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Song · The Who

“Magic Bus” by The Who

Released 1970

“Magic Bus” by The Who appears on 32 radio countdowns from 16 stations between 1982 and 2025. It was first released in 1970. Its best result is #117 on the KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #6,039 indie & aaa song of all time.

32countdowns
16stations
#117best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1982–2025years charted

Watch

Magic Bus (Original Stereo Version)

Video from YouTube (The Who - Topic). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

Pete Townshend had "Magic Bus" up his sleeve as far back as 1965, while the Who were making My Generation, but the band didn't get it on tape until 1968. It came out as a single that summer in North America and in October in Britain, with Kit Lambert producing, and it also landed on Magic Bus: The Who on Tour.

The whole thing rides a Bo Diddley beat and the dry clack of claves, a pair of little wooden sticks the band had already tried out on "Disguises", and it chugs along like a bus with no brakes and no timetable. At the time it stalled at 26 in Britain and 25 in America, but it outlived those numbers easily, becoming one of their best-loved songs and a fixture of the live show.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1982 442 95.5 KLOS KLOS Memorial Day 500 (1982) 499
1991 345 WNEW-FM WNEW Firecracker 500 (1991) 500
1996 698 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1996) 1000
1997 365 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (1997) 499
1997 1022 102.3 WBAB WBAB Top 1,023 Rock and Roll Songs of All Time (1997) 1023
2001 1876 WFPK WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time 2000
2002 118 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2002) 923
2004 117 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2004 879 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2004) 885
2010 118 WXPN WXPN 885 Ultimate Road Trip Songs (2010) 885
2011 253 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 457 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2012) 500
2012 254 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2012 283 WXPN WXPN 885 Greatest Rock Songs (2012) 885
2013 593 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2013 122 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR CT 500 (2013) 500
2013 271 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2013) 500
2014 430 Big 100 BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 946 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2015 262 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2015) 500
2015 596 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2016 728 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2020 905 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2020) 1025
2020 1432 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2021 676 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2021 293 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2021) 499
2022 835 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) 1043
2022 988 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2022) 1025
2023 904 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2023 334 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2023) 500
2023 573 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2025 875 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043

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