Magic Bus (song)
| "Magic Bus" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by The Who | ||||
| from the album Magic Bus: The Who on Tour | ||||
| B-side |
"Bucket T", "Someone's Coming" (US) "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (UK) "Mary Anne with the Shaky Hand" (Norway) | |||
| Released |
27 July 1968 (US) 18 September 1968 (UK) | |||
| Format | 7" vinyl | |||
| Recorded | 29 May 1968 at Advision Studios, London and mixed at Gold Star Studios, Los Angeles sometime between 30 June and 7 July 1968 | |||
| Genre | Blues rock, psychedelic rock | |||
| Length | 3:21 | |||
| Label |
Track Records 604024 (UK) Decca Records 32362 (US) | |||
| Writer(s) | Pete Townshend | |||
| Producer(s) | Kit Lambert | |||
| The Who singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Magic Bus" is a song written by Pete Townshend during the time that My Generation was being recorded in 1965. However, it was not recorded by The Who until 1968 and officially released in the US in July 1968.[1] It has become one of the band's most popular songs and has been a concert staple, although when released, the record only reached number 26 in the United Kingdom and number 25 in the United States.[2]
The song's arrangement uses a Latin percussion instrument known as claves. These are pairs of small wooden sticks that make a distinctive high pitched clicking noise when struck together. The Who previously used this same instrument on the song "Disguises", which was recorded in 1966.
The song makes use of the Bo Diddley beat.[3]
Background
The song was not recorded by The Who at the time it was written, but the band's management and music publisher circulated a Townshend demo recording of the song in 1966. A version was released as a single in the UK in April 1967 by an obscure band called The Pudding, in the UK on Decca and in the US on London's Press label. It was not a hit.[4][5]
The song is usually performed as a duet, where the "Rider", usually singer Roger Daltrey when live, is riding on the bus every day to see his girl. In the song he asks the "Driver", usually Townshend, if he can buy the bus from him, with the driver's initial answer being no. After haggling for a while, the driver finally lets him have it and he vows to drive it to his girlfriend's house every day.[6]
The original LP and cassette of the Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy compilation album featured a longer alternate studio take of "Magic Bus" in fake stereo which was not included on the original compact disc version because the true stereo or mono source could not be found for the long version of the song.[citation needed] However, on 25 July 2007, Universal Japan re-released the album in a mini-LP sleeve that includes the long alternate version of "Magic Bus" in fake stereo, as on the original album. This longer mix features a slightly different arrangement and does not fade out at the end. (The single length version did appear in true stereo only on the US "Magic Bus" LP.)
The song appeared in the band's 1979 film The Kids Are Alright taken from a 1968 performance. It was subsequently released on The Kids Are Alright film soundtrack. That version is the mono single version, but slowed down, resulting in the song being a semi-tone lower in pitch.
Live performances and other uses
This was first performed in 1968 and was part of the regular set from 1971 to 1976. (It was performed a few times in 1969 and 1970.) It made less frequent appearances starting from 1979. Its most recent performance was at The Who's concert at the Indigo2 on 17 December 2008. The live version was often a lengthy jam lasting much longer than the studio version.
One of its most legendary performances can be heard on Live at Leeds.[7] This version stretches out to nearly eight minutes, with Roger Daltrey joining the jam playing harmonica. The Leeds recording has been used during the musical montage sequence in the final act of Martin Scorsese's film Goodfellas as well as the opening sequence in Cameron Crowe's Jerry Maguire. John Entwistle reportedly hated playing the song, as most of the bass part consisted of a single note played ad nauseam. This statement can be found on the 30 Years of Maximum R&B DVD.
It was stated on several occasions during their 2009 tour of Australia and Japan that they were unable to play the song, with Townshend stating, "We can't play Magic Bus right now.... But if you shout loud enough... We definitely won't play it."
The song appears in the film Year One.
The song was covered by Alvin and the Chipmunks for the Alvin and the Chipmunks episode "The Prize Isn't Right."
This song is available as downloadable content (DLC) in Rock Band 2.
References
- ↑ "History". Thewho.com. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ Who Discography by Ed Hanel, included in booklet to box set Thirty Years of Maximum R&B
- ↑ "Bo Diddley, rock & roll pioneer, dies at 79". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013011024.
- ↑ "The Originals Project". Originalsproject.us. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ "The Hypertext Who › Liner Notes › Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy". Thewho.net. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ "Magic Bus Lyrics - The Who". Sing365.com. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ "The Hypertext Who › Liner Notes › Live at Leeds". Thewho.net. Retrieved 2013-11-24.