Rock Titles Not in the Song: Baba O’Riley (#4)

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Quick! If the country song is making your head hurt, turn this one on! And up! This is probably no surprise to anyone. Well, maybe, if you didn’t know this is the title of this song, you may be surprised. One of rock’s all-time great anthems is up next for today’s song without the title in the lyrics. #4: Baba O’Riley - The Who See you tomorrow. The stories are that Pete Townsend wrote a number of the songs on Who’s Next as a follow-up opera to Tommy, called Lifehouse. That didn’t pan out, but what did emerge from it was one of the great records in rock and roll. Townshend was a follower of Meher Baba at the time, and they had a musical influence named Terry Riley. Hence, “Baba O’Riley.” Yeah, nearly 50 years later it would’ve been better if they had titled it “Teenage Wasteland” (a line Townshend came up with after The Who played Woodstock), but that’s what separates the generations. Baba O’Riley Written by Pete Townshend Recorded by The Who From Who’s Next, 1971 Put out the fire: