America and 1976 in the U.K. It became the band’s first Top 10 hit in Britain since 1972’s “Join Together.”
Other Who songs that hint at country include the voice break in “There’s A Fortune In Those Hills,” the mandolin in “Blue, Red, and Grey,” “Love Ain’t For Keeping,” “How Many Friends,” “I’m One,” “Time Is Passing,” and “They Are All In Love.” Townshend demos that lend themselves to country possibilities include “The Seeker,” “Things Have Changed,” “The Girls I Could’ve Had,” “Going’ Fishin’,” “Cookin’,” “Love Is Wine,” and “Lazy Fat People,” a song ultimately released by The Barron Knights.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
