5 Must-Listen Deep Cuts by The Who

The Who has released many classic songs that made an impact the charts and also became staples on rock radio. However, the British rock legends also have many great deep cuts that, unless you’re familiar with their studio albums and rarities compilations, may have flown under your radar.

For a band that’s been around 60 years, it’s not easy to compile a short list of noteworthy, memorable songs. That being said, here’s a selection of five standout deep cuts by the band with which you may not be familiar:

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“So Sad About Us” (1966)

“So Sad About Us” is a power-pop gem that appeared on The Who’s second U.K. studio, A Quick One, and its U.S. counterpart, Happy Jack. Those albums were released, respectively, in December 1966 and April 1967.

The Who’s Pete Townshend originally wrote the melodic breakup song for the U.K. group The Merseys, which released it as a single in 1966.

The Who’s version of “So Sad About Us” is sung by frontman Roger Daltrey, and is highlighted by the band’s sweet harmonies, Townshend’s sometimes-slashing, sometimes-jangly guitars, and Keith Moon’s frenetic drumming.

The song was later covered by The Jam, Primal Scream, and The Breeders.

Earlier this week, on March 24, ex-Jam frontman Paul Weller teamed up with Daltrey to perform “So Sad About Us” during the star-studded “Ovation” concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

“I Can’t Reach You” (1967)

“I Can’t Reach You” appeared on The Who’s third studio effort, the 1967 concept album The Who Sell Out. The song, which was written and sung by Townshend, is about a man yearning for a woman who seems unattainable to him.

The piano-driven song showcases Townshend’s plaintive lead vocals, and the band’s falsetto harmonies.

“Naked Eye” (1969)

“Naked Eye” was a song The Who recorded in 1969, and intended release as part of an EP that was shelved. It finally got its official release in 1974 on the band’s Odds & Sods rarities compilation.

“This number was written around a riff that we often played on stage at the end of our act around the time we were touring early Tommy,” Townshend explained in the Odds & Sods liner notes. “It came to be one of our best stage numbers.”

The song features Daltrey crooning, then belting Townshend’s enigmatic lyrics. Townshend also takes over on vocals for a middle verse. The song ends with an extended psychedelic jam.

The Who have continued to play “Naked Eye” fairly regularly in concert. Most recently, they included in their sets throughout their 2022 fall U.S. tour.

“Pure and Easy” (1971)

“Pure and Easy” was written by Townshend in 1971 for The Who’s aborted Life House multimedia project. When that expansive project fell apart, the band decided to release a single-disc album. That record became the classic Who’s Next. “Pure and Easy” was one of the tracks that didn’t make the cut.

Interesting, Daltrey is heard singing the first verse of “Pure and Easy” at the end of the Who’s Next track “Song Is Over.”

Townshend recorded his own version of “Pure and Easy” for his 1972 solo debut album, Who Came First. The Who’s studio recording of the song is featured on Odds & Sods.

“Pure and Easy” is an uplifting melodic rock anthem about the mystical, unifying powers of music.

“Beads on One String” (2019)

It’s not a stretch to say that The Who’s 2019 studio album, WHO, exceeded a lot of fans expectations. The band’s first new studio effort in 13 years reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was filled with strong songs, including “Beads on One String.”

Townshend came up with the lyrics and melody for the song after finding the music, which was written by American film-score composer Josh Hunsaker, on SoundCloud. The song’s humanistic, antiwar theme is based on the writings of Townshend’s late guru, Meher Baba. Baba once wrote, “I want to bring the religions of the world together like beads on one string.”

In a 2020 Zoom interview to promote the WHO album, Daltrey revealed that “Beads on One String” was his favorite song from the record.

“[T]here’s something about the message that I really, really like. I think it’s a masterful piece of songwriting,” Daltrey said. “[T]he world at the moment, there are so many people pulling it apart. … Music can always pull us together. That song is a pulling-us-together song.”

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