Covers: Substitute

“Substitute” is a great Who single from 1966. It reached #5 in the UK but didn’t do anything in the US. It’s really funny but I guess our sense of humor is different. It’s on the fine compilation Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy from 1971 which has other excellent Who singles that were successful in the UK but failed here. The Ramones covered it. Here‘s a list of covers from the great Second Hand Songs site.

A vicious broadside replete with confectionery hooks, the Who’s “Substitute” slashes at the open wounds of class and gender with such enmity that it’s unsurprising the Sex Pistols considered it the rare piece of rock detritus worth salvaging. Mersey-Beat-meets-untrammeled-malice.

— The Paranoid Style (@paranoiacs) September 19, 2022